PENNY REID is a partner in Sidley’s Commercial Litigation and Disputes practice and also serves in the Office of General Counsel of the firm. Penny focuses on internal investigations and taking to trial complex civil litigations in state and federal courts throughout the country, including securities fraud, class actions, employment litigations and bankruptcy litigations. Penny has represented companies, board committees, and bankruptcy-created trusts in internal investigations and reviews, including investigations related to alleged Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other statutory violations, accounting and executive issues, and potential claims of creditors. As a result of her accounting background, Penny is often called upon to handle matters involving accounting disputes and related internal investigations for major corporations. Penny also has extensive experience handling large domestic and international arbitrations before the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). She has argued appeals before the United States Court of Appeals and the Fifth District Court of Appeals in Dallas.

Examples of Penny’s recent engagements include several high profile cases for a wide range of companies in various industries, including:

• Representing U.S. public company with investigations spanning several Latin American jurisdictions, including Mexico and Argentina, into potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

• Representing public companies in investigations conducted by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

• Representing companies and partnerships in restructuring litigation including Highland Capital Management, LP.

• Advised a Special Committee and conducted an investigation on behalf of an international energy company on FCPA issues in Mexico and Colombia.

• Representing a publicly traded company in an investigation of the causes of restatement of financial statement;

• Representing a publicly traded energy company in an employment workplace investigation;

• Representing a publicly traded company in an investigation of Sarbanes-Oxley non-compliance;

• Representing a publicly traded company in an investigation of FCPA claims;

• Representing a publicly traded energy company in a shareholder derivative litigation;

• Serving as trial counsel for a top 10 mortgage company in a misappropriation of trade secrets and non-solicit employment litigation and arbitration proceedings;

• Representing Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Helmerich & Payne International Drilling Co. in various indemnity and personal injury claims;

• Serving as trial counsel for Vivendi in a large securities class action and related individual securities actions;

• Serving as lead trial counsel for Crane in the business valuation arbitration, In the Matter of the Arbitration between Gerald J. Gartner, Claimant and Crane & Co., Inc.;

• Serving as litigation counsel for General Growth Properties, Inc., Lehman Brothers, and General Motors in matters relating to their bankruptcy filings; and  

• Serving as lead trial counsel in In re: Footstar, Inc., a bankruptcy litigation against Kmart. 

In recognition of her litigation success, the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers has presented Penny with its 2020 “Outstanding Mentor Award.” She has been named a “Best Lawyer” in the area of Commercial Litigation (2014, 2016–2019, and 2021–2022) and specifically in the area of Commercial Litigation – Alternative Dispute Resolution (2013, 2015) by The Best Lawyers in America from 2013–2022. Penny also has been acknowledged since 1997 as a “Super Lawyer” in Business Litigation and Securities Litigation in the New York and/or and Texas editions of Super Lawyers directory. Her experience was further recognized by Benchmark Litigation as a “Litigation Star” in the areas of Commercial, Professional Liability, and Securities (2015–2017; 2020–2024).

Prior to returning to Dallas, Texas in 2012, Penny lived and practiced in New York, NY for eight years.