Kenneth Mantel guides equity investors through dynamic, high-stakes engagements to achieve their investment goals, including collaborative engagement with boards and management teams, director election contests, acquisition proposals, and opposition campaigns, providing 360-degree views of challenges and opportunities, and tailored solutions that deliver results.
Ken advises leading investment funds, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals investing with public companies, inside the U.S. and internationally, on pathways to achieving their investment goals. Responsive and easy to work with, Ken knows from experience that no two clients or situations are the same, and that legal and strategic advice needs to reflect that. He works with clients to assess the situation, ascertain potential options, address legal issues, and implement a comprehensive strategic approach.
Ken has experience guiding clients through the broad spectrum of situations and issues they encounter during the course of private and public engagement with public companies and their boards and management teams, including initial stakebuilding, private discussions on strategic and governance matters, public letter-writing campaigns, director election contests, acquisition proposals, opposing company transactions or other proposals, vindication of shareholders’ rights, SEC reporting and disclosure requirements (including Schedules 13D and 13G), and general strategy.
Ken also represents corporate clients in significant securities, transactional, and general business matters, ranging from mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt financings, and initial public offerings to advising on securities laws and SEC reporting, corporate governance, business partnerships, and commercial contracts.
Activist & Equity Investment
- Regularly advises Elliott Management, an innovative and market-leading investment fund, on its analysis of potential public company investment situations and engagement with boards of directors and management teams. Includes cooperation agreements reached with Constellation Brands, Catalent, Goodyear, Pinterest, Cardinal Health, Duke Energy, Principal Financial Group, and Public Storage, as well as numerous other public and private engagements on value-enhancing actions.
- Represented Sherborne Investors Management in building an approximately 20% position in Navient Corporation and obtaining representation for fund principal on the board of directors.
- Represented real estate-focused investment fund Arkhouse in director nominations and engagement with two REITs culminating in sales of the companies.
- Represented Ortelius Advisors in opposition to shareholder proposals related to dilutive financing at Capital Senior Living Corporation.
- Represented family fund in settlement of potential election contest at company where it was a pre-IPO investor, resulting in company repurchase of all of the fund’s shares.
- Represented diversified public holding company in building a majority ownership position in a small public company through open-market purchases.
Changes to Board Composition
- Elliott Management
- Catalent (settlement reached for four board seats)
- Goodyear (settlement reached for three board seats)
- Constellation Brands (settlement reached for two board seats)
- Pinterest (settlement reached for one board seat)
- Cardinal Health (settlement reached for four board seats)
- Suncor Energy (settlement reached for three board seats)
- Duke Energy (settlement reached for two board seats)
- Principal Financial Group, Inc. (settlement reached for two board seats)
- Public Storage (settlement reached for two board seats)
- Alkermes (settlement reached for one board seat)
- Nielsen Holdings plc (settlement reached for one board seat)
- Twitter, Inc. (settlement reached for one board seat)
- Evergy, Inc. (settlement reached for two board seats)
- Peabody Energy Corporation (settlement reached for three board seats)
- QEP Resources, Inc. (agreement to select two mutually agreeable directors)
- Sempra Energy (agreement to appoint two mutually agreed independent directors)
- Commvault Systems, Inc. (settlement reached for two board seats)
- QEP Resources, Inc. (agreement to announce strategic initiatives and present board declassification proposal to stockholders)
- Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (agreement to appoint a mutually agreeable director)
- Arconic Inc. (settlement reached to nominate three directors at the annual meeting; all three elected by shareholders)
- CDK Global, Inc. (settlement reached for two independent directors identified by Elliott)
- American Capital (entry into agreements to support acquisition by Ares Capital)
- Sherborne Investors (settlement reached for appointment of fund principal to board)
- Starboard Value
- Forest City Realty Trust, Inc. (settlement reached for five board seats)
- Cars.com Inc. (settlement reached for three board seats)
- Tessera Technologies (settlement reached to nominate six directors at the Annual Meeting; all 6 elected by shareholders)
- DSP Group (settlement reached to add two independent directors to board)
- Daniel A. Ninivaggi (Protean Services LLC) at Tenneco Inc. (settlement reached for one board seat)
- Broadfin Capital at BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc. (agreements reached for three board seats and for equity financing led by Broadfin)
- City of London Investment Management Company at China Fund, Inc. (agreement to search for a new investment manager and form a committee with the City of London to resolve outstanding matters)
- Land & Buildings at QTS Realty Trust Inc. (withhold campaign against two directors)
- Snow Park Capital at Monogram Residential Trust, Inc. (settlement reached for an observer to the board)
Corporate Matters
Mergers & Acquisitions
- Represented Alleghany Corporation, a multinational holding company with a core position in property and casualty reinsurance and insurance, in a series of acquisitions of controlling interests in privately held companies.
- Represented Remark Holdings, Inc., a technology company, in a series of acquisitions in the digital media space.
- Represented Novation Companies, Inc. in its acquisition of a healthcare staffing company as part of its Chapter 11 reorganization process.
- Represented Landry’s, Inc. in its acquisition of B.R. Guest Holdings
- Represented Ness Technologies, Inc., a global provider of information technology solutions and services, in its merger with an affiliate of a private equity investment fund.
- Represented New Century Equity Holdings Corp. in its acquisition of a fashion model management company and affiliated entities.
Financings
- Represented Alleghany Corporation in public offerings of senior notes and in equity and debt financings for portfolio companies.
- Represented Remark Holdings, Inc. in numerous equity and debt financings, including private placements, public offerings, equity lines, and credit facilities.
- Represented GAMCO Investors in equity and debt self-tender offers.
- Represented CorMedix Inc., a pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapeutic products for the treatment of cardiorenal disease, in its initial public offering.
News
Speaking Engagements
Publications
Alerts
Honors & Recognitions
- Recognized as a “Recommended Lawyer” in The Legal 500 United States guide for M&A/Corporate and Commercial: Shareholder Activism - Advice to Shareholders, 2021-2024
- Named to the New York Metro Super Lawyers list, 2022-2024
- Named a “Rising Star” by New York Metro Super Lawyers, 2014-2021
Blog Posts
Practice Areas
Education
J.D., New York University School of Law, 2006
B.A., Duke University, 2003
Admissions
- New York
