Roger Cooper is a partner based in the New York office.
Mr. Cooper’s practice focuses on complex civil litigation, with an emphasis on disputes arising out of securities, M&A and derivative transactions, as well as on corporate governance issues.
Mr. Cooper’s recent representations include:
- Numerous financial institutions in securities class action litigation arising out of their underwriting of Lehman Brothers securities. In re Lehman Bros. Securities & ERISA Litig., 799 F. Supp. 2d 258 (S.D.N.Y. 2011).
- Citigroup Global Markets in securities class action litigation related to the issuance and underwriting of mortgage-backed securities. City of Ann Arbor Employees’ Retirement System , et al. v. Citigroup Mortgage Loan Trust Inc., et al., 08 CV 01418 (E.D.N.Y.).
- Asahi Kasei Corporation in shareholder litigation arising out of its acquisition of Zoll Medical Corporation. Boxton et al. v. Zoll Medical Corp. et al., No 12-1190 (BLS) (Sup. Ct. MA).
- Bausch & Lomb in shareholder litigation arising out of its acquisition of Ista Pharmaceuticals. In re Ista Pharmaceuticals Inc. Shareholder Litig., No. 30-2012-00560834 (Sup. Ct. CA).
- Kindred HealthCare in shareholder litigation arising out of its acquisition of RehabCare Group. In re RehabCare Group Inc. Shareholders Litig., No. 6197 (Ct. of Chancery DE).
- Countrywide Financial Corporation in defeating securities claims brought by a hedge fund. SRM Global Fund Partnership v. Countrywide Financial Corp., 2010 WL 2473595 (S.D.N.Y. June 17, 2010).
- ABN Amro and J.P. Morgan in the dismissal of claims arising out of their underwriting of mortgage-backed securities. Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi v. Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., et al., 2010 WL 4903619 (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 30, 2010).
- BHP Billiton in connection with litigation stemming from its unsolicited $40 billion all-cash offer to acquire Potash Corporation. Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. v. BHP Billiton Ltd., et al., No. 10-CV-06024 (N.D. Ill).
- A leading global financial institution in an ICC arbitration arising out of the purchase of a multi-billion Euro portfolio of non-performing loans.
Mr. Cooper’s current representations include:
- 3M Corporation in shareholder class action litigation arising out of its acquisition of Ceradyne, Inc. In re Ceradyne Inc. Shareholder Litig., No. 20-2012-00604931 (Sup. Ct. CA).
- Numerous investment banks in on-going securities litigation arising out of the underwriting of Lehman Brothers securities.
- Numerous investment banks in Securities Act claims arising out of the underwriting of Royal Bank of Scotland securities. In re Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc Securities Litig., 09 CV 300 (S.D.N.Y.).
- Bank of America and Merrill Lynch in litigation arising out of mortgage-backed securities.
- CARBO Ceramics in securities class action litigation brought by common stock and options investors. In re CARBO Ceramics, Inc. Stock & Options Securities Litig., No. 12 cv 01034 (S.D.N.Y.).
- AG Financial Products in several actions arising out of credit default swaps with Lehman Brothers entities. Lehman Brothers International v. AG Financial Products, Inc., No. 653284/2011 (Sup. Ct. NY); LBHI v. Credit Protection Trust 283, Adv. No. 12-01979 (Banker, S.D.N.Y.); LBHI v. Credit Protection Trust 207, Adv. No. 12-01980 (Banker, S.D.N.Y.).
- Atlantic Power Corporation in securities class action litigation brought by common stock investors.
Mr. Cooper has been recognized by
The Legal 500 U.S. for his shareholder litigation practice.
Mr. Cooper is also very active in the firm’s pro bono practice. He has represented the Merce Cunningham Dance Foundation in litigation. He also recently obtained a favorable settlement on behalf of more than 20 workers at a Long Island, New York restaurant in a wage and hour dispute.
Mr. Cooper's recent publications include: “First Department Limits Securities Fraud Holder Claims,”
New York Law Journal Litigation (February 28, 2011), co-authored with Matthew M. Bunda; “The Primacy of Standing in Mortgage-Backed Securities Class Actions,”
U.S. Law Week (Vol. 78, No. 42, May 11, 2010), co-authored with Mitchell A. Lowenthal; “Broad Ruling in Enron Bankruptcy Appeal Restores Certainty to ‘Settlement Payment’ Safe Harbor,”
Derivatives (Vol. 16, Issue 11, April 12, 2010), co-authored with Avram E. Luft; and “The Continuing Saga of Westar Energy v. Lake: Advancement of Reasonable Legal Fees in Federal District Court,”
White Collar Crime (Vol. 23, Issue 3, Dec. 2008), co-authored with Lewis J. Liman. Mr. Cooper is also the co-author of a chapter on
Derivatives Litigation in Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts (ed. Robert L. Haig, 2011) (co-authored with Thomas J. Moloney and Carmine D. Boccuzzi).
Mr. Cooper joined the firm in 2003 and became a partner in 2011. He received a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law in 2002, where he was Essay and Review Editor of the
Columbia Law Review. He received a Ph.D. in Political Philosophy from Duke University in 1999, and an undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1991. From 2002-2003, he served as a law clerk to the Honorable B. Avant Edenfield of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia.
Mr. Cooper is a member of the Bar of New York and is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second and Federal Circuits. He is currently a member of the Committee on Securities Litigation of the Bar Association of the City of New York.