of another big media company, Crown
Media Holdings Inc., which is controlled by
Hallmark. The company was in financial
trouble, and when it tried to reorganize its
debt, stockholders sued.
“Greg gave me a sense of confidence
right away,” says Peter Lund, then a
director of Crown Media. “I never met
anyone who was more prepared than he
was and demanded that I be prepared. We
had 26 committee meetings. That’s a lot of
minutes to go back and collect.”
Williams says working with people like
Lund makes him a better attorney. “Here I
am, a kid who grew up in Bear, Delaware,
and yet I get to interact with such
interesting people, like Peter Lund who ran
CBS television. Interacting with people who
have been so successful has been a great
privilege for me. My observation is that the
most successful people are nice people.
They interact well with others.”
Barnes & Noble CEO Leonard Reggio is
one of those people. “He created one of the
great American companies,” says Williams.
“You have a sense when you interact with
folks like Len that you’re watching a part of
American commercial history.”
Williams defended him against financier
Ronald Burkle, whose private equity firm The
Yucaipa Cos. had initiated a hostile takeover
bid last year, which was ultimately rebuffed.
“The thing people forget about Court of
Chancery is that not only does it control the
direction of American corporate law, but
that it’s a trial court—with objections and
witnesses. We ultimately won because of
Chancellor Leo Strine’s interpretation of the
Household case. I think that it showed the
importance of precedent.”
Sandra Goldstein of Cravath, Swaine
& Moore worked with Williams on the
Barnes & Noble case, and says he’s “really
a go-to guy, the rare combination of an
extraordinarily knowledgeable lawyer with
great skills and great judgment. I really
want to know what he thinks. I want to hear
his legal analysis, the practical aspects.
Some people are good courtroom lawyers,
but not as knowledgeable about the law
itself. He really covers all sides of it.”
Even with the front-row seat to inner-
workings of American businesses, Williams
says he’d never trade his law degree for
an MBA. “I could not turn my back on this
firm. Whatever it is that I’ve accomplished
in life, the thing I’m most proud of is being
named director at the firm [in 1988].”
That wouldn’t have been possible
without the support of his wife, Susanne.
“As hard as the practice of law is, if you
don’t have a supportive spouse, it’s almost
impossible. During the takeover days when
I was working weekend after weekend, my
wife was the rock, and none of this success
was ever going to happen without her.”
The other key to success? “Don’t become
a passive decision maker,” Williams says.
“Keep thinking about where you’re going.”
