Adani hires top Wall Street lawyer in sign US fraud case will advance

NEW YORK - Gautam Adani has hired a prominent Wall Street lawyer to defend him against fraud allegations by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as the regulator presses to advance its stalled case.

India’s second-richest person recently tapped Mr Robert Giuffra Jr, to be his lawyer in the SEC’s lawsuit, court filings show. Mr Giuffra, who represents prominent clients in high-stakes financial cases as co-chair of white-shoe law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, is also working on US President Donald Trump’s bid to overturn his criminal conviction.

The SEC’s lawsuit, filed in November 2024, alleges that Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani violated US securities laws by making false and misleading representations about Adani Green Energy.

In addition to the SEC’s civil complaint, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, New York, charged the Adanis and others with allegedly helping drive a US$250 million (S$315.9 million) bribery scheme in India to lock in solar-power contracts.

Both the criminal and SEC case have been stalled for more than a year with both Adanis in India. But the SEC last week asked a US judge to let it use alternative measures to formally notify the Adanis of the lawsuit. The regulator asked permission to use e-mail and serve papers on other US law firms representing the Adanis. 

Adani stocks slipped on news of the SEC’s move, wiping away almost US$13 billion (S$16.4 billion) in combined market value on Jan 23. There still has not been any movement in the criminal case.

The regulator says it was rebuffed in India with attempts to formally serve the Adanis with the lawsuit. Generally, litigation cannot proceed in the United States until the defendants have been properly notified of a complaint.

The SEC said in a court filing that Mr Giuffra contacted the agency to say he is representing Gautam Adani and is willing to accept the lawsuit on the Adanis’ behalf. Mr Giuffra then asked the court for more time to negotiate with the SEC on how to proceed with both Adanis in India. 

Mr Giuffra and the SEC declined to comment. 

The US regulator has said it has unsuccessfully tried to get assistance from Indian government to deliver the summons.

Gautam and Sagar Adani are preparing to accept the SEC summons through US-based counsel and their representatives have been in touch with Indian government officials about their plans, according to a person familiar with the matter. The Indian government may seek certain modifications to the summons process, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing the deliberations.

A representative for the Adani Group had no immediate comment on the developments in the SEC’s lawsuit. Gautam Adani chairs the conglomerate and Sagar Adani is executive director at Adani Green Energy. Neither the conglomerate nor its corporate units were sued by the SEC. BLOOMBERG