Meghan Summers
Partner
- New York
-
250 Park Avenue
Suite 820
New York, NY 10177 - 212.699.1181
Biography
Biography
Meghan Summers is a partner based in our New York office focusing on securities, structured finance, and antitrust litigation.
Ms. Summers began working at the firm in 2008 as a paralegal and law clerk before becoming an associate in 2012 and then a partner in 2017.
- Cornell University, ranked first in her major (B.S. summa cum laude, 2008)
- Pace University School of Law, Salutatorian (J.D. summa cum laude, 2012)
Articles Editor, Pace Law Review - King’s College, London (Postgraduate Diploma with Merit, EU Competition Law, 2019)
- New York State Bar
- United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York
- United States District Court for the District of Colorado
- United States Courts of Appeals for the Second and Third Circuits
Super Lawyers, Top Rated Attorney - Securities & Corporate Finance, 2023
Super Lawyers Rising Star, 2019-2024
Super Lawyers Rising Star, 2019-2024
Associate Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, 2022
Experience
Some of Ms. Summers’ securities and structured finance experience includes:
- Lead counsel representing Wespath, the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church, in Doyle v. Reata Pharmaceuticals, a securities class action alleging that Reata made false and/or misleading statements — including in connection with its secondary public stock offerings — concerning, inter alia, the FDA guidance regarding the design of the clinical trial (CARDINAL) for Reata’s drug candidate, bardoxolone methyl. When the FDA revealed serious concerns it had previously raised to Reata, the share price declined materially. The case has resulted in a settlement of $45 million.
- Counsel in Maverick Neutral Levered Fund, Ltd. v. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc., alleging that Valeant materially misrepresented its business model, touting artificial and unsustainable growth that was enabled by the company’s deceptive and illegal conduct.
- Lead counsel in Dandong v. Pinnacle Performance Limited, a class action lawsuit against Morgan Stanley pertaining to $154.7 million of notes issued by Pinnacle Performance Ltd. Plaintiffs alleged that Morgan Stanley engineered the Pinnacle notes, which it marketed as a safe investment, to fail, investing money into collateralized debt obligations linked to risky companies, while actively shorting the same assets and betting against their clients. This litigation resulted in a $20 million settlement.
- Representation of foreign financial institutions in individual lawsuits against Morgan Stanley, Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and Barclays pertaining to a number of fraudulent structured investment vehicles and asset-backed collateralized debt obligations.
- Lead counsel in In re MOL Global, Inc. Securities Litigation, a class action lawsuit alleging that e-payment enabler MOL Global misled shareholders prior to its initial public offering. This litigation resulted in a $8.5 million settlement.
- Lead counsel in Rudman v. CHC Group, Ltd., a securities class action alleging that CHC Group had misled investors by failing to disclose that one of its two largest customers had stopped making payments on its contracts prior to the company’s initial public offering. This litigation resulted in a $3.85 million settlement.
- Representation in individual securities fraud actions against Merck and Schering-Plough related to the commercial viability of the companies’ anti-cholesterol medication, Vytorin, and the subsequent drop in Merck’s and Schering-Plough’s share price.
- Representation in individual securities fraud actions against Merck related to the safety and commercial viability of its medication, Vioxx, and the subsequent drop in Merck’s share price.
- Representation in an individual securities fraud action against BP plc related to the Deepwater Horizon explosion on April 20, 2010, and the subsequent drop in BP’s share price.
- Representation in an individual securities fraud action alleging that, in marketing their auto-loan ABS securitizations to investors, TCF Bank and Gateway One materially misrepresented the key metric used by investors to evaluate and price the securitizations’ certificates.
- Representation in a shareholder derivative lawsuit against officers and directors of HSBC Holdings and its subsidiaries, alleging that HSBC ran money laundering operations out of New York City. The litigation settled for $72.5 million, the then-largest foreign derivatives settlement ever reached and one of the largest insurer-funded cash payments achieved in a U.S. derivatives lawsuit.
- Representation of the exchange-based class in In re LIBOR-Based Financial Instruments Antitrust Litigation, an antitrust case alleging that defendant banks colluded to misreport and manipulate LIBOR. The case resulted in settlements totaling $190.45 million, which combined represent the largest recovery in a “futures-only” commodities class action litigation.
- Special fiduciary representation for the exchange-based class in In re Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation for a putative class of participants who traded futures and options in the foreign exchange market. This litigation has already resulted in partial settlements of more than $2.3 billion.
- Representation in individual lawsuits against Citibank, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and Barclays, alleging that the banks colluded to prevent a patented method for structuring airline special facility revenue bonds from entering the airline municipal bond market in violation of New York’s Donnelly Act.
- Consulting and advisory counsel to Canadian lead counsel in an antitrust case against Microsoft. This litigation resulted in a settlement of $395 million.
Cases & Investigations
- Case / Company Name
- Type
- Status
-
Name
Maverick Neutral Levered Fund, Ltd. v. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc.,
No. 20-cv-02190 (D.N.J.). - Type Securities
- Status Pending
-
We are acting as counsel in this securities class action alleging that Valeant materially misrepresented its business model, touting artificial and unsustainable growth that was enabled by the company’s deceptive and illegal conduct. The case has important implications not only for Valeant’s shareholders, who sustained significant losses when the company’s misrepresentations were disclosed, but for corporate governance in the pharmaceutical industry as a whole, and for consumers: Valeant’s growth during the class period was driven not by “organic growth” sustained by volume increases and cost savings, but by price gouging (ex: within two days of acquiring the rights to Nitropress and Isuprel, two drugs used to treat emergency heart conditions, Valeant increased their prices by 212% and 525%, respectively).
