Dena Palermo
Partner
Dena Palermo’s litigation practice focuses on the trial of commercial cases and corporate investigations.
Dena has extensive experience representing prominent individuals, as well as public and private corporations in handling all aspects of disputes in state and federal courts, as well as domestic and international arbitrations. She has successfully handled disputes involving breach of contract, securities fraud, lender liability, breach of fiduciary obligations, fraud, individual and mass toxic torts, real estate and tortious interference. Dena has also been involved in e-discovery litigation and counseling.
Dena’s experience in corporate investigations has included representation of domestic and multinational corporations, their employees and audit committees in investigations and disclosures to the SEC, DOJ and other civil and criminal authorities, of transactions implicating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Sarbanes-Oxley and the Sherman Act. Dena also counsels U.S. companies with foreign operations in many countries, including Angola, Brazil, Canada, China, France, India, Korea, Mexico, Nigeria, Saudia Arabia and the United Kingdom, regarding compliance with anti-bribery laws, including the FCPA and UK Bribery Act.
Representative Experience
- Successfully represented the Audit Committee of Global Industries, Ltd. before the SEC and DOJ in a three-year, industry-wide FCPA investigation of alleged payments to foreign officials in West Africa, related to the use of a freight forwarding company, Panalpina, Inc. Terminated with no enforcement action.
- Successfully conducted an internal investigation on behalf of a petrochemical storage company in the Port of Houston regarding allegations of market allocation in connection with proceedings before the FTC. Terminated with no enforcement action by the government.
- Representation of an executive in an FCPA investigation before the DOJ and SEC, involving alleged payments to foreign officials in China.
- Representation of the audit committee of a publicly-traded electrical services company in investigating and responding to whistleblower complaints of alleged improper financial reporting and corporate governance issues.
- Representing companies in performing anti-corruption due diligence in connection with mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and the use of international sales and services agents.
- Representing the audit committee of a private company in investigating and responding to whistleblower complaints of financial wrongdoing and breaches of fiduciary duty.
- Successfully represented a synthetic fuel technologies company against a private investment company based upon the breach of a stock purchase agreement in federal courts in Tulsa, Oklahoma and New York. Obtained a $12 million settlement.
- Representing a managed care company in state and federal court to recover payments made to hospitals and free standing emergency rooms based upon fraudulent misrepresentations regarding the nature of their affiliation.
- Obtained a multimillion-dollar judgment and specific performance after a jury verdict on behalf of a commercial real estate development limited partnership in prosecuting claims for breach of contract, fraud and tortious interference in connection with the purchase of a tract of land for development from an international oil company.
- Substantial litigation of e-discovery disputes and violations of the duty to preserve, resulting in a $650,000 sanctions award against an international oil company.
- Successfully defended a variety of securities cases in federal courts in Texas and in NASD arbitrations.
- Represented an international chemical corporation as national counsel in toxic tort litigation, responsible for overseeing all phases of developing the trial strategy and preparing the trial outline for outside trial counsel.
- Successfully defended an international oil company in three actions brought by local taxing authorities, claiming fraud in the valuation of oil reserves. Obtained dismissal of all three matters.
- Represented a foreign telephone company in a lawsuit in federal court in Texas involving claims of an alleged breach of an agency agreement in Mexico. Settled on confidential terms.
- Represented an international oil field services company in Tax Court regarding a section 482 dispute over transfer pricing with its foreign subsidiaries. Settled on favorable terms.
- Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a non-profit health care provider in a personal injury matter involving failure to diagnose cervical cancer.
- Obtained a permanent injunction on behalf of individual doctors against defendants who sought to disrupt the medical services doctors provided to their patients.
- Successfully defeated an injunction action brought against an insurance company for failure to renew a doctor’s contract as a network provider.
- Successfully represented major health care institutions in a variety of personal injury matters involving the HIV virus.
Publications
- "Palermo: State-Sponsored Anti-Semitism Must be Taken Seriously" Houston Chronicle (January 26, 2012)
- An Andrews Kurth Client’s FCPA Success Story (December 10, 2010)
- Record FCPA Settlements Continue, Important Lessons To Be Learned (November 9, 2010)
- Government Investigations - Top Five Lessons Learned Straightline (September 1, 2010)
- "Bribery: US is Cracking Down on Payments Made Under the Table" Houston Business Journal (August 31, 2007)
- "Today's Women Lawyers Want to be Mentored. The Real Question Is, By Whom?" Houston Lawyer (May 2005)
- "Ascertaining Undefined State Law Under the Erie Doctrine: Factors Etc., Inc. v. Pro Arts, Inc." Boston University Law Review (1982)
In The News
- Dena was quoted in the November 12, 2010 article in the Bureau of National Affairs, Corporate Accountability report regarding key internal investigation considerations for corporate management.
Events
- "The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA): What Every Company Needs to Know," Association of Corporate Counsel - South Central Texas Chapter (April 6, 2011)
- "The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA): What Every Company Needs To Know," presented to Wells Fargo (March 2011)
- "The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA): What Every Company Needs To Know," Andrews Kurth Client Seminar (February 24, 2011)
- "Top Five Lessons Learned From Successful Government Investigations," Thomson Reuters Webinar (November 2010)
- "Top Five Lessons Learned for Internal Investigations," presented at Andrews Kurth (March 2010)
- "Managing Risks in Corporate Investigations: Overview of 2008 and Preview of 2009," presented at Andrews Kurth Client Seminar (January 2009)
- "The Top Ten Things to Consider When Your Company is Confronted with a Government or Internal Investigation," presented at Andrews Kurth's Executive Women's Retreat (October 2008)
- "Is Justice Gender Blind?" presented at HBA Gender Fairness Luncheon Series (May 2008)
- "Discovery Compliance Under The Amended ESI Rules," presented at Waste Management (March 2008)
- "Leaving and Re-entering the Legal Workforce," presented at HBA Gender Fairness Luncheon Series (January 2008)
- "FCPA Enforcement in the Oil & Gas Industry," presented in Houston, TX (October 2007)
- "Mentoring and Rainmaking," presented at HBA's Woman Lawyer's Guide to Effective Communication (April 2006)
- "Ending Isolation: Keys to Effective Mentoring Programs," presented at ABA Leadership Summit (July 1995)
- Topic: "How to Invoke the Court's Power to Control Discovery: A Demonstration," presented at University of Houston Law Center Advanced Civil Discovery (June 1994)
- "Sanctions Under Tex.R.Civ.P. 13," presented at University of Houston Law Center, Advanced Civil Litigation Seminar (March 1991)
Professional Recognition
- Leadership Texas 2011
- Planned Parenthood Legal Action Award (1992)
- AV rating by Martindale-Hubbell
