People

Richard A. Martin Senior Counsel

New York

In his previous role at Orrick, Dick was a partner in the New York office, and a member of the Securities Litigation, Investigations and Enforcement Group. His practice focused on accountants’ liability, securities and commercial litigation, as well as arbitration and international and domestic white-collar criminal law. Dick is now Senior Counsel at Orrick, and while he continues to contribute to the work of those groups, his primary focus is on assisting our pro bono client, the Center for Reproductive Rights.

Dick has been involved in litigation in the state and federal courts of the United States, Europe, Asia and the Americas for more than 40 years. From June 1987 to August 1990, Dick served as Special Representative of the Attorney General, located at the United States Embassy in Rome, Italy. There he represented the Department of Justice in Europe and handled extradition and mutual assistance matters throughout Europe and North Africa, among other duties. In August, 1990, Dick’s contributions to the Administration of Justice in Italy were recognized when he was named “Commendatore al Merito della Republica Italiana”, the Italian Legion of Honor.

Prior to transferring to Rome, Dick served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, from January 1980 to June 1987. Dick received numerous commendations for his work in the United States Attorney’s Office, including the Distinguished Service Award from the Department of Justice for his leadership role in the case known as the “Pizza Connection”. Dick has been fluent in Italian since he was awarded an AFS scholarship for the school-year program in Naples, Italy, where he attended Liceo Classico.

Sebastian Meul Partner

Munich

His professional focus is on providing legal advice in complex post-M&A and shareholders' disputes, in which he can particularly make use of his many years of experience as an M&A lawyer.

In addition, Sebastian advises his clients in disputes relating to major construction projects, manager liability cases and in other commercial disputes.

He also has extensive experience in advising clients on M&A transactions and corporate law matters.

Besides the above, Sebastian particularly deals with Legal Tech and Blockchain technology developments and frequently shares his knowledge by publishing articles in legal and social media.

Before joining Orrick, Sebastian worked in the Munich office of a renowned German law firm and in the Toronto office of a major Canadian law firm.

Joel Othen-Lawson Associate

London

Joel often works on cases with a multijurisdictional focus and has represented clients from across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America in disputes seated around the world.

He has also acted for several professional services firms in connection with cross-border litigation, investigations and regulatory enforcement matters.

Joel also acts for sovereign states in actions brought against them. His practice represents clients in all stages of disputes – from pleadings to trial including advising in relation to alternative dispute resolution methods.

Joel joined the firm as a trainee in 2022.

Martina Pfaffinger Senior Associate

Munich

She has particular experience in representing Asian clients from the automotive sector in DIS arbitration proceedings. Clients benefit from her background as corporate / M&A lawyer and her experience with shareholder disputes, management liability cases, post-M&A disputes and other contentious commercial matters. As a trained business mediator, Martina also advises clients on the extrajudicial settlement of conflicts and the avoidance of disputes at an early stage when negotiating and drafting contracts.

Prior to joining Orrick, Martina worked at the Munich office of a leading U.S. law firm and the Munich / New York City offices of a renowned German law firm.

Martina currently writes her doctoral thesis on a subject relating to management liability.

Darren Pouliot Senior Associate

London

Darren is a dual-qualified American lawyer and solicitor-advocate of England and Wales. He has an established record of working closely with clients across the finance, commodities, energy, life sciences and technology industries on all stages of disputes.

He represents clients in international arbitral proceedings under the major arbitral institutions' rules, as well as in American federal and state courts. He also holds Higher Rights of Audience with the Senior Courts of England & Wales. Darren maintains an active pro bono practice with a focus on criminal, habeas, and constitutional cases on appeal.

Darren also has direct in-house experience, having undertaken secondment to the fast-paced litigation department of one of the world's largest investment banks. He worked closely with the in-house team to assess litigation risk, advise stakeholders, and manage ongoing global litigations. He now frequently works with clients to develop their dispute resolution terms, processes, and trainings for other in-house functions.

Prior to joining Orrick, Darren earned his Juris Doctorate from Columbia Law School where he led the Columbia Business Law Review as its Editor-in-Chief and extensively studied federal constitutional, administrative, and criminal law. While there, he was a judicial intern in multiple levels of the U.S. federal judiciary, including the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, the Southern District of New York, and the District of New Jersey.

Dr. Stefan Renner Partner

Düsseldorf; Munich

Stefan focuses as well on real estate transactions and corporate restructurings. 

Kevin Riehle Senior Associate

Düsseldorf

His focus is on contractual disputes in the energy, infrastructure, and technology sectors, where his clients benefit from his experience in high-volume arbitration proceedings. In addition, Kevin is well-versed in legal disputes in the supply industry, the iron and steel industry, and investment arbitration.

In the field of arbitration, he handles proceedings under all relevant arbitration rules, including DIS, ICC, LCIA, UNCITRAL, and AAA.

Before joining Orrick, Kevin deepened his specialized knowledge in litigation and conflict resolution through by working for three other leading international law firms in Germany and internationally.

Bailey Roe Managing Associate

Washington, D.C.

Bailey is a procedural strategist at heart, focused on solving complex problems for clients across a variety of U.S. and international forums. With a commitment to deeply understanding both procedural rules and substantive law, she navigates the intricacies of litigation, arbitration, and regulatory proceedings to deliver creative, practical solutions to her clients. Her work spans multiple jurisdictions, and she is adept at handling high-stakes disputes in both domestic and global contexts.

