Overview
Nick Carullo represents plaintiffs and defendants in high-stakes commercial litigation across the country. He has litigated complex disputes in federal and state trial courts, before state courts of last resort, and at the United States Supreme Court. Whether the case involves trade secrets, antitrust, defamation, or other bet-the-company disputes, clients trust Nick to take on matters where the stakes are measured in the hundreds of millions of dollars and the courtroom performance matters most.
A seasoned trial lawyer, Nick has played leading courtroom roles in many of Susman Godfrey’s most significant victories. He has examined and cross-examined key fact and expert witnesses, delivered closing arguments, and helped secure precedent-setting verdicts, judgments, and arbitration awards for clients ranging from leading universities and Fortune 500 companies to prominent business leaders and investor classes.
Among his recent victories, Nick represented Yale University in a 5-day jury trial in the District of Delaware federal court, securing a jury finding that Defendant RA Capital willfully and maliciously misappropriated Yale’s trade secrets. Nick played a prominent role at trial, presenting Yale’s damages expert and cross-examining RA Capital’s main liability expert. Read more.
Nick also served as counsel to Black Knight Servicing Technologies in a six-week misuse of confidential information, trade secret, and antitrust arbitration against PennyMac Loan Services. The proceeding resulted in a nearly $160 million award for Black Knight, which was confirmed in 2024. Nick played a pivotal role at the arbitration, including handling multiple witnesses at trial on both sides of the case, presenting Black Knight’s main liability expert on theft of confidential information and trade secrets, and conducting the cross examination of PennyMac’s antitrust damages expert who was offered to support its counterclaim.
In a hotly followed defamation matter, Nick represented acclaimed hedge funder, Louis Bacon, in his highly-publicized litigation against fashion magnate, Peter Nygard. In 2023 Nick and his team secured a $203 million win from Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York on behalf of Bacon – believed to be the highest defamation judgment in New York state history. Again, playing a central role, Nick delivered the closing argument in the damages proceeding leading to the landmark award. Post-award proceedings are ongoing. Read more.
Nick also represented a class of members of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade against CME Group in a three-week jury trial in Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago. Nick examined multiple witnesses at trial, including cross-examining one of CME Group’s board members.
PRO BONO
Despite his robust docket, Nick makes it a priority to do pro bono work, representing those who cannot afford legal assistance in immigration and § 1983 matters. In addition, Nick helped represent a bipartisan group of 35 retired federal judges who took objection with the Trump Administration’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund”—filing a brief that resulted in the Court overseeing that case to reopen it for further scrutiny.
BACKGROUND
Nick joined Susman Godfrey after clerking for Judge Gregg Costa on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He earned his J.D. Order of the Coif from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was a Notes Editor on the board of the Virginia Law Review, and he graduated with Distinction from the University of Virginia, where he majored in Foreign Affairs and Italian Studies.
Notable Representations
- Biohaven Therapeutics and Yale University v. Avilar Therapeutics Inc. (D. Del.) Secured a jury verdict on behalf of Yale University that venture capital firm RA Capital Management GP and Avilar Therapeutics willfully and maliciously misappropriated Yale’s trade secrets. The jury verdict followed a five-day trial. Read more and see the case profiled in Law360’s “How They Won It” series.
- Black Knight, Inc. v. PennyMac Loan Services, LLC (Florida Arbitration) Secured a nearly $160 million arbitration award on behalf of Black Knight Servicing Technologies after a six-week misuse of confidential information, trade secret, and antitrust arbitration against PennyMac Loan Services.
- In re MultiPlan Health Insurance Provider Litigation MDL (N.D. Ill.) Serves on a team that was appointed Interim Co-Lead Class Counsel in antitrust class action on behalf of healthcare providers alleging that major health insurers colluded with pricing intermediary MultiPlan to unlawfully suppress payments for out-of-network healthcare services.
- Louis Bacon v. Peter Nygard et al. (New York Supreme Court, Commercial Division) Delivered the closing argument leading to a $203 million award for Louis Bacon in a high-profile defamation case against Peter Nygard. This is the largest known award in a New York-based defamation lawsuit. Read more.
- Moore Charitable Foundation v. PJT Partners (New York Court of Appeals) Won a reversal of the dismissal of his client, Moore’s, negligent supervision claim, which helped clarify the NY laws relating to how duty extends in negligent supervision cases. The case settled favorably following the Court’s ruling.
- Langer v. CME Group, Inc. (Circuit Court Of Cook County, Illinois County Department, Chancery Division)Represented a class of members of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade against CME Group in a three-week jury trial in Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago. Nick examined multiple witnesses at trial, including cross-examining one of CME Group’s board members.
- Polansky v. Executive Health Resources (United States Supreme Court) Represented a whistleblower in a multibillion-dollar dispute under the False Claims Act before the United States Supreme Court.
Clerkships
- Honorable Gregg J. Costa, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 2016-2017
Education
Education
- The University of Virginia (B.A., Foreign Affairs, 2013)
- The University of Virginia School of Law (J.D., 2016)
Admissions
Admissions
Bar Admissions
- New York
Court Admissions
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
