Keith Gottfried

Partner

Alston + Bird

Keith Gottfried is a Washington, D.C. partner who concentrates his practice advising public companies and their boards of directors and special committees thereof, with regard to proxy contests, activist shareholder campaigns, contests for corporate control, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, securities regulation, and NYSE and Nasdaq compliance.

Mr. Gottfried leads the firm’s company-side shareholder activism defense practice and has extensive experience advising public companies and their boards of directors in connection with unsolicited takeover bids, proxy contests, consent solicitations and other contests for corporate control. Over the course a legal career that spans more than two decades, Mr. Gottfried has been involved in numerous high-profile proxy contests and hostile takeovers.

He has been frequently quoted by the national business media on articles relating to shareholder activism and is also a frequent speaker on issues relating to shareholder activism.

Mr. Gottfried has also held senior in-house legal positions in the public and private sectors. He served as general counsel of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development following his nomination by President George W. Bush and his unanimous confirmation by the U.S. Senate. Earlier, Mr. Gottfried served as general counsel of Borland Software Corporation in California’s Silicon Valley.