Our team

Ruth Pachman

Partner
Ruth provides strategic counsel on challenging IR and PR matters. She has worked with senior executives and boards of directors across industry sectors in times of growth, retrenchment, challenge, and opportunity.

With more than 30 years of experience, she has led high-profile engagements in the areas of media relations and investor relations; corporate governance and shareholder activism; financial restructuring and chapter 11 filings; the full spectrum of complex M&A activity; and crisis communications that encompass reputational challenges, cyber security, and internal investigations.

With more than 30 years of experience, she has led high-profile engagements in the areas of media relations and investor relations; corporate governance and shareholder activism; financial restructuring and chapter 11 filings; the full spectrum of complex M&A activity; and crisis communications that encompass reputational challenges, cyber security, and internal investigations.

Ruth provides counsel on challenging IR and PR matters. She has worked with senior executives and boards of directors across industry sectors in times of growth, retrenchment, challenge, and opportunity.

With more than 30 years of experience, she has led high-profile engagements in the areas of media relations and investor relations; corporate governance and shareholder activism; financial restructuring and chapter 11 filings; the full spectrum of complex M&A activity; and crisis communications that encompass reputational challenges, cyber security, and internal investigations. She was named to the Lawdragon “Global 100 Leaders in Legal Strategy and Consulting” guide for crisis communications in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023. 

Strategic messaging and complex financial disclosure/investor relations are cornerstones of her practice, often in connection with a corporate inflection point. She works seamlessly with internal teams across the communications, investor, legal, financial, and C-suite functions. Her work often involves sensitive communications challenges and opportunities in the areas of executive leadership transitions; capital markets and shareholder-focused initiatives; litigation support and regulatory oversight, and workforce/human relations matters.

Ruth holds a BA in English, magna cum laude, from Wesleyan University and an M.A. in English with an Emphasis in Expository Writing from the University of Iowa. She joined Kekst CNC in 1987. Ruth is former Chair of the Union Settlement Association of East Harlem – an organization of which she has been a Board member for nearly 30 years -- a member of the Board of the New York Youth Symphony, and the former Chair of the Wesleyan University Annual Fund.


Experience

Corporate Governance and Shareholder Activism

  • While many situations with activist demands are resolved privately, notable public engagements have included Extended Stay America, the Board of Toshiba, Olympus, RPM, The Advisory Board Company, Yum! Brands, PulteGroup, Compuware, Cracker Barrel, Dell, one of the nation’s largest banks, and a major transportation company.
  • Advise on a range of governance matters with broader stakeholder implications.

Restructuring and Chapter 11

  • Represented pharmaceutical company Endo, major consumer brands such as RadioShack, Kodak, rue21, and Nine West; industrial enterprises such as Intelsat, SunEdison, Jack Cooper, Walter Energy, Lear, and Aleris; and financial services firms such as Capmark and SquareTwo Financial.

M&A Activity

  • Representative M&A activity has included: Nuance Communications’ acquisition by Microsoft; ODP Corporation’s plan to separate into two publicly traded companies; CVS Health’s acquisition of Aetna; Third Point Re’s acquisition of Sirius Group; WABCO’s acquisition by ZF Friedrichshafen; Corning Incorporated in the strategic realignment of its ownership interest in Dow Corning Corporation; Endurance Specialty Holding’s unsolicited bid for Aspen Holdings.
  • Numerous cross-border situations are highlighted by: Fuji Xerox’s planned combination with Xerox (and the related litigation with Carl Icahn); Baxalta’s acquisition by Shire; Meiji Yasuda’s acquisition by Stancorp Financial; Infineon’s acquisition of International Rectifier; Aleris’s ultimately unsuccessful acquisition by China Zhongwang; Publicis’ acquisition of Sapient; and Daimler’s combination with Chrysler.
  • Represented private equity firm KKR for more than 20 years, handling dozens of high-profile and complex transaction announcements and serving as its chief media spokesperson.

Litigation Support

  • Work to address communications implications of whistleblower suits and other employee-related litigation and concerns.
  • Help with communications plans in the face of various federal and state inquiries from the SEC, DOJ, and State Attorneys General.
  • Advise companies faced with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, leading to a variety of disclosure, business practice, and oversight challenges.

Insights

A link to a page
Blog

防衛からエンゲージメントへ、アジアにおける株主アクティビズム

Insightia発行のレポート"Corporate Governance in Asia 2023"、当社Jochen Legewie、Ruth Pachman、大谷みな子のインタービュー記事を掲載

A link to a page
Blog

From Defense and Engagement – Activism in Asia

An interview with Kekst CNC’s Dr. Jochen Legewie, Ruth Pachman and Minako Otani, first published in Insightia’s Corporate Governance in Asia 2023 report.

Contact Information

New York

New York (Headquarters)

1675 Broadway, 30th Floor

New York, NY 10019