Austin P. Van joined Pomerantz in January 2017 as Of Counsel and was elevated to Partner in January 2020. He has experience in a variety of federal and state securities law matters, including disputes involving publicly traded stocks, RMBS and other ABS, securities lending disputes, and breach-of-trust matters arising in the securities law context. Austin is an honoree of Benchmark Litigation’s 40 & Under Hot List 2020, granted to a few of the “best and brightest law firm partners who stand out in their practices.” He was honored in 2018 and 2019 as a Super Lawyers® Rising Star.
Austin also has experience in complex commercial litigation, including contract disputes, business torts, consumer fraud, and antitrust matters. He has represented investment banks and other financial sector clients, as well as public and private companies in the technology, energy, pharmaceutical, telecommunications and shipping industries, among others. Austin was previously an associate at WilmerHale and at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, both in New York City.
At Pomerantz, Austin, with Pomerantz Managing Partner Jeremy Lieberman, heads the firm’s representation of lead plaintiffs in a securities class action against the drug behemoth Mylan, marketer of the EpiPen and a host of generic drugs. The litigation is one of the largest securities class actions pending in the United States. In re Mylan N.V. Securities Litigation, No. 1:16-cv-07926 (S.D.N.Y.)
Austin also leads Pomerantz’s securities class action against the fortune-500 company TechnipFMC, an oil and gas services provider. Through months of investigation, Austin uncovered the theory on which this case is based, namely, that TechnipFMC significantly overstated its net income in the registration statement issued in connection with its January 2017 merger because the company was using incorrect exchange rates in translating the financial statements of its foreign subsidiaries. The company also misled investors about its compliance with accounting standards. Prause v. TechnipFMC PLC, No. 4:17-cv-02368 (S.D.N.Y.)
Austin heads Pomerantz’s litigation team in a securities class action against Rockwell Medical, Inc., in which Pomerantz is co-lead counsel. Defendants declined even to move to dismiss the complaint, and the parties have announced their intention to settle the case, on terms highly favorable to the Class.Too v. Rockwell Medical, Inc., No. 1:18-cv-04253 (E.D.N.Y.)
Mr. Van recently served as the lead attorney in two additional securities class actions, In re Sunrun Inc. Securities Litigation, No. 3:17-cv-02537 (N.D. Cal.) and In re Stemline Therapeutics, Inc. Securities Litigation, No. 1:17-cv-00832, and achieved favorable settlements for lead plaintiffs in both matters (in 2018 and 2019, respectively).
Austin received a J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was an editor of the Yale Law Journal and the Yale Journal of International Law. He has a B.A. from Yale University and an M.Sc. from the London School of Economics.
Austin is admitted to practice law in the State of New York; the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.