Claudius Sokenu, Ll.M (Lond.) Email & Phone Number

New York, Ny, Us

Radnor Township, Pennsylvania, Us

I am responsible for Avantor's global legal, corporate secretary, and compliance functions. Before Avantor, I was general counsel, corporate secretary and chief administrative officer at Unisys where I was responsible for the company’s legal affairs, corporate secretarial and governance functions, corporate development and mergers and acquisitions, ethics and compliance, and ESG. I also oversaw business-critical functions such as worldwide corporate real estate, global procurement, and crisis management.Before Unisys, I served as senior vice president and global deputy general counsel at Cognizant, bringing significant in-house, private practice and government legal experience. Throughout my career, I have served in various leadership roles, including deputy general counsel, global head of ethics and compliance and global head of litigation and investigations at Andeavor. Previously, I was an equity partner with two Am Law 100 law firms, Shearman & Sterling and Arnold & Porter, and an associate and partner at Mayer Brown. Prior to my 17 years in private practice, I served in the Honors Program at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement, first as a staff attorney before concluding my government service as senior counsel. I am a fellow with the American College of Governance Counsel. I earned an LL.M in securities and financial regulation from Georgetown University Law Center, where I also taught classes as an adjunct professor, an LL.M in corporate and commercial law from the University of London’s King’s College London and London School of Economics, and an LL.B with Upper-Class Honors from London South Bank University. I am recognized as a leading practitioner and have been ranked by Chambers USA and Chambers Global, named a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation, named a Latin Lawyer 250, and recognized by Securities Law 360 as one of its 10 under 40.

The American College of Governance Counsel is a professional, educational, and honorary association of lawyers widely-recognized for their achievements in the field of governance. The mission of the College is to promote a high level of professional standards among governance lawyers along with a better understanding and broader adoption of best practices within business organizations.Fellows spend a substantial amount of their time in boardrooms advising directors in a variety of circumstances such as shareholder activism and engagement, management succession, internal investigations, disclosure obligations, shareholder litigation, and a broad range of regulatory and governmental matters. For more information see www.amgovcollege.org.

Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, Us

As the general counsel, corporate secretary and chief administrative officer at Unisys, I was responsible for the company’s legal affairs, corporate secretarial and governance functions, corporate development and mergers and acquisitions, ethics and compliance, and ESG. I also oversaw business-critical functions such as worldwide corporate real estate, global procurement, and crisis management.Before Unisys, I served as senior vice president and global deputy general counsel at Cognizant, bringing significant in-house, private practice and government legal experience. Throughout my career, I have served in various leadership roles, including deputy general counsel, global head of ethics and compliance and global head of litigation and investigations at Andeavor. Previously, I was an equity partner with two Am Law 100 law firms, Shearman & Sterling and Arnold & Porter, and an associate and partner at Mayer Brown. Prior to my 17 years in private practice, I served in the Honors Program at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement, first as a staff attorney before concluding my government service as senior counsel. I am a fellow with the American College of Governance Counsel.I earned an LL.M in securities and financial regulation from Georgetown University Law Center, where I also taught classes as an adjunct professor, an LL.M in corporate and commercial law from the University of London’s King’s College London and London School of Economics, and an LL.B with Upper-Class Honors from London South Bank University. I am widely recognized as a leading practitioner and have been ranked by Chambers USA and Chambers Global, named a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation, named a Latin Lawyer 250 for White-Collar Crime and Compliance, named a rising star by Ethisphere in annual rankings of “Attorneys Who Matter” and recognized by Securities Law 360 as one of its 10 under 40.

Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, Us

I was responsible for global legal, corporate secretary, corporate development, and the ethics and compliance program.

Teaneck, New Jersey, Us

Claudius is a member of the Executive Leadership Team at Cognizant, a Fortune 200 information technology and services company that is one of the world’s leading professional services companies, engaged in transforming clients’ businesses, operating and technology models for the digital era. With over 300,000 employees in 270 offices and digital hubs in more than 75 cities across 35 countries, Claudius is responsible for managing all of Cognizant's litigation worldwide, government investigations, enforcement and regulatory matters, and labor and employment. In addition, Claudius is responsible for managing the global operations of the 400+ people Legal Department, including budgeting, financial management and administration, vendor management, human capital management (including talent planning, performance management, compensation, diversity, equity and inclusion, resource allocation), information governance, communications, and technology.

San Antonio, Tx, Us

Senior executive-level counsel to the executive management team and board of directors of Andeavor, a leading integrated energy refining, marketing, and logistics Fortune 100 company operating ten refineries with a combined capacity of more than 1.2 million barrels a day, with over 13,000 employees worldwide, a significant commodities and futures trading department, and more than 3,000 retail locations across North America.Recognized for skillfully leading and building the global litigation, investigations, and ethics and compliance departments. Managed the company’s global litigation, arbitration, and federal and state government investigations and enforcement docket with a staff of fifteen lawyers and support staff, and managed all outside counsel relationships. Successfully restructured the litigation department, reducing the number of outside law firms from sixty-two to five, resulting in significant annual saving.Revamped, implemented, reviewed, and oversaw all aspects of the company’s ethics and compliance program and related policies and procedures. Spearheaded all internal investigations of alleged violations of law and the company’s code of conduct, including ethical violations, conflicts of interest, bribery and corruption, money laundering, OFAC, trade sanctions, race and gender discrimination, fraud, waste, and all other crisis and potential violations of the company’s code of conduct. Presented findings to the audit committee and, where appropriate, advised the board of directors on appropriate remedial actions, including any related crisis management.Successfully kept the total litigation and compliance costs below benchmarks for other companies of comparable size. Key member of the 2017 Andeavor team that integrated Western Refining, Inc., a Fortune 500 company, after it was acquired by Andeavor.

Global, Gb

Washington, Dc, Us

Chicago, Il, Us

Associate (April 2001-December 2006); Partner (January 2007 - January 2009)

Washington, Dc, Us

Securities Enforcement and Litigation

Master Of Laws (Ll.M.), Securities & Financial Regulation

Master Of Laws (Ll.M.), Corporate And Commercial Law

Master Of Laws (Ll.M.), Corporate And Commercial Law

Bachelor Of Laws (Ll.B.), Law

High School

Primary School