Angela M. Liu
Partner | New York
Angela M. Liu

Angela M. Liu is a boardroom-focused litigator known for driving results for public and private companies, boards and senior executives in high-visibility corporate disputes across the U.S. and globally. Her practice spans a broad range of complex commercial disputes, anchored in securities class actions and extending to shareholder derivative and M&A litigation, special committee and internal investigations, an expanding private credit disputes practice, and cross-border matters involving discovery in the U.S., the UK, Asia and Africa.  

Chambers USA (2025) recognizes Angela as “a smart, capable and practical litigator” with “deep expertise in discovery and the general process around litigation,” and she is also recognized by Legal 500 for M&A defense. She is widely known for precise advocacy and disciplined execution—preparing pivotal witnesses, aligning directors and management, and sequencing strategies to protect enterprise value while minimizing disruption. A frequent author, she turns high-stakes disputes into actionable playbooks for the C-suite. Her communication style is both elevated and market-facing, cutting through the noise to shape and control the narrative—an edge opponents often underestimate. 

Angela co‑chairs the firm’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee, has previously co‑chaired the Asian Affinity Group, and serves on the Innovation Committee. She is a founding member of the Women in Securities Litigation Network and has been named one of Diversity Journal’s “Asian Leaders Worth Watching” and Seramount’s “Working Mothers of the Year.” For more than a decade, she has played a key role in high-impact pro bono voting rights matters at the state and U.S. Supreme Court levels. Angela clerked for the Honorable John R. Gibson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. A proud Tar Heel, she serves on the UNC Law Foundation and its Audit Committee, is Vice-President of the Alumni Association Board, and partners with the Morehead‑Cain Scholarship Foundation.

Shareholder Litigation

  • Defended former chairman and CEO in parallel securities class action (SDNY), NY Attorney General investigation, Delaware Chancery class actions, and California state court; all matters resolved without client contribution.
  • Defended former CFO of pharmaceutical company relating to tax issues in securities class action in the Southern District of New York, District of New Jersey, and in parallel foreign arbitration proceedings.
  • Defended life sciences company and its officers and directors in a securities fraud class action alleging false and misleading statements related to New Drug Application submissions to the FDA, and in a consolidated shareholder derivative lawsuit alleging breaches of fiduciary duties, abuse of control, and waste of corporate assets.
  • Defended fintech company and its officers and directors in securities class action and derivative suits in the Eastern District of New York. 
  • Defended national beverage company and officers in securities class action arising out of a hundreds of millions of dollars restatement. 
  • Defended life sciences company in securities class action and derivative litigation relating to disclosure of FDA developments in the District of New Jersey.
  • Defended board of directors of a credit card company in defense of derivative litigation in the Northern District of Illinois.
  • Defended bio-pharmaceutical companies and their officers and directors in securities class action and derivative suits in the Southern District of New York and Southern District of Indiana.
  • Defended chemical product manufacturer and its officers and directors in securities class action suit in the Southern District of New York.
  • Defended board of directors of Chinese-based company in connection with a derivative action and merger litigation in the District of Delaware.
  • Defended CEO of technology company in connection with breaches of fiduciary duty in Delaware Chancery Court.
  • Defended former CFO of large shipping company in defense in SEC investigation.
  • Defended special litigation committee of large oil and gas company in derivative litigation.

Private Credit

  • Defended directors of a business development company in multi-jurisdiction class action, alleging fiduciary duty breaches tied to purported conflicts of interest; successfully argued before the Delaware Chancery Court. 
  • Representation of global asset management company in cross-border matters, involving allegations of breaches of contract and fiduciary duties, as well as misappropriation of trade secrets.

Cross-border Discovery

  • Representation of senior Nigerian official in Section 1782 proceedings. 
  • Defended Chinese-based technology company in securities class action in the Southern District of New York.
  • Defended former CFO of Irish-based company in securities class actions and derivative suits.

Technology and Platform Liability

  • Defended global technology company in multiple federal actions, including class actions, addressing cutting-edge immunity issues under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act for third-party platforms.

