People

Gregory Beaman Partner

New York

Angela Colt Senior Associate

New York

Angela’s multi-dimensional approach originates from her years as a broker and investment banker. During that time, she identified the ways in which business events affect consumer confidence and corporate earnings. Now as an IP litigator, she analyzes those variables in copyright, trademark, trade secret, false advertising, and consumer class actions.

She has handled high-profile disputes including:

• Desktop Metal, Inc. in a trade secret trial against Markforged related to 3D printing technology in federal court in Massachusetts;
• Christie’s, Inc. in securing the dismissal of a putative nationwide class action in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, which declared the California Resale Royalties Act unconstitutional and preempted by the Copyright Act;
• An international recording artist in obtaining a judgment in her favor on all counts and a dismissal with prejudice of all cross-claims in a dispute over the ownership of the rights to her music;
• The National Football League in obtaining a dismissal with prejudice of a complaint alleging fraudulent use of the plaintiff’s identity;
• Red Bull as a defendant in multiple putative class actions across the country challenging the nature and content of advertising statements regarding the benefits of Red Bull energy drinks;
• Estée Lauder in obtaining dismissals of national and state consumer class actions relating to the marketing and packaging statements on cosmetic products; and
• Hampton Creek in obtaining a dismissal of a nationwide consumer class action related to the marketing and packaging statements on Just Mayo products.

In addition to helping her corporate clients, Angela also devotes her time to various pro bono matters. She offers advice to the ACLU of Northern California, has drafted and argued an appeal in the Appellate Division (2d Dep’t) in a child abuse matter; and has taken and defended depositions for the City through the New York City Law Department’s Public Service Program.

Daniel Dunne Senior Counsel

Seattle

Chambers USA observed Dan’s “enviable client roster includes major corporates and financial institutions, as well as company directors, officers and accountants. He is particularly active in securities-related litigation, with additional experience in shareholder disputes. Adept in the courtroom, has tried more than a dozen cases to verdict in state and federal courts.” One client characterized his cross examination of a Nobel-Laureate economist as simply “amazing.”

Dan has enjoyed considerable success in high-profile national matters with the finest law firms in the country from coast to coast, from the Delaware Court of Chancery to New York Supreme Court to the Washington Supreme Court, where he recently argued an issue of first impression under the Washington State Securities Act. Dan has active matters advising Washington’s most sophisticated legal clients with respect to securities and shareholder matters.

Dan has also been a key part of the winning Orrick team leading the defense of Credit Suisse in against an avalanche of litigation related to claims involving residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). Dan has acted as co-lead partner on a number of successful constitutional challenges to state and local taxes and legislation.

Diana Szego Fassbender Partner

Washington, D.C.

Diana’s experience in managing intricate, high-stakes litigation is evident in her innovative and cost-effective case strategies that consistently lead to favorable resolutions.

Diana's clients rely on her sophisticated, thoughtful approach to ensure solutions align with their overall business goals. Whether it’s through inception, trial, or appeal, Diana's involvement in all phases of litigation guarantees a seamless and effective process. When a business dispute requires aggressive action, Diana is equally adept at representