Carol V. Gilden
Carol Gilden, a Partner at Cohen Milstein, is a member of the Securities Fraud/Investor Protection practice group. She is the resident Partner at the Firm’s Chicago office.
Prior to joining Cohen Milstein, Ms. Gilden served as the head of Much Shelist's securities class action practice and as the Firm’s Vice Chair of the Class Action Department. She also worked as an enforcement attorney with the Midwest Regional Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Ms. Gilden has served as co-lead counsel in the Sears/Sears Acceptance Corp. Securities Litigation, Sara Lee Securities Litigation, 99 Cents Only Stores Securities Litigation, Quokka Sports Securities Litigation and the City of Chicago's case against on-line travel providers. Ms. Gilden also served on the Executive Committees of the Global Crossing Securities Litigation (settlements of $448 million) and the Merrill Lynch & Co. Research Reports cases ($125 million settlement). Among other notable cases, Ms. Gilden served as co-lead counsel in the ML Lee Securities Litigation and Smith Kline Litigation which settled for $33 million and $30 million respectively, as well as lead counsel in Pacha et. al. v. McKesson Corporation, et.al., a private action which settled for a confidential sum, and as liaison counsel and a litigation team member in the Waste Management Litigation, which settled for $220 million. Under her leadership, the firm also served as active members of the litigation teams in the AOL Time Warner Securities Litigation ($2.5 billion settlement) and Salomon Analyst Litigation/In re AT&T ($75 million settlement).
In addition to her work on behalf of clients, Ms. Gilden publishes scholarly articles and course materials, and lectures at key industry conferences and seminars. She is an author and co-author of articles published by the National Law Journal, Courts Grapple with Lead-Counsel Auctions; IICLE on Illinois Causes of Action, Shareholder Derivative Suits; the American Bar Association, The Impact of Central Bank on Securities Fraud Litigation: The Plaintiffs' Perspective; Illinois Bar Journal, Proposed Rule 225: A Death Warrant for Class Actions in Illinois and Practising Law Institute on Class Actions Litigation: Prosecution and Defense Strategies A Hybrid 23(B)(2) Rule For Hybrid Class Actions? New Developments In The Use Of Rule 23(B)(2) In Class Certification. In January 2005, Ms. Gilden testified against Proposed Rule 225 before the Illinois Supreme Court’s Rules Committee.
Ms. Gilden is a regular presenter at conferences and seminars around the country and has spoken at seminars sponsored by the American Bar Association, Chicago Bar Association, Practising Law Institute, Illinois CPA Foundation, Hines Insurance Symposium, the Ohio and Wisconsin Bar Associations, and the National Association of Shareholders and Consumer Attorneys, as well as at other symposiums.
Ms. Gilden was selected as an "Illinois Super Lawyer" in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 by Law & Politics, which published its selections in Chicago magazine (May 2005, February 2006, February 2007 and February 2008 issues). Only 5 percent of Illinois attorneys are awarded this honor.
Ms. Gilden also is a frequent commentator in the national media on various class action topics. She frequently appears on CNBC, including on a special segment titled I Want My Money Back, where she was described as "one of the top investor advocacy attorneys in the country." She also has been featured on the ABC news programs World News Tonight, World News Now and Good Morning America¸ as well as has made multiple appearances on First Business Morning News. Ms. Gilden recently appeared on the cover of Chicago Lawyer in connection with a feature article on The Ebb and Flow of Securities Class Actions.
Ms. Gilden is the President of the National Association of Shareholder and Consumer Attorneys (NASCAT), which is the preeminent trade association for securities class action attorneys, and serves on its Executive Committee. Prior to becoming President, she first served as Treasurer, then President-Elect for NASCAT. Ms. Gilden is the first woman in NASCAT's 18-year history to be elected Treasurer, President-Elect and subsequently, President. Ms. Gilden is also Vice President of the Institute for Law and Economic Policy (ILEP). She also was a member of Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's Prescription Drug Transition Working Group. Ms. Gilden is a member of the American Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, Chicago Bar Association and the Association of Securities and Exchange Commission Alumni.
Ms. Gilden is a graduate of the University of Illinois (B.S., Business Administration, 1979). She graduated from Chicago-Kent College of Law (J.D., with honors, 1983) where she was a member of the Chicago-Kent Law Review.
Ms. Gilden is admitted to practice in Illinois, the federal district court for the Northern District of Illinois, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and the United States Supreme Court.
Contact: cgilden@cmht.com
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