Kenton J King

Practice Areas

Ken King is widely recognized as one of the country's leading M&A attorneys, having handled numerous groundbreaking and largest-ever transactions, primarily in the technology sector. He frequently represents companies and boards in connection with activist and unsolicited takeover situations. Representative matters over the last several years include: Activision Blizzard in its $75 billion acquisition by Microsoft Corporation; NXP Semiconductors N.V. in its proposed but terminated $47 billion acquisition by Qualcomm Incorporated; Xilinx, Inc. in its $49 billion acquisition by Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.; Broadcom Corporation in its $37 billion acquisition by Avago Technologies Limited; SanDisk Corporation in its $19 billion acquisition by Western Digital Corporation; and Intel Corporation in its $15.3 billion acquisition of Mobileye N.V.

In recognition of his work on Activision’s acquisition by Microsoft, Mr. King was named a Dealmaker of the Year by The American Lawyer in 2024. He also was the recipient of the M&A Lifetime Achievement Award at The Deal Awards in 2018. In addition, The Recorder recognized him as a California Trailblazer in 2020 and The National Law Journal named him a Mergers and Acquisitions Trailblazer in 2017, noting his decades of groundbreaking work in Silicon Valley. In addition, on the strength of feedback from his clients, the BTI Consulting Group has recognized him several times as a Client Service All-Star.

In 2023, Mr. King was recognized as a Stand-Out Lawyer by Thomson Reuters and was noted in Variety’s Dealmakers Impact Report, which highlights top attorneys working in film, television and digital media. He led the deal teams recognized by the Daily Journal with California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year (CLAY) awards for innovative work on behalf of Broadcom Corporation in its acquisition by Avago Technologies and Intel Corporation in its acquisition of Mobileye N.V. In connection with The Recorder’s 2016 and 2017 Corporate Department of the Year accolades, Mr. King also was recognized as one of California’s Trusted Advisers, “the lawyers clients turn to for strategic counsel and valued industry insights.” He is recognized annually in The Best Lawyers in America, which has repeatedly named him its San Jose Area Mergers and Acquisitions Lawyer of the Year (2024, 2018 and 2016).

Mr. King also has been recognized in virtually every other major legal ranking guide, including Chambers Global, The Legal 500 U.S. (including as part of its M&A Private Practice Powerlist), The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers, IFLR1000, Who's Who Legal, the PLC Cross-border Mergers and Acquisitions Handbook, Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Lawyers in America and Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Dealmakers in America. He also was previously named to the Lawdragon Hall of Fame and recognized as a Lawdragon Legend.

Career

J.D., University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Editor-in-Chief, California Law Review; Order of the Coif); B.A., Stanford University

Languages Spoken

Japanese