Dennis J Block

Practice Areas

Mergers & Acquisitions

Corporate

Private Equity

Career

Dennis J. Block is the Senior Chairman of Greenberg Traurig's Global Mergers & Acquisitions practice, based in the New York office. Greenberg Traurig has approximately 2,500 lawyers in 43 U.S. and international offices, including a global corporate practice of more than 500 lawyers.

Mr. Block is known for precedent-setting transactions. These include:

Pfizer Inc.'s $68 billion acquisition of Wyeth, the largest M&A transaction of 2009;

P&G's acquisition of Gillette;

Westinghouse's acquisition of CBS Corp;

Bear Stearns Companies Inc. acquisition by JPMorgan Chase; and

US West's acquisition of Continental Cablevision and its subsequent split-off and joint venture with Time-Warner and the ultimate sales of both US West (to Qwest Communications) and Media One (to AT&T).

Mr. Block also represented Pfizer, Inc in connection with its:

$100 billion hostile acquisition of Warner-Lambert, the largest domestic hostile takeover to date;

$60 billion acquisition of Pharmacia;

acquisition of King Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; and

its sale of the Capsugel business to KKR.

In 2010, he was named for the third time as an American Lawyer Dealmaker of the Year, for serving as counsel to Pfizer in its acquisition of Wyeth. Mr. Block has consistently been ranked in the first tier as one of the leading corporate/M&A lawyers by Chambers and Partners in its US and global editions. Mr. Block advises a broad range of entities including companies, boards of directors and special committees on corporate governance, M&A and related matters. Prior to entering private practice, he was a branch chief for enforcement in the New York Regional Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Mr. Block has been co-chairman of the Committee on Corporate Counsel and a member of the Council of the Section of Litigation of the American Bar Association. From 1993-1998, Mr. Block served as a member of the Committee on Corporate Laws of the Section of Business Law of the American Bar Association.

He has co-authored The Business Judgment Rule: Fiduciary Duties of Corporate Directors (5th ed. 1998 and Supp. 2000). He was also co-author of a monthly column in the New York Law Journal, co-editor of The Corporate Counsellor's Deskbook (5th ed. 1999), and a member of the editorial boards of several legal publications.

Mr. Block frequently lectures on mergers and acquisitions, the business judgment rule, corporate governance, federal securities law, corporate litigation, the attorney-client privilege and indemnification and insurance of corporate officials.

Mr. Block is a graduate of Brooklyn Law School, where he teaches advanced corporate law as an adjunct professor. He holds a BA from the State University of New York at Buffalo.

Concentrations:

Mergers and acquisitions

Proxy contests

Joint ventures

Third-party/self-tender offers

Other corporate restructurings

Corporate governance and board representation

SEC matters

Finance

Risk management

Professional Memberships

Dennis is an active leader in the legal community. Recent roles are highlighted below.

The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation, 1988-Present

American Bar Association, 1969-Present: Dennis has dedicated over 30 years to the American Bar Association serving as a leader and mentor.

Section of Litigation

Chairman, Task force on Ancillary Business Activities of Lawyers, 1983-1993

Co-chairman, Committee on Corporate Counsel, 1982-1985

Division Director, 1985-1986

Committee on Securities Litigation, 1988-Present

Council of Section of Litigation, 1986-1989

Section of Business Law

Chairman, Drafting Committee, Comment Letter on SEC Proposed Rule 24a-1, Litigation Subcommittee on Committee on Federal Regulation of Securities

Drafting Committee, Comment Letter on SEC Proposed Rule 14d-8, Tender Offer and Proxy Statement, Subcommittee on Federal Regulation of Securities, 1990

Committee on Federal Regulation of Securities, 1988-Present

Subcommittee on SEC Practice and Enforcement Matters, 1988-Present

Subcommittee on Proxy Solicitations and Tender Offers, 1988-Present

Committee on Counsel Responsibility and Liability, 1988-Present

Committee on Business and Corporate Litigation, 1991-Present

Committee on Corporate Laws, 1993-1998

Subcommittee on Ancillary Business Activities of the American Bar Association’s Special Coordinating Committee on Professionalism, 1989-1991

UJA-Federation of New York, Lawyers Division

Past chairman, 1989-1991

Major Gifts chairman, 1987-1989

Board of Trustees, Brooklyn Law School, 2017-Present

Adjunct Professor, Brooklyn Law School, 1999-Present

Board of Directors, Junior Achievers of New York (JANY), 2005-Present

Board of Trustees of Supreme Court Historical Society, 2010-Present

The American Law Institute, 1983-Present

The Association of the Bar of the City of New York, 1984-Present

American Society of Corporate Secretaries, 2000-Present

Law Firm Advisory Committee of the Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, 1993-1998

New York State Governor’s Task Force on Commercial Courts, 1992-1993

Advisory Committee to Annual Abraham L. Pomerantz Lecture Series, Brooklyn Law School

Publications

Listed, Chambers USA Guide, 2003-2022

Listed, Chambers Global Guide, 2015-2022

Personal

LL.B., Brooklyn Law School, 1967

B.A., State University of New York at Buffalo, 1964