Emil A. Kleinhaus is a partner at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. He focuses on commercial litigation, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights.

Since joining the firm in 2004, Emil has worked on a variety of significant matters. He is active in the firm’s representation of JPMorgan Chase in litigation arising out of the Lehman Brothers and Madoff bankruptcies. He has represented major creditors of debtors such as Calpine, Pliant and Northwest Airlines; defended banks and investment firms against fraudulent transfer and preference claims brought by debtors such as American Home Mortgage, Dreier LLP and NCFE; and represented corporations and directors in suits alleging securities fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. Emil also has experience with cross-border insolvencies and related litigation.

Emil received a B.A., summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from Yale College in 1999, and a J.D. from Yale Law School in 2002, where he was an Articles Editor of the Yale Law Journal. Following law school, he served as a law clerk for Chief Judge Michael B. Mukasey of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and then for Judge José A. Cabranes of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Emil is an author of numerous publications, including “Prepayment Clauses in Bankruptcy,” 15 Am. Bankr. Inst. L. Rev. 537 (2007), “Buying Claims Against a Chapter 11 Debtor,” The Americas Restructuring and Insolvency Guide (2008/2009), and “Avoidance Actions in Cross-Border Bankruptcy Proceedings,” N.Y.U. Workshop on Bankruptcy and Business Reorganization (2008).