King & Spalding announced today that Randy Mastro, a leading New York-based business litigator and trial lawyer, will join the firm as a partner in its Trial and Global Disputes practice group. Mastro joins the firm from Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
Mastro previously served as the Chair of the Litigation Practice at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher for more than 20 years and was a long-time member of both its Management and Executive Committees.
“Building our trial practice even more in New York is a cornerstone of our firm strategy. Bringing on Randy – an exceptional trial lawyer and proven leader – helps propel us further,” said Robert D. Hays, the firm’s Chairman. “Excellence, energy, entrepreneurship and collaborative growth are all hallmarks of our firm’s culture. Randy ticks every one of those boxes and then some.”
Mastro has tried dozens of cases in private practice and as a federal prosecutor and has also argued more than 100 appeals in federal and state appellate courts throughout the country. He routinely ranks among the nation’s leading litigators and trial lawyers in prominent ranking directories and other prominent surveys of corporate counsel and other practitioners. Chambers USA recently named him “Trial Lawyer of the Year,” and Law360 has recognized him as an “MVP” for trials.
“I have had the pleasure of partnering with so many great lawyers from King & Spalding over the years on cases we’ve handled together and won together. Now, I’m thrilled to become a partner there and help the firm expand its litigation and trial practices in New York and throughout the world,” Mastro said. “I am a builder by nature and always have been, including at my former firm, where we achieved exponential growth in New York and a legacy for all to be proud of. Now, I’m looking forward to this exciting opportunity to help King & Spalding grow in New York and elsewhere, continue to work among friends and colleagues dedicated to excellence and striving to be the best, and, from this shining platform, build an even brighter future.”
Mastro has a diverse practice representing clients across many industries and categories of dispute. Among many high-profile matters, Mastro won a two-month RICO trial barring the enforcement of a $9 billion Ecuadorian judgment against Chevron that The American Lawyer called “The Case of the Century.” He also won a month-long trial against the SEC, obtaining the dismissal of all charges against high-profile entrepreneur, Lynn Tilton, and thereby defeating the largest individual enforcement action the SEC ever brought before its in-house tribunal. He also led the successful effort to defeat New York City’s controversial West Side Stadium project, and he represented the State of New Jersey’s Governor’s Office in conducting a high-profile investigation into allegations concerning the “Bridgegate” controversy. Over the past two years, he won breakthrough Supreme Court victories in COVID-related cases, overturning New York’s fixed-capacity restrictions on “houses of worship” and the State’s eviction moratorium – both “firsts” in convincing the Supreme Court to void such COVID regulations.
Mastro served as an Assistant United States Attorney and Deputy Chief of the Civil Division in the Southern District of New York, where he received the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award, among other accolades. Mastro earned his undergraduate degree from Yale University and his J.D. from University of Pennsylvania.
