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Kiwi Alejandro Danao Camara (born June 16, 1984), also known as K.A.D. Camara, is a Filipino American attorney and businessman known for being founder and former CEO of CS Disco.[citation needed] He also represented defendant Jammie Thomas-Rasset in the first file-sharing copyright infringement lawsuit in the U.S. brought by major record labels to be tried by a jury. Camara abruptly resigned from CS Disco in September 2023 following accusations of improper sexual conduct.[1][2]

Early life and education

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Kiwi Alejandro Danao Camara was born in Manila, Philippines, to physicians Enrico Camara and Teresa Danao. At age one, his family moved to Cleveland, where he later attended the school Ratner Academy. In 1990, his family relocated to Honolulu, and Camara completed his primary education at the Punahou School.[3] He wrote a medical paper on alternative treatments for rheumatoid arthritis at age 11,[3] which was published in the Hawai'i Journal of Medicine.[4][5]

At 16, having skipped high school, Camara earned a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science summa cum laude from Hawaii Pacific University (HPU). He completed the program in two years and was recognized by the university for outstanding academic performance.[4] During his time at HPU, he was elected to student government and served as the body's sponsor for the school's first Spring Formal. He was also president of the computer club and earned a silver medal evaluation in ballroom dance.[4]

In 2001, Camara enrolled in Harvard Law School at the age of 17.[6] There he received a John M. Olin fellowship in law and economics. He held the fellowship until September 2004, at which time he took a position as a law clerk for Judge Harris Hartz of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. When he earned his Juris Doctor in 2004 at age 19, Camara became the youngest graduate of Harvard Law School.[7][8] He played golf, racquetball, soccer, and tennis, and continued to participate in ballroom dance competitions, earning multiple awards for the Harvard-Radcliffe Ballroom Dancing Team.[3]

During his first year at Harvard, Camara's use of an abbreviated racial slur in online course outlines prompted a fellow student to file a complaint and send copies to the Black Law Students' Association; the outlines were removed and Camara apologized.[9][10] During a Yale Law Journal symposium in 2006,[11] a group of Yale Law students and the school's dean protested Camara's panel participation by walking out to attend the alternative forum "Disempowered Voices in Legal Academia". He said he was "not surprised by or disapproving" of the demonstration, and apologized for any trouble caused by his presence.[12] In 2009, Camara said he was denied jobs because of the incident.[13]

After graduating from Harvard, Camara held a separate John M. Olin fellowship for 2006–2007 and was a visiting scholar at the Northwestern University School of Law. He was previously a John M. Olin fellow at Stanford Law School and briefly a Ph.D. student in economics at Stanford University.[14][15]

Career

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Prior to enrolling at Harvard Law School, Camara completed legal research and worked as an information systems specialist for Cades Schutte Fleming and Wright.[4]

In 2007, he relocated to Houston,[16] where he co-founded the law firm Camara & Sibley with business partner Joe Sibley in 2009.[17] The duo became friends after meeting on their first day attending Harvard,[15] and represented defendant Jammie Thomas-Rasset in the first file-sharing copyright infringement lawsuit in the U.S. brought by major record labels to be tried by a jury.[15][17][18] The firm also represented Psystar Corporation in the copyright infringement case Apple v. Psystar (2009).[19][20]

Camara founded the legal technology company CS Disco in Houston in 2013, and relocated the company's headquarters to Austin, Texas, in 2018.[21][22] CS Disco went public on the NYSE under the ticker LAW in 2021 at a market cap of almost $2 billion.[23]

In 2022, Camara's total compensation from CS Disco was $110 million, making him the ninth highest paid CEO in the US that year.[24]

On September 11, 2023, CS Disco announced that Camara had resigned as CEO and Board Director.[citation needed] According to a Wall Street Journal news exclusive, then carried by other services, Camara left under duress after being accused of a pattern of sexual harassment and retaliation against female employees, leaving behind compensation int the order of US$100 million in the form of unused stock options.[1][25][26]

Awards and recognition

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The Philippines awarded Camara its Jose Rizal Certificate of Achievement while he was in college and later, in 2005, recognized him with a Presidential Commendation.[14]

