Samidh J. Guha

Partner, Akin Gump

Samidh J. Guha focuses on complex commercial litigation, white collar criminal defense and corporate investigations, international arbitration and bankruptcy litigation. Mr. Guha has served as lead and co-lead counsel in numerous federal trials, has briefed and argued several appeals before the Second Circuit and has considerable experience in conducting pre-trial litigation and motion practice. In addition, Mr. Guha has represented several clients in a wide variety of government and regulatory investigations and litigation.

Mr. Guha’s significant representations include -

  • Counsel for major Indian information technology firm in fraud and breach of contract suit brought by former customer (E.D.Tex.)
  • Counsel for a major Argentine natural gas supplier in multi-hundred million dollar dispute with a Chilean counter-party regarding the impact on long-term supply contracts of dramatic changes in Argentine export policy (ICC arbitration)
  • Arbitration victory on behalf of major global pharmaceutical manufacturer in $120 million joint venture dispute (CPR arbitration)
  • Arbitration victory on behalf of major international oil producer in multi-million dollar contractual dispute (AAA arbitration)
  • Trial counsel to the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Calpine Corporation (In re Calpine Corp., 2007 WL 4565223 (Bank. S.D.N.Y. 2007) (confirming plan))
  • Counsel to a large Russian telecom company in a Delaware appraisal proceeding arising out a recent merger valued in excess of $4 billion
  • Defending a senior executive of a publicly-traded company in connection with a federal Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation
  • Defended a senior executive of an Indian branch of an American corporation in connection with a federal Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation
  • Represented a senior partner of a private equity firm in connection with a New York State Attorney General’s Office investigation
  • Represented a well-known private equity firm in connection with overlapping SEC and state government investigations.
Mr. Guha first joined Akin Gump in 1998 and practiced with the firm’s litigation group. Mr. Guha then served for four years as a federal prosecutor in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. During his tenure as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Mr. Guha prosecuted a variety of cases involving public corruption, obstruction of justice, racketeering, firearms and narcotics charges, and conducted 13 federal criminal trials. Mr. Guha also briefed and argued numerous cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit.

Among Mr. Guha’s successful prosecutions at trial were United States v. Hector Penaranda et al. (involving a conspiracy to commit armed Hobbs Act robberies), United States v. Walter Gonzales (involving a heroin distribution conspiracy), United States v. Nancy Fearon-Hales (involving a conspiracy to import heroin from Africa to the United States) and United States v. Derrick Morris (involving bank embezzlement violations). He was also involved in the investigation and prosecution of United States v. Darius Byrd et al. (charging members of the Clay Avenue Bloods with a RICO conspiracy involving racketeering, acts of murder, Hobbs Act robberies, narcotics and firearms violations) and United States v. Efrain Gonzales, Jr. et al. (public corruption involving a New York State senator and others). Among his numerous federal appellate arguments, Mr. Guha successfully argued the constitutionality of the Federal Anti-Bootlegging Act in United States v. Jean Martignon before the Second Circuit.

Mr. Guha received his B.A. cum laude in economics and American studies in 1993 from Amherst College. Mr. Guha received his J.D. in 1998 from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where he was the co-founder and articles editor of the Journal of Constitutional Law and winner of the 1998 Edwin R. Keedy Moot Court Competition. Mr. Guha also received his M.A. in government in 1999 from the Johns Hopkins School of Government. He is a member of the New York Bar 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 2nd Circuit. Prior to joining Akin Gump, Mr. Guha was a member of Teach For America and served as a sixth-grade teacher in Baltimore City Public Schools, where he was nominated in 1995 for the BCPS Teacher of the Year.