SAN MATEO, CA (TIP): Indian American lawyer Kirtee Kapoor, who was head of Davis Polk & Wardwell’s India group and a partner at the firm in Menlo Park, California, died after being struck by a train in San Mateo, California, June 5, according to a belated report.
He was killed by Caltrain at the Watkins Avenue crossing. “Early reports indicate this was an intentional act,” Caltrain spokesperson Tasha Bartholomew said in a statement.
“Kirtee was a truly wonderful man. His optimism, warmth, honesty and wisdom were inspiring. He will be remembered as a great partner of the firm, a beloved colleague and adviser, and a steadfast friend to so many”, Davis Polk group said in a statement.
Born in Bangalore, India, Kirtee earned his LL.B. from the University of Delhi Faculty of Law, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Student’s Law Review and Moot Court Society President. He received his B.C.L. from Balliol College, University of Oxford and was an Inlaks Scholar. He was a Hauser Global Scholar and Graduate Editor of the Journal of International Law and Politics at New York University School of Law, where he earned his LL.M.
Kirtee joined Davis Polk’s New York office as an associate in 1999, and over the next 18 years spent time in several of their offices advising clients on significant M&A matters and in investments and other transactions around the world. He was elected to the partnership in 2007 and moved to Hong Kong later that year. In 2015, he joined the Northern California office.