January.17.2019
Orrick is delighted to announce the promotion of 17 lawyers to the firm’s partnership, effective January 1, 2019.
Orrick’s 2019 partner class reflects the firm’s focus on serving the technology & innovation, energy & infrastructure and finance sectors. Three of our new partners focus on tech, one on energy & infrastructure and four on finance, while nine are litigators focused on areas important to these sectors, including antitrust, appellate, complex litigation, employment, IP and white collar.
The class also reflects Orrick’s efforts to innovate on talent. Half of the class is diverse and/or women. A third of our new partners have taken advantage of the firm’s Agile Working programs.
“Nothing is more important to our future than our ability to recruit, promote and inspire top quality talent. Our 2019 class is stellar both in terms of their legal skills and deep sector experience and their commitment to innovation, collaboration and making a social impact,” said Orrick Chairman Mitch Zuklie. “We’re incredibly fortunate to have this diverse group to lead our firm into the future.”
This marks the sixth year in a row that Orrick has promoted 15 or more partners.
Orrick’s new partners are:
Jonathan Chou is a member of the firm’s Technology Companies Group, based in New York. He counsels technology companies at all stages in corporate governance and securities law, financings, M&A and IP transactions and strategy. Jonathan has extensive experience advising angel, venture and strategic investors who are active in the technology sector and has lectured on venture capital and angel investing at NYU Tandon Future Labs, Columbia Business School and Yale Law School. Prior to his legal career, he was a cancer scientist and early employee at a venture-backed biotech startup. Jonathan earned his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and his A.B. in molecular biology from Princeton.
Timothy Greene is a member of the firm’s Technology Companies and Technology Transactions Groups, based in Santa Monica. He represents companies at all stages, from seed to public offering. Tim helps clients maximize their IP and technology portfolios, including advising clients on technology licensing and IP matters in connection with mergers, acquisitions, financings and other commercial transactions. He joined Orrick from Stanford Law School's Center for Internet and Society, where he was the Residential Fellow for Copyright and Fair Use. Tim earned his J.D., with honors, from the University of Chicago and his B.A. from the University of Utah.
David Ruff is a member of the firm’s M&A and Private Equity Group, based in New York. He advises private equity funds, their portfolio companies and a broad range of public and private technology, energy and life sciences companies in domestic and cross-border M&A, minority and majority investments, joint ventures and other complex transactions. David also counsels domestic and international issuers in public offerings of equity securities and SEC compliance matters. He earned his J.D., with honors, from the University of North Carolina and his B.A., cum laude, from Davidson College.
Sébastien Gaudu is a member of the firm’s Energy & Infrastructure Group, based in Paris. He advises sponsors and governments on the development of mining, infrastructure and power projects in Sub-Saharan Africa. Most recently, Sébastien advised Gécamines, the Democratic Republic of the Congo's state-owned mining company, on the Deziwa mining project and the Kingamyambo and Kilamusembo production sharing agreement and also counseled the Government of Guinea on the development of the Boffa bauxite project. He earned his D.E.S.S./D.J.C.E., with honors, from Université Cergy / Pontoise, his certificat d’études spécialisées, from Université – Montpellier and his Master 1, with honors, from Université Cergy / Pontoise.
Marc Bauer is a member of the firm’s Public Finance Group, based in Los Angeles. He advises issuer and underwriter clients in transactions involving long- and short-term, fixed and variable rate obligations, commercial paper, credit and liquidity enhancement, and revenue bonds. Marc has worked on financings for governmental entities and nonprofit corporations, including the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Stanford University, the California Science Center, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures and Loyola Marymount University. He serves on the board of trustees of VoteRiders, a nonprofit helping citizens exercise their right to vote, and the board of directors of Shoes for the Homeless, Inc. Marc earned his J.D. from the USC Gould School of Law, his M.B.A. from the USC Marshall School of Business and his B.A., with honors, from Northwestern.
Katherine Jones is a member of the firm’s Real Estate Group, based in Seattle and Los Angeles. She advises private equity and debt funds on real property, debt and equity acquisitions, dispositions and repositioning, mortgage and mezzanine financing and workouts, preferred equity, joint ventures, construction and development and other corporate real estate activities. Katie has worked on over $6 billion of hospitality transactions, including acquisitions, financings and dispositions of luxury hotels, such as the Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis properties throughout the United States. She earned her J.D. from the USC Gould School of Law and her B.A., cum laude, from USC.
Barbara League is a member of the firm’s Tax Group, based in Houston, focused on municipal finance. She counsels cities, counties, states, school districts and other tax-exempt organizations on tax-exempt financing transactions. Formerly an attorney with the Chief Counsel of the Internal Revenue Service, Barbara has represented clients before the IRS in a variety of matters involving tax-exempt bonds. She earned her LLM in Taxation from the University of Florida, and her J.D. and B.A. from Washington and Lee University.
John Stanley is a member of the firm’s Tax Group, based in San Francisco, focused on municipal finance. He advises on tax issues for a wide range of municipal finance transactions, including financings for infrastructure projects, water and wastewater facilities, public power projects, airports and ports. As part of Orrick’s bond counsel team to the State of California, John has worked on the issuance of billions of dollars of tax-exempt general obligation bonds. He earned his J.D, magna cum laude, from the UC Hastings College of the Law and his B.S. from UC Santa Cruz.
