Allison Kernisky
Partner
Overview
Allison Kernisky is a litigation attorney in Holland & Knight's Tysons and Miami offices, where she is a member of the Securities Litigation Team, Securities Enforcement Defense Team and White Collar Defense and Investigations Team, as well as co-editor of the SECond Opinions blog. Ms. Kernisky focuses her nationwide practice primarily on securities litigation, with an emphasis on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) enforcement matters, in which she helps companies and individuals navigate operational and governance challenges, internal investigations and inquiries by the SEC, FINRA and other federal and state agencies.
Ms. Kernisky counsels and defends business entities (including public and private companies, corporate directors and officers, broker-dealer firms, registered investment advisers and their associated registered persons, mutual funds, private equity funds and hedge funds) in SEC and FINRA matters, other federal and state governmental investigations and enforcement actions, internal investigations, securities and consumer class actions, shareholder derivative actions, merger and acquisition (M&A) disputes and FINRA investigations and arbitration claims.
Ms. Kernisky has significant experience with complex investigations and litigation matters involving alleged accounting or disclosure violations, securities offerings, securities trading, investment adviser and broker-dealer duties and conduct, and more. She also has significant experience advising clients on matters of regulatory compliance and has trial experience against the SEC.
Ms. Kernisky also handles consumer fraud and other complex business litigation and has successfully represented plaintiffs and defendants in complex business-to-business disputes.
In addition to her securities litigation practice, Ms. Kernisky has an active pro bono practice and represents clients in a variety of matters, including immigration and juvenile court for Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) cases, representing a nonprofit landlord in an eviction action, successfully appealing Social Security disability claims, and assisting several nonprofit clients to acquire or re-activate tax exempt status as 501(c) organizations with the IRS.
Within Holland & Knight, Ms. Kernisky co-chairs the Tysons Women's Engagement Network and serves on the Tysons Engagement Network.
While in law school, Ms. Kernisky served as articles and comments editor for the University of Miami Law Review.
Representative Experience
- SEC Investigations: Advised individuals and entities in active SEC and other governmental investigations and enforcement actions, including responding to voluntary requests and subpoenas for documents, providing interviews and sworn testimony, negotiating settled resolutions and litigating claims
- Trial: Defended an investment advisory firm against the SEC in federal court, resulting in a hung jury and mistrial followed by a settlement without the lifetime industry bar the SEC sought
- Insider Trading: Represented a number of individuals suspected of insider trading by the SEC, often employing sophisticated analyses of the client's trading to rebut any inference that it was based on material, nonpublic information; also represented corporations in investigations concerning potential insider trading by their officers and employees; counseled multiple executives on potential insider trading liability
- Municipal Bond Advisors: Obtained closure of an SEC investigation into two municipal bond advisors in connection with an alleged pay-to-play scheme
- Financial Reporting and Disclosure: Represented public companies and their officers (CEOs, CFOs and controllers) in SEC investigations concerning the accuracy of their financial statements and other public disclosures
- Market Manipulation: Represented high-speed algorithmic trading firms in an SEC investigation into potential market manipulation; represented a pharmaceutical executive in an SEC investigation into potential market manipulation
- Trading Practices and Trade Reporting: Represented broker-dealer firms in Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) investigations of their trading practices, including compliance with the markup rule, inter-positioning, trade allocation and cherry-picking
- Offering Fraud: Represented entities and individuals in an SEC investigation of potential fraud in the offering of securities
- Mutual Funds: Represented advisers to mutual funds and fund board members in SEC investigations concerning performance advertising, compliance procedures, best execution, commission recapture and the receipt of soft dollars
- FINRA Trading Inquiries: Represented public companies in responding to trading inquiries
- FINRA Arbitration: Defended broker-dealers against customer suitability claims
- Internal Investigations: Conducted and assisted a number of internal investigations, typically concerning financial reporting
- Securities Class Actions: Defended an electric vehicle (EV) charging company, digital business solutions provider, cruise line, pharmaceutical companies, high-tech equipment manufacturers, financial institutions, utilities, media companies and medical device manufacturers and their directors and officers in the successful resolution of federal and state securities class action lawsuits
- Derivative Actions: Obtained dismissals of directors and officers of a fast-casual burger restaurant company, EV charging company and nationwide homebuilder in shareholder derivative actions
- Merger Litigation: Resolved merger litigation for medical device manufacturers, insurance provider and consumer audio electronics manufacturer
- LLC Breach Claims: Represented a majority member in a limited liability company (LLC) buyout and action brought by a minority member through successful resolution; counseled minority shareholders in high-stakes business negotiations, resulting in a favorable settlement
- Failed Accounting Software Implementation Dispute: For a multibillion-dollar financial services firm, sued a global software provider in federal court; minutes before opening statements to the jury, the matter resolved for more than seven times the defendant's highest previous offer
- High-Value Products Liability and Consumer Fraud Claims: For one of the largest manufacturers of ink, pursued claims against international and domestic defendants for consumer fraud, misrepresentations and products liability valued at approximately $20 million, ultimately leading to a settlement
- Defended a satellite radio company, casinos, media companies and health product companies in the successful resolution of consumer class actions and state attorney general investigations
Credentials
- University of Miami School of Law, J.D.
- University of Maryland, B.A., English Literature
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Virginia
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- All State Courts in Virginia
- All State Courts in Florida
- All Courts in the District of Columbia
- Women's White Collar Defense Association, Virginia Chapter
- Shadowalk Homeowners Association, Board of Directors, 2024-Present; Secretary 2025-Present
- Holland & Knight Pro Bono All-Star, 2021
- Holland & Knight Public and Charitable Service All-Star Award, 2017