-
Name
Doyle v. Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
No. 21-cv-00987 (E.D. Tex.). - Type Securities
- Status Settled
-
We are representing Wespath, the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church, in this securities class action alleging that Reata Pharmaceuticals made false and/or misleading statements — including in connection with its secondary public stock offerings — concerning, inter alia, the FDA guidance regarding the design of the clinical trial (CARDINAL) for Reata’s drug candidate, bardoxolone methyl. When the FDA revealed serious concerns it had previously raised to Reata, the share price declined materially. The case has resulted in a settlement of $45 million.
-
Name
Mason-Mahon v. Flint,
No. 602052/2014 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., Nassau Cty.). - Type Corporate Governance, Securities
- Status Settled
-
KM represented an English investor in a shareholder derivative lawsuit against officers and directors of HSBC Holdings and its subsidiaries, alleging that HSBC facilitated money laundering operations out of New York City. In a matter of first impression, we established the right of English shareholders to bring derivative claims against English companies in New York state courts. The litigation settled for $72.5 million, the then-largest foreign derivatives settlement ever reached and one of the largest insurer-funded cash payments achieved in a U.S. derivative lawsuit.
-
Name
In re Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation,
No. 13-cv-07789 (S.D.N.Y.). - Type Antitrust, Commodities
- Status Settled
-
Special fiduciary representation for the exchange-based class for a putative class of participants who traded futures and options in the FX market. The case has already resulted in partial settlements of more than $2.3 billion.
-
Name
In re MOL Global, Inc. Securities Litigation,
No. 14-cv-09357 (S.D.N.Y.). - Type Securities
- Status Settled
-
KM acted as counsel to lead plaintiff TAP Retirement Fund in a securities fraud class action involving MOL Global, Inc.’s accounting misrepresentations. In this case, we overcame numerous challenges to our client taking the lead in the case, including: allegations that TAP was not the actual owner of the shares but was merely an investment advisor that did not have standing to bring claims; under Brunei law, a suit cannot be filed on behalf of the fund without the express permission of the Sultan of Brunei; and that a Brunei-based plaintiff cannot be the lead plaintiff because Brunei law would not recognize a judgment from a U.S. court. We convinced the court to reject these challenges as nothing more than speculation, and — before a ruling on the motion to dismiss, and with very little time and effort required from TAP — the case settled for $8.5 million for the class.
-
Name
Dandong v. Pinnacle Performance Ltd.,
No. 10-cv-08086 (S.D.N.Y.). - Type Securities, Structured Finance
- Status Settled
-
KM acted as lead counsel for a group of Singapore-based investors in a securities class action against Morgan Stanley pertaining to notes issued by Cayman Islands-registered Pinnacle Performance Ltd. Plaintiffs alleged that Morgan Stanley routed Pinnacle investors’ principal into synthetic collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) which were built to fail and then bet against. As the CDOs failed by design, plaintiffs’ principal was swapped to Morgan Stanley, enriching Morgan Stanley while rendering the Pinnacle Notes an all-but-total loss. This case resulted in a settlement of $20 million for the class following the court’s order certifying common law fraud claims.
-
Name
In re LIBOR-Based Financial Instruments Antitrust Litigation,
No. 11-md-02262 (S.D.N.Y.). - Type Antitrust, Commodities
- Status Settled
-
KM filed the first LIBOR manipulation lawsuit on behalf of investors and currently serves as court-appointed co-lead counsel for the exchange-based class alleging the fixing of prices of a benchmark interest rate. The case resulted in settlements totaling $190.45 million, which combined represent the largest recovery in a “futures-only” commodities class action litigation.
- Name Out of Court Settlement
- Type
- Status Settled
-
We represented a major pension fund and a sovereign wealth fund in negotiations with a money center bank to settle the clients’ claims in a prominent securities litigation. Dealing directly with defendants and without the need to file opt-out litigation, KM was able to procure for its clients significant settlements which represented more than 150% of the recovery they would have received should they have remained passive members of the class. To the firm’s knowledge, these two clients are the only entities to have received a settlement premium in this matter. KM continues to monitor the claims process to ensure everything is handled smoothly for its clients.
News
Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers has recognized five KM attorneys as New York Metro Super Lawyers and four as Rising Stars.
Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers has recognized five KM attorneys as New York Metro Super Lawyers and five as Rising Stars.
New York-based partner Meghan Summers has been selected as an Associate Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America. Ms. Summers’ practice focuses on securities, structured finance, and antitrust litigation. She represents institutional investors and other clients in major litigations in federal and state courts.
Kirby McInerney Partner Meghan Summers recently presented a report before the Chief Justice of Ireland. The report, which Ms. Summers co-authored, focuses on how class actions could be implemented in Ireland.
The Third Circuit on Thursday revived fraud claims brought under state law by investors that opted out of class actions involving Merck & Co. Inc.’s statements about cholesterol drugs.
Kirby McInerney Partner Meghan Summers authored an article published in Law360 about the erosion of American Pipe tolling of the statute of limitations.
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC has reached a settlement with a putative class of investors suing over $139 million in allegedly defective mortgage-backed securities, it told a New York federal judge, and expects to hand in the deal on Friday.