Faculty

Karen Valihura, J.D.
Distinguished Professor of Corporate Law

Karen Valihura brings decades of experience in corporate law, appellate service, and professional leadership to Wilmington University Farnan School of Law. After completing a full 12-year term as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware, from July 25, 2014, through July 25, 2026, she was named Distinguished Professor of Corporate Law. She also serves as the founding director of Wilmington University’s Corporate Law, Governance and Practice Institute.

Before joining the Court, Professor Valihura was a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, where she practiced from 1989 until her judicial appointment in 2014. Her practice focused on complex commercial and corporate governance disputes, federal and state securities matters, mergers and acquisitions, and other transactional litigation. During her years in private practice, she was consistently selected for inclusion in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business and The Best Lawyers in America.

Professor Valihura’s professional service reflects a sustained commitment to corporate governance, legal ethics, access to justice, and the responsible use of technology in law. She has served on the Advisory Board of the John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance, the Corporation Law Council of the Delaware State Bar Association’s Corporation Law Section, and several Delaware Supreme Court administrative Arms of Court. Her leadership roles have included chairing the Board on Professional Responsibility and the Permanent Ethics Advisory Committee, as well as co-chairing the Access to Justice Commission and the Law and Technology Commission. The National Association of Corporate Directors also named her to the NACD Directorship 100. She is a member of the American Law Institute and serves on the Board of Advisors for its Restatement of Corporate Governance.

Her community service includes 18 years on the Board of Directors of Special Olympics Delaware, including service as board president, and eight years with the Delaware Bar Foundation, also including service as president. Professor Valihura earned her undergraduate degree from Washington & Jefferson College, where she was valedictorian, and her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she served on the Law Review. She later clerked for Judge Robert E. Cowen of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.