The view from the General Counsel

Karna Nisewaner is the General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Cadence Design Systems, Inc. She is responsible for Cadence worldwide legal operations, covering matters such as corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, commercial transactions, employment, export compliance, government affairs, intellectual property, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, and stock administration. Prior to this role, she was Corporate Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at Cadence where she led many key functions in the legal department.  Prior to joining Cadence in 2011, Nisewaner held in-house counsel roles at Intuit and IBM and was in private practice at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett, and Dunner, LLP focused on intellectual property.  Nisewaner received her BSE in civil engineering and operations research from Princeton University and her Juris Doctor degree from UCLA Law School.

Brian D. Walters serves as Executive Vice-President and General Counsel for Matthews International Corporation, Pittsburgh’s oldest company in continuous operation since 1850 and operating in over 25 countries with over 12,000 employees.  During his 18-year tenure at Matthews, the Company has more than tripled in annual revenue, now producing approximately $1.8 billion in sales.   Brian has directed all legal matters for this publicly-traded corporation both nationally and internationally, as well as serving as a member of Matthews’ executive leadership team.  Mr. Walters has led over 75 domestic and foreign acquisition initiatives at Matthews, including extensive experience coordinating strategies to secure transaction approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, managing HSR filings, as well as filings with the competition authority of the European Union.