Michael Kavoukjian

Mr. Kavoukjian is a partner in the Firm's Global Commercial Litigation Group. He heads the Firm's fiduciary litigation practice, representing leading families and financial institutions worldwide in high-stakes cross-border disputes involving trusts and estates. He has developed and led global teams in many of the most significant cases in his field, including matters in the U.S., Monaco, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, France, England, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Hong Kong, Cayman, Chile, Argentina, Ecuador, and Panama. He has practiced for over 35 years and spent his entire legal career at White & Case. He served as head of the Firm's Global Private Clients Group from 2007 to 2019. His representation of corporate clients has included Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Citibank, Deutsche Bank, and Northern Trust.

Mr. Kavoukjian holds a Band One ranking in Chambers. He is listed in Best Lawyers in America and Euromoney's Best of the Best. The Robb Report named him one of the top 100 attorneys in the U.S. He is the former chairman of the American Bar Association's Committee on Estate Planning. 

Mr. Kavoukjian previously served as an operations officer in the Directorate of Operations of the Central Intelligence Agency. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a member of the Board of Overseers of the Hoover Institution, and a director of the Jamestown Foundation. He holds an A.B. in English and Political Science, with distinction, from Stanford University and a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School.