Lawyers
Litigation Department Co-Chair Kannon Shanmugam and partner Masha Hansford were featured in a Q&A on Paul, Weiss’s litigation practice in the 2026 edition of “Practice Perspectives: Vault’s Guide to Legal Practice Areas.” In the Q&A, Kannon and Masha discuss their work, what drew them to the field and other topics.
Kannon emphasizes the breadth of Paul, Weiss’s litigation practice. “We have one of the largest litigation departments in the country and do every major type of litigation, both civil and criminal, which attracts some of the most high-profile and fascinating clients and cases and creates enormous opportunities for associates,” Kannon notes.
The partners also discuss the wide range of appellate matters they work on. “Any type of legal issue can be embedded in any type of case,” Masha says. “We’re constantly learning about new areas of the law and need to quickly become experts in these areas.”
Masha urges students interested in commercial litigation to push themselves beyond their comfort zone, such as by entering the moot court competition, while Kannon stresses the importance of getting a strong foundation in the general process and substance involved in commercial litigation. “Contrary to popular opinion, statutory interpretation is much more important than constitutional law,” Kannon says. “Constitutional law cases are rare, but you’ll be interpreting statutes all the time.”
Vault’s annual “Practice Perspectives” guide offers insights from lawyers at top-ranked law firms on practicing law in more than 20 different practice areas.
» read the Q&A
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