People

Raniero D'Aversa Partner

New York

Ron is the designated restructuring counsel to many leading financial institutions such as The Royal Bank of Scotland, Bank of America, Citibank, Commerzbank, Toronto-Dominion Bank and The Bank of Nova Scotia. He has represented clients in bankruptcies, workouts, DIP loans, distressed debt transactions, bankruptcy litigation, derivatives and distressed acquisitions. Ron has represented interests of financial institutions and investors in such restructuring and bankruptcy cases as Ocean Rig, Seadrill, CHC Helicopter, Erickson, Indiana Toll Road, Pocahontas Parkway, Eagle Bulk, Spyglass Films, American Airlines, Republic Airlines, Chemtura Corporation, Quebecor, AbitibiBowater, North Las Vegas, Ritchie Risk-Linked Strategies, Star Diamond, Lehman and Mesa Airlines.

In the Restructuring (Including Bankruptcy): Corporate category of The Legal 500 US directory, Ron’s clients praise his “practical and strategic approach.” Another noted, “Each time I discuss an issue with [him], I am both amazed at his ability to understand my concerns and his complete knowledge of the subject. He puts me at ease and there is never a time that I cannot reach him.” Regarded as a leader in financial restructurings by clients and peers alike, Ron understands every phase of a bankruptcy and restructuring matter and knows how to effectively position a client to control opposition and maximize results.

Anupam Dalvi Managing Associate

New York

Anupam provides strategic support during the entire cybersecurity incident lifecycle, including leading tabletop exercises and assessments, advising on state breach notification laws, preparing notifications, and managing investigations and enforcement actions. He has worked on data breach investigations for companies in various sectors, helping them respond efficiently to sophisticated cyberattacks and advising them on regulatory investigations.

Anupam also has experience defending clients in class action litigation for alleged consumer privacy violations under the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), the California Constitution and the Washington Consumer Protection Act.

Paolo Danelzik Associate

Paris

Paolo's practice focuses on restructuring and insolvency advising all the stakeholders (debtors, shareholders, creditors and investors) whether in an amicable or judicial context.

Prior to joining Orrick, he gained professional experience in the restructuring departments of international law firms.

Hillary Dang Senior Associate

Washington, D.C.

Clients have relied on Hillary’s representation in multidistrict litigation, statewide coordinated proceedings, class actions, and government enforcement actions filed in federal and state courts throughout the country.  Additionally, Hillary has represented pharmaceutical companies and government contractors in False Claims Act litigation and government investigations.  Hillary’s litigation experience spans from initial case and dispositive motions assessment, to both bench and jury trials, and all fact and expert discovery, motions practice, and other trial preparation in between, including considerable work with company witnesses, medical and public health experts, and U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory experts.  Hillary has also advised clients on product liability exposure and litigation risk related to FDA regulations and guidance.

Hillary’s active pro bono practice includes advising clients on civil rights and immigration matters.  She has secured asylum for an individual from Cameroon and successfully argued for a renewed bond hearing for an unlawfully detained immigrant before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Prior to joining Orrick, Hillary practiced at Arnold & Porter in Washington, D.C.  From 2020-2021, she clerked for the Honorable M. Casey Rodgers in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida.  While in law school, Hillary completed a judicial externship with the Honorable Tanya S. Chutkan in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

Alexander Dartsch Counsel

Düsseldorf

Alexander has many years of experience in advising national and international energy suppliers, global corporations and institutional investors across the entire value chain in the energy sector.

His work primarily involves advising on offshore wind, onshore wind, photovoltaic, and battery storage projects. He supports clients through all phases of a project, from establishing joint ventures for collaborative project development to acquiring project pipelines and investing in existing projects.

During a secondment, Alexander served a leading institutional investor specializing in infrastructure investments. He is recognized by Legal 500 Germany for his expertise in energy transactions (2023).

Alexander also advises on the drafting and negotiation of long-term power supply agreements (PPAs) for the procurement of electricity from renewable energy sources and on the associated regulatory and supervisory issues.

He has also advised on a large number of fundamental issues in the energy industry and represented clients in official and court proceedings. These include matters such as remuneration for power plant operators for redispatch measures, maintaining operational readiness of system-relevant coal-fired power plants, and the regulation of hydrogen networks.

Allen Davis Senior Associate

Washington, D.C.

Allen assists businesses in identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks related to competition matters, collaborating closely with clients to develop tailored compliance strategies, guiding them through the complexities of antitrust laws at both domestic and international levels. He represents clients in a broad range of antitrust issues arising from mergers and acquisitions (including Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) filings and second requests), complex civil litigation, government investigations (including civil investigative demands (CID)) and general counseling. Allen represents clients across a diverse range of industries, including consumer technology, digital advertising, pharmaceuticals, e-commerce, real estate, and energy.

