Narges has an active and varied commercial litigation practice. She handles an extensive range of matters, including those involving securities and other financial services litigation, insurance and risk management, corporate governance, legal ethics, and big data. Clients in the financial services and professional services sectors rely on her assistance with administrative, trial, and appellate cases and arbitrations before domestic and international panels. Her firm leadership roles include serving as Ombudsperson and Vice-Chair of Mintz’s pro bono practice.
Narges’s practice focuses on complex business disputes, with expertise in securities litigation, contracts, corporate governance, executive protection, insurance coverage and risk management. Throughout her career, Narges has generated practical solutions to complex legal and business problems. She has represented clients at the administrative, trial, and appellate levels, as well as in domestic and international arbitration.
Narges also advises clients on a number of issues including insurance and risk management, employment matters and non-competes, legal ethics, attorney-client privilege, and the risks, security and management of big data.
Education
- Fordham University (JD)
- Oberlin College (BA)
Experience
- Represented the former directors of a US media company in a matter commenced by a litigation trustee. The trustee asserted claims that the former directors breached their fiduciary duties by failing to file for bankruptcy sooner to preserve assets for the benefit of the creditors. The case settled on favorable terms, requiring no monetary payments by our clients and no admission of liability.
- Successfully appealed decision dismissing investment funds’ action for legal malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty against former counsel.
- Represented institutional investors/bondholders in suit against auditors and directors and officers of an international conglomerate after bankruptcy.
- Advised a US-based international fund sponsor in properly structuring a complex risk program with regard to investment activity exposures, standardized indemnification agreements, and portfolio company risks.
- Represented institutional investors/bondholders in suit against indenture trustee after bankruptcy of bond issuer.
- Obtained an arbitration award of over $100 million on behalf of bondholders in an ICDR arbitration involving complex breach of contract and corporate veil-piercing issues;
- Obtained dismissal on behalf of a multinational bank of all claims in an action alleging violations of the Anti-Terrorism Act and Alien Tort Claims Act;
- Favorably settled CGL advertising liability coverage claim on behalf of Insured in ICC arbitration;
- Successfully defended C-Suite executives in civil actions alleging securities fraud;
- Successfully defended minority owners of an overvalued hedge fund in civil and regulatory actions after which no charges were brought against the clients;
- Obtained summary judgment dismissing all claims against an art museum that was sued for conversion of antiquities allegedly misappropriated approximately 100 years ago;
- Conducted various internal investigations arising out of anonymous allegations of fraud and securities fraud;
- Successfully defended several plaintiffs in multiple putative class actions alleging website inaccessibility and violations of the Americans With Disabilities Act; and
- Obtained post-deportation repatriation and asylum for pro bono client wrongfully deported by USCIS.
Recognition & Awards
- Included on Crain's New York Business Leading Women Lawyers in New York City (2018), a list of 100 “women who juggle both distinguished careers and exceptional civic and philanthropic activities."
- New York Super Lawyers: General Litigation (2015 – 2018)
- Pro Bono Star Award For Excellence In Legal Advocacy - Human Rights First (2013)
- New York Super Lawyers: Rising Star - General Litigation (2011 – 2014)
- Mintz Pro Bono Award (2008)
Involvement
- Board Vice-Chair, Womankind
Languages
- Gujarati
- Hindi
- Urdu
Recent Insights
Viewpoints
An Arbitrator’s Power May Be Greater Than That of a Judge
June 7, 2018|Blog
Arbitrability Basics: An Illustration of the “Autonomy” Principle
March 22, 2018|Blog
News & Press
Mintz is pleased to announce that Narges M. Kakalia has been named to the inaugural “Leading Women Lawyers in New York City” list by Crain’s New York Business, for juggling "distinguished careers with exceptional civic and philanthropic activities.”
Viewpoints
An Arbitrator’s Power May Be Greater Than That of a Judge
June 7, 2018 | Blog | By Narges Kakalia
Arbitration is a creature of contract, and an arbitrator’s powers are in effect defined by the parties’ arbitration agreement. Paradoxically, although an arbitration agreement can be written (double-spaced) on one side of a cocktail napkin, in some cases it may grant greater authority to an arbitrator than a judge has.
Arbitrability Basics: An Illustration of the “Autonomy” Principle
March 22, 2018 | Blog | By Narges Kakalia
Arbitration is a creature of contract. So is the law concerning contracts with an arbitration clause the same as the law concerning any other contract? Almost. One must always bear in mind the “separability” or “independence” of the arbitration agreement -- the autonomy principle.
Enforcement of International Arbitral Awards in the U.S. – Could a Court Abstain Due To “Inconvenience”?
June 21, 2017 | Blog | By Narges Kakalia
Forum non conveniens is one of several judicial abstention doctrines, applied from time to time by U.S. courts, that permit a court to dismiss (without prejudice) a plenary action in its discretion. In a forum non conveniens case, the court’s jurisdiction is not in question, but the relative legal “inconvenience” of having the matter heard in that court, as opposed to another court of competent jurisdiction, is deemed sufficient for the U.S. court to abstain from exercising its authority.
Mandatory vs. Permissive Arbitration Clauses: A Survey of the Laws of Other Common Law Countries
March 27, 2017 | Blog | By Narges Kakalia, Terry McMahon
In an earlier post we provided advice on how to interpret the words “may” and “must” when they appear in arbitration clauses that are to be interpreted under U.S. law. Among other things, we explained that an arbitration clause that says that a party “may” submit a dispute to binding arbitration will be viewed as mandatory in U.S. courts if any party chooses to arbitrate.
When An Arbitration Clause Sounds Permissive But Is Not -- Does "May" Really Mean "Must"?
January 12, 2017 | Blog | By Narges Kakalia
Is an arbitration clause mandatory or permissive when it provides that either party to the contract may elect to submit a dispute to binding arbitration? What if the contract also provides that the right to arbitrate is not exclusive of any other rights that a party has to pursue legal action in an appropriate forum?
Risk Management, Indemnification and D&O Coverage — Texas Wall Street Women Style
January 27, 2015 | Blog | By Narges Kakalia
My colleagues Heidi Lawson, Dionne Lomax, and I just finished our tour of four Texas cities in as many days, meeting a lot of incredibly talented, smart, and fun Wall Street women (yes, and some men too) in San Antonio, Austin, Houston, and Dallas.
News & Press
Mintz is pleased to announce that Narges M. Kakalia has been named to the inaugural “Leading Women Lawyers in New York City” list by Crain’s New York Business, for juggling "distinguished careers with exceptional civic and philanthropic activities.”
Sixteen Mintz attorneys have been named New York Super Lawyers for 2016 and twelve have been named New York Rising Stars. The list will be published in a special advertising supplement in The New York Times Magazine and in a stand-alone magazine, New York Super Lawyers - Metro Edition.
Thirteen attorneys from Mintz have been named New York Super Lawyers for 2014 and eleven have been named New York Rising Stars. The list will be published in a special advertising supplement in The New York Times Magazine and in a stand-alone magazine, New York Super Lawyers - Metro Edition.
Events
Panelist
Oct
15
2018
She's The Boss
An Event to Inspire Future Female Leaders
Convene, 117 W 46th St., Midtown West, New York, NY 10036
Speaker
Apr
24
2018
2018 Ethics Marathon
Association of Corporate Counsel – New York
Fordham University School of Law, Skadden Conference Center 150 West 62nd Street New York, NY
Speaker
Feb
1
2017
Mintz and Grant Thornton Present a Multitopic CLE Workshop
Grant Thornton 757 3rd Avenue and 47th Street New York, NY
Moderator
Jun
29
2016
Speaker
Mar
22
2016