Selected Pro Bono

  • Kansas voting registration litigation: Trial, 10th Circuit, and U.S. Supreme Court in one of the “most important voting rights trial so far of the 21st century.”
  • Tennessee COVID-19 voting litigation: Argued before the Tennessee Supreme Court.
  • Wisconsin voter ID litigation: Trial, Seventh Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court.
  • U.S. Supreme Court amicus briefs, including Louisiana v. Callais (law professors on election law and democracy); Alexander v. South Carolina Conference of the NAACP (political science professors on voting rights/redistricting); Moore v. Harper (law professors on democracy and race); City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Gloria Johnson, et al. (Law Center on Homelessness); and Barnes v. Felix (The Rutherford Institute).
  • Ranked for Securities Litigation - Chambers USA (2025)
  • Ranked in Litigation: Securities - Legal 500 US (2024-2025)
  • First-ever "Asian Leaders Worth Watching" - Diversity Journal
  • “Working Mother of the Year” - Seramount (formerly Working Mother) (2023)
  • General Counsel Toolkit: It’s a Privilege, Not a Right - Best Practices for Board Minutes and Attorney-Client Communications — ACC NY (June 10, 2025)
  • Securities Law in Focus: A Look Ahead at the Shaping Litigation Trends in 2024 — The Knowledge Group (February 20, 2024)
  • The Tracing Requirement in Securities Act Cases in Light of the Supreme Court’s Slack Decision — ABA Securities Litigation Committee (September 7, 2023)
  • fintechNEXT Webinar Series: Cryptocurrency Securities Class Action Litigation — 2022 Year Review (April 25, 2023)
  • Securities Litigation, the SEC Rulemaking, and Crypto Markets – Women in Securities Litigation Network Expert Panel (February 2023)
  • Case Study: Innovation Training — Law Firm Innovation Summit Virtual Conference (November 9, 2021)
  • The Ever Shifting Landscape of Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPAC) — ACC NY Webinar (April 27, 2021)
  • Recent Developments: Securities Fraud Actions Against Life Sciences Companies - Webinar (March 4, 2021)
  • NACD Advanced Director Professionalism — A Price Worth Paying – Chicago, IL (June 18, 2019)
  • Risk Management and Recent Trends in Securities Fraud Litigation Against Life Sciences Companies — Professional Liability Underwriting Society (April 2019)
  • A Term in Review: An Overview of Key Supreme Court Decisions from the 2015 Term & Thoughts about the Upcoming Term (November 29, 2016)
  • Tipping the Scales: A Women in Law Symposium — Women in Law, Chapel Hill, NC (March 22, 2016)
  • Board Minute Best Practices — Directors & Boards (July 10, 2024)
  • SCOTUS: Pure Omissions Are Not Actionable Under Rule 10b-5 — Dechert OnPoint (April 2023)
  • Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against U.S. Life Sciences Companies — Dechert OnPoint (April 2023)
  • Cryptocurrency Securities Class Action Litigation: 2023 Year in Review — The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation (April 10, 2024)
  • Crypto Securities Class Action Filings Will Follow Market Trends — Bloomberg Law (March 14, 2024)
  • Securities and Derivative Litigation: Quarterly Update (July 25, 2023)
  • Delaware Court of Chancery Cuts “Merger Taxes” by Holding Supplemental Disclosures Must Be Material to Warrant a Mootness Fee — Dechert OnPoint (July 2023)
  • Securities and Derivative Litigation: Quarterly Update (May 09, 2023)
  • 2022 Developments in U.S. Securities Fraud Class Actions Against Non-U.S. Issuers — Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance (April 12, 2023)
  • 2022 Developments in U.S. Securities Fraud Class Actions Against U.S. Life Sciences Companies — Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance (March 20, 2023)
  • How Deeper Dialogues Among Women Can Bolster Diversity and Inclusion — American Bar Association (July 21, 2021)
  • Recent Trends in US Securities and Derivative Litigation — Financier Worldwide (June 1, 2021)
  • 2020 Developments in Securities Fraud Class Actions Against Non-U.S. Issuers — Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance (March 23, 2021)
  • What Was Up With All the Securities Class Actions Targeting Non-U.S. Issuers Last Year? — Law.com (March 15, 2021) 
  • Mitigating Risk Amid Layoff-Driven Confidential Witness Boom — LAW360 (March 10, 2021)
  • Non-U.S. Issuers Targeted in Securities Class Action Lawsuits Filed in the United States — Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance (March 29, 2020)
  • How I Made Partner: Dechert's Angela Liu — Law.com (February 20, 2020) 
  • Global Securities Litigation Trends — Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation (July 29, 2019) 
  • Recent Trends in Off-Shore Targeted US Class Actions — Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation (April 30, 2019)
  • INSIGHT: Life Sciences Companies Targeted in Securities Class Actions (March 8, 2019)
  • A New Era in Global Securities Litigation: Parts 1-4 — Law 360 (February 16, 2018) 
  • Guard Attorney-Client Privilege When Sharing Legal Advice — Law 360 (October 5, 2017)
  • The Devil is in the Details: A Litigator's 5 Tips for Drafting Board Minutes — Corporate Counsel (January 26, 2017)
  • Delaware Courts Update:  Supreme Court Issues Decision on Exculpatory Clauses — Wall Street Lawyer (June 2015)
Services
    • The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, B.A., 2004, Highest Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, Morehead Scholar
    • University of North Carolina School of Law, J.D., 2009, Editor in Chief of the North Carolina Journal of International Law & Commercial Regulation
    • New York
    • Illinois
    • Supreme Court of the United States
    • United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
    • United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
    • United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
    • United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
    • United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
    • United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
    • United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
    • United States District Court for the District of Colorado
    • Board of Directors - UNC Law Foundation, Inc. 
    • Leadership Council on Legal Diversity – 2018 Fellow
    • Law Alumni Association Board Member – UNC School of Law
    • National Asian Pacific American Bar Association
    • Planning Committee, ABA Judicial Division Bench & Bar Academy
    • Law360's Securities Litigation Editorial Advisory Board (2020)
    • United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, Honorable John R. Gibson

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