Jonathan Direnfeld is a member of the firm’s Antitrust & Competition Group, based in Washington, D.C. He focuses on defending technology companies against government enforcement actions by the FTC, DOJ, CFPB and state AGs relating to their digital sales and marketing activities. Jon also advises clients in antitrust litigation and enforcement matters, including merger clearance and global criminal cartel investigations, and assists clients in maximizing their recoveries in antitrust price-fixing cases. He earned his J.D., with high honors, from George Washington University and his B.A. from Kenyon College.
David Fuad is a member of the firm’s Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice, based in Los Angeles. He advises a range of clients, particularly in the tech, manufacturing and real estate industries, on complex litigation matters, such as breach of contract, employment disputes, class actions, product liability and trade secrets. David has tried cases in state and federal courts and conducted arbitrations. He maintains an active pro bono practice and was part of a team that brought a successful civil rights complaint in Louisiana to stop jailing indigent defendants for failing to pay court-imposed fees. A lifelong Angeleno, David earned his J.D. from Loyola Law School and his B.A. from UC Santa Barbara.
Christopher Higgins is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Group, based in Washington, D.C. He is a patent litigator and a leader of Orrick’s 3D Printing Group, which he co-founded in 2014, making Orrick one of the first firms to focus on legal issues in 3D printing and additive manufacturing. Chris has extensive technical and litigation experience in graphics processing, additive manufacturing, semiconductors and display technologies, representing clients such as Mediatek, Desktop Metal, NVIDIA and FUJIFILM. He represents military veterans pro bono, including working with 3D Veterans, a training and veteran support organization. Chris earned his J.D. from George Washington University and his B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Cincinnati.
Tom Kidera is a member of the firm’s Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group, based in New York. He advises clients on complex commercial litigation, internal investigations and regulatory enforcement actions. Tom has significant experience in RMBS-related litigation representing both issuers and mortgage loan servicers, and he has represented the Big Four auditing firms in civil litigation and regulatory enforcement proceedings. He represents U.S. veterans pro bono, seeking discharge upgrades, and serves on Orrick’s New York hiring and summer program committees. Tom earned his J.D., cum laude, from Boston University, where he was named a G. Joseph Tauro Scholar, and his B.A., with honors, from Dartmouth.
Lisa Lupion is a member of the firm’s Employment Law Group, based in New York. She has successfully defended companies in complex employment litigation and arbitration proceedings, most notably in the financial services and technology sectors. Lisa counsels companies on a wide range of employment issues, including claims and potential claims of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblowing, wrongful discharge and compensation. Prior to joining Orrick, she served as a law clerk to the Hon. Peter Leisure in the Southern District of New York. Lisa earned her J.D., magna cum laude, from Fordham and her B.S. in industrial and labor relations from Cornell.
Matthew Moses is a member of the firm’s White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation & Compliance Group, based in New York. He counsels clients in government and internal investigations and provides compliance advice in areas with a global framework, including FCPA, anti-money laundering regulations and OFAC sanctions. A well-rounded litigator, Matt has also represented clients in securities and complex commercial litigation. He is a board member of The Legal Aid Society’s New Leadership Program, a four-time recipient of The Legal Aid Society’s Pro Bono Publico Award, a recipient of Immigration Equality’s Safe Haven Award, and is active in the LGBT legal community. Matt earned his J.D. from New York University, where he was a Notes Editor of the NYU Law Review, and his B.A., magna cum laude, from Amherst College.
Shaila Rahman Diwan is a member of the firm’s Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group, based in New York. She focuses her trial practice on representing clients in the technology and finance sectors in matters ranging from intellectual property to product liability. Shaila has been part of Orrick teams advising Microsoft, Citibank and Johnson & Johnson, among others. She is also a member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals and counsels clients on cybersecurity and data privacy issues. Shaila maintains an active pro bono practice focused on women’s rights. She also serves as co-chair of Orrick’s Diversity Committee and Asian Attorney Affinity Group. Shaila earned her J.D. from Fordham and her B.A., magna cum laude, from Binghamton.
Daniel Rubens is a member of the firm’s Supreme Court & Appellate Group, based in New York. He focuses on high-stakes appellate matters and has served as lead drafter on dozens of briefs in appellate tribunals across the country, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Most recently, Danny played key roles on teams handling appeals arising from Credit Suisse’s residential mortgage-backed securitizations and offshore drilling company Ocean Rig’s $3.7 billion debt restructuring. He does pro bono work focused on LGBTQ rights, criminal law and immigration matters. Before joining Orrick, Danny served as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Chief Judge Robert A. Katzmann of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He earned his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard and his B.A., with honors and distinction, from Stanford.
Alex Talarides is a member of the firm’s White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation & Compliance Group, based in San Francisco. He advises clients in securities, shareholder derivative and other corporate governance and business disputes. Named a Legal 500 “Next Generation Lawyer,” Alex has represented companies such as PayPal, NVIDIA, Chesapeake Energy, Deckers Outdoor and Nordstrom. He earned his J.D., with honors, Order of the Coif, from the University of Chicago and his B.A. from UC Davis.