Personal life

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Publications

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  • Camara, K.A.D. (2004). "Shareholder Voting and the Bundling Problem in Corporate Law". Wisconsin Law Review. 2004: 1425 – via HeinOnline.
  • Camara, K. (2004). "Classifying Institutional Investors". The Journal of Corporation Law. doi:10.2139/SSRN.573441. S2CID 115131573.
  • Camara, K.A.D. (January 2005). "Costs of Sovereignty". West Virginia Law Review. 107 (2).
  • Camara, K.A.D.; Gowder, Paul (September 2006). "Quasipublic Executives". Yale Law Journal. 115 (9): 2254–2278. doi:10.2307/20455696. JSTOR 20455696.
  • Avraham, Ronen; Camara, K.A.D. (2007). "The Tragedy of the Human Commons". Cardozo Law Review. 29 (2): 479–511. SSRN 1022132.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Glazer, Emily & Francis, Theo (September 20, 2023). "CEO's Abrupt Exit Followed Complaint of Alleged Groping, Other Accounts of Misconduct". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 29, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Gordon, Nicholas (September 15, 2023). "CEO paid more than Apple's Tim Cook last year—and Harvard Law's youngest-ever graduate—unexpectedly leaves his $110 million gig". Fortune. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c Pastor, Cristina DC (October 18, 2004). "Kiwi Camara: Harvard genius, ballroom dancer". Philippine News. Archived from the original on October 18, 2006. Retrieved January 25, 2007.
  4. ^ a b c d Hiller, Jennifer (January 8, 2001). "Teen genius 'not that different'". The Honolulu Advertiser. pp. 1A. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2007.
  5. ^ Camara, Kiwi; Dana-Camara, Theresa (December 1999). "Awareness of, Use and Perception of Efficacy of Alternative Therapies by Patients with Inflammatory Arthorpathies". Hawai'i Medical Journal. 58 (12): 329. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  6. ^ Shea, Christopher (August 13, 2009). "The two legal file-sharing defeats of 2009: the Harvard connection". The Boston Globe. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  7. ^ Gilchrist, Shannon (May 8, 2017). "15-year-old on fast path to enter law school". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  8. ^ Thompson, Paul (January 24, 2019). "Austin startup collects head-turning $83M from investors". Austin Business Journal. Retrieved April 6, 2019.
  9. ^ Havard Law Record Staff (March 24, 2003). "Outline Sparks Race Controversy". Harvard Law Record. Retrieved May 7, 2012.
  10. ^ Havard Law Record Staff (April 11, 2002). "Race Controversy Explodes, BLSA Makes Demands of Administration". Harvard Law Record. Retrieved May 7, 2012.
  11. ^ Salzman, Avi (March 8, 2006). "Symposium Guest's Word Stirs Controversy at Yale". The New York Times. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  12. ^ Mangino, Andrew (March 27, 2006). "Panel Sees Walkout, Protest". Yale Daily News. Archived from the original on July 5, 2009. Retrieved February 15, 2007.
  13. ^ Lee, Rebecca (January 7, 2009). "Law School Grad Haunted by Racist Class Notes". ABC News. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "K.A.D. Camara, Visiting, Faculty Profiles, Faculty & Research, School of Law, Northwestern University". Retrieved January 25, 2007.
  15. ^ a b c Sandoval, Greg (July 9, 2009). "Odd-couple lawyers aim to save Jammie Thomas". CNET. Red Ventures. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  16. ^ Kaplan, David (June 21, 2014). "Entrepreneur has made a discovery-filled journey". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  17. ^ a b "Music Labels Win $2 Million in Web Case". The New York Times. June 18, 2009. Retrieved April 5, 2021 – via Bloomberg News.
  18. ^ Weiss, Debra Cassens (June 9, 2009). "New Lawyer for Music Piracy Defendant Graduated from Harvard Law at 19". ABA Journal. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  19. ^ Moren, Dan (October 14, 2009). "Psystar Attorney Clarifies Company's Argument". PC World. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  20. ^ "Contrary to report, Psystar not shutting down, lawyer says". Reuters. December 19, 2009. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  21. ^ Thompson, Paul (October 15, 2020). "Austin startup Disco raises $60M for legal software". Austin Business Journal. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  22. ^ "Austin legal tech firm Disco lands another $40 million for growth". Austin American-Statesman. December 18, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  23. ^ "DISCO Announces Pricing of Initial Public Offering | DISCO".
  24. ^ Smith, Morgan (July 5, 2023). "These are the 10 highest-paid CEOs in the U.S.—some pull in over $200 million a year". CNBC. Archived from the original on April 4, 2024. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  25. ^ Kirsch, Noah (September 20, 2023). "Ultra High-Paid CEO Quickly Resigned After Alleged Groping". TheDailyBeast.com. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
  26. ^ Wilkins, Stephanie (September 20, 2023). "CEO Camara's Sudden Departure from DISCO Follows Allegations of Sexual Misconduct". Law.com. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
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