Whether advising clients in U.S. courts or before international tribunals, Bailey is dedicated to identifying the most efficient and effective path to resolution. She thrives on devising tailored strategies that align with her clients’ business objectives while minimizing risk and maximizing opportunities.

Bailey co-authored a chapter in The Award in International Investment Arbitration, published by Oxford Press in 2024. She also teaches a course on International Commercial Arbitration Advocacy at American University's Washington College of Law and coaches the AUWCL Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot Court Competition.

E. Joshua Rosenkranz Partner

New York

Josh has been named American Lawyer's “Litigator of the Year” twice, in addition to being a finalist for 2022. In 2012, the magazine dubbed him “the Defibrillator” based on his streak of appellate wins for companies that “appeared to be at death’s door,” and in 2017 it declared, he “still deserves the moniker we once gave him.”

In 2014, The Financial Times named Josh one of the 10 most innovative lawyers in the North American legal sector for his work “demystify[ing] the technical issues” and securing a victory in the blockbuster Federal Circuit appeal, Oracle v. Google. Chambers USA has reported, “He wins accolades for his ‘brilliant analysis and judgment.’ Clients appreciate how he ‘rethinks every case from the ground up,’ and add: ‘He can take the most complicated legal or technological issue and present it in a way that seems like common sense.’” Another edition of Chambers USA added: “‘His briefs are quite simply beautiful,’” and “clients describe his courtroom presence as ‘both commanding and accessible at the same time.’ He has the ‘perfect combination of persuasiveness, intelligence, wit, and deference.’”

Josh's practice covers a wide range of subjects, including intellectual property, financial services, securities, privacy, antitrust, federal preemption, insurance law, corporate governance, criminal law, and constitutional litigation. Among his recent clients are Cisco, Credit Suisse, Cox Communications, DISH Network, Genentech, Gilead, Johnson & Johnson, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Mozilla, Oracle, Sonos, and Royal Bank of Scotland.

Clients turn to Josh to win the highest stakes appeals, including appeals in cases that threaten the very survival of a business. For example:

• He represented Microsoft in an international cause célèbre in the U.S. Supreme Court challenging the U.S. Government’s claim that it can serve warrants for emails stored overseas.
• He represented DISH Network in one of the most high-profile patent appeals in the country, successfully overturning an injunction that threatened the company's life.
• He has been lead counsel in multiple cases either defending or challenging verdicts over $1 billion.
• He represented Facebook in the high-profile battle waged by the founder's Harvard classmates, the Winklevoss twins, who laid claim to the idea for Facebook, winning a ruling from the Ninth Circuit to end the lawsuit.
• He won a landmark victory in a Supreme Court case that rescued the estimated $60 billion U.S. market of copyrighted goods manufactured abroad.
• He represented 36 law schools in a high-profile Supreme Court case against the Department of Defense.

Josh was the founding president and CEO of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, one of the country’s foremost public interest firms. Over the course of eight years, he was the Brennan Center’s chief strategist on litigation and public policy advocacy. Before that, Josh founded the Office of the Appellate Defender, a public defender office specializing in criminal appeals.

Robert Shwarts Partner

San Francisco

He represents plaintiffs and defendants in complex trade secret misappropriation cases and has conducted numerous TRO and preliminary injunction hearings in aid of these cases. His practice also includes counseling relating to trade secrets misappropriation and non-compete/non-solicitation agreements.

Rob has broad experience in commercial litigation, having litigated claims of securities fraud, lender liability, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of warranties, claims arising from securitization transactions and other business fraud.

Rob's experience in employment-related litigation includes defending claims of discrimination, wrongful discharge, retaliation, sexual harassment and breach of contract. His practice also includes counseling relating to trade secret misappropriation and non-compete/non-solicitation agreements.

U.S. and international clients with significant California presence turn to Rob to represent them in complex matters, including numerous financial services companies. He handles both jury and bench trials, as well as AAA, JAMS and FINRA (formerly NASD and NYSE) arbitration hearings.

Rob serves as the chair of the Firm’s Practice Management Committee, and is a member of the firm’s Risk Management Committee. Rob previously served as head of the San Francisco office. Rob contributes pro bono hours to the Humane Society and Point Blue Conservation Science each year.

Ramona Sorgenfrei Managing Associate

Düsseldorf

She has experience in telecommunications licensing disputes and litigating FRAND objections and D&O disputes, as well as in disputes under the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods.

In addition to experience in arbitration proceedings under the rules of the ICC, LCIA, UNCITRAL VIAC and the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce (ACHCCI), Ramona acts as administrative secretary in DIS arbitrations. 

She is a lecturer in arbitration and international commercial law at the University of Bayreuth where she also coaches the university's team in the Willem C. Vis Moot. Further to her legal studies, Ramona has also completed a university degree in economics.

During her education, she worked in US firms in Germany and Paris, where she deepened her knowledge of arbitration, litigation, and dispute resolution. Prior to joining Orrick, Ramona worked as a litigation lawyer for a magic circle law firm in Germany, including patent litigation involving patent infringement, nullity, and patent vindication proceedings, particularly in the telecommunications and automotive industries.

Benjamin Stafford Managing Associate

London

Ben is admitted as a solicitor advocate with rights of audience in all civil proceedings before the English higher courts. In addition to his core experience in international arbitration and litigation in the energy, construction and commercial spheres, previously Ben has also acted for energy & infrastructure clients and advised on mergers & acquisitions, private equity and venture capital transactions for clients based in Europe and the US.  Ben is currently deputy chair for the Association of International Energy Negotiators sub-group drafting a Green Hydrogen Sale and Purchase Agreement.