Recent notable experience includes representing:

• A software company in a successful defense of Clayton Act § 7 litigation
• A large insurer in connection with allegations of price fixing in violation of Sherman Act § 1
• A technology company in connection with discovery in a number of enforcement actions against Google LLC
• A generic pharmaceutical manufacture in defense against Sherman Act §§ 1-2 claims

Roger Davis Partner

San Francisco

Among the attributes that contributed to his Hall of Fame selection were:

• Recognized and sought out for his ability to apply his unusually extensive and diverse experience to solve problems as they arise and develop new programs or financial structures, and for his expertise and judgment in securities laws and disclosure.
• Dedicated to helping bring about projects and programs (whether sponsored by public entities, nonprofit corporations or for-profit enterprises) that provide a public benefit and make people’s lives better.
• Having led the development of the housing and healthcare practices at Orrick, his recent focus has been on governmental transactions, all manner of non-profit corporations, public private partnerships (P3), portfolio sales, securitizations, energy and water efficiency programs, student, senior and workforce housing, pool programs, new financial structures and programs and applications of Public Finance Authority (created in Wisconsin to finance any type of project or program in any state or territory).
• Some of those new financial structures and programs have included pension obligation bonds, variable rate lease financing, and, more recently, joint powers authority ownership structure (turning private activity projects or projects not generally eligible for tax-exempt financing into tax-exempt governmental purpose bonds; for example, for middle income workforce housing), and energy and other infrastructure as a service (P3, simplifying procurement, off balance sheet).
• Responsibility for legislation crucial to the scope and operation of California public finance, including California Health Facility Financing Authority, California School Finance Authority, changes to joint power authority law that helped propel California Statewide Communities Development Authority and California Municipal Finance Authority into two of the most prolific issuers in the country, local agency refunding law, authorizations for swaps, investment agreements and other derivative products, creation of security interests, streamlining validation actions, and in several other states including Hawaii and creation of Public Finance Authority in Wisconsin.
• Chair of Orrick’s Public finance department for several decades through 2020, during which he presided over the growth of the department from one office with 12 lawyers in San Francisco to 10 offices and over 100 lawyers and paralegals around the country, consistently ranked (for more than 2 decades now) as number one bond counsel and disclosure counsel, and within the top four underwriter counsel, for bonds issued by state and local governments throughout the United States. During this period, he also held a number of other leadership positions at Orrick, including several terms on its Executive Committee and on the Management Committee of Orrick’s wholly owned subsidiary, BLX Group, LLC (providing the public finance community with a variety of non-legal services).

In addition to his selection by The Bond Buyer for its Public Finance Hall of Fame, Roger is ranked Band 1 by Chambers, and as Acritas Star Lawyer by Acritas, as Dealmaker of the Year (twice) by American Lawyer, as “best,” “super,” “most honored,” “preeminent” or “lawyer of the year” by several other publications, and declared “the Bond King” in a cover article by California Lawyer.

Tyler Davis Senior Associate

Houston

Tyler advises energy industry sponsors, developers, issuers and investors in a broad range of financing matters, including construction financings, bridge loans, back leverage financings, and tax equity. Tyler's experience includes project financings and related corporate matters involving utility-scale solar, distributed solar, wind, hydroelectric power, and upstream and midstream oil and gas projects.

Sarah Davis Counsel

San Francisco

Sarah has particular expertise defending challenges to overdraft fees, including challenges to authorize positive, settle negative (“APSN”) transactions, and has represented Capital One, U.S. Bank, First Hawaiian Bank, and Union Bank in putative class actions challenging APSN fees. Separately, Sarah has defended two large national banks in enforcement actions related to overdraft fees and obtained a non-public resolution of voluntary remediation.

Sarah also has a robust practice defending both small and large companies against allegations of food mislabeling. She has successfully defended or reached favorable settlement terms regarding challenges to “all natural,” “no sugar added,” and “non-GMO” claims.

Meredith Dawson Partner

New York

Meredith joined the firm as a summer associate in the New York office in 2016. Through years of hands-on experience and collaborative client relationships, she has developed a multifaceted understanding of financing structures in credit and lending. Meredith’s transactional experience includes acquisition and leveraged finance facilities; direct lending transactions; first lien, second lien and first-out/last-out unitranche facilities; recurring revenue loans; and asset-based and other specialty financings across a variety of industries.

Behnam Dayanim Partner

Washington, D.C.

Behn advises gaming and gambling providers, large media companies, Fintech, blockchain and more traditional financial services participants, and other technology and consumer-focused companies on issues at the intersection of gaming, financial services, data privacy and governance and related regulatory areas. Clients turn to him for his ability to advise on the whole frame of issues they may encounter, and he is equally comfortable guiding emerging companies in the early stages of their lifecycles and mature, multinational public companies. Behn is at home in the courtroom – representing clients in cutting-edge gaming litigations, before regulatory bodies – helping the crypto industry address growing sanctions and other financial services obligations, and in the boardroom – assisting in the formation of significant commercial partnerships, brand licenses, acquisitions and other combinations.

Bas de Blank Partner

Silicon Valley

In addition to his ITC practice, Bas also heads Orrick’s contentious prosecution practice. He has led more than 30 IPRs and first-chaired more than a dozen trials before the United States Patent Office, as well as represented clients in dozens of trials in district courts, and before PTAB.

As someone with degrees in both engineering and English literature, Bas is uniquely suited to present complicated topics to non-technical audiences. He has represented clients in fields as diverse as semiconductor processing and structure, GPS and geosynchronous satellites, image texture and graphics processing, Internet switches and communications, and various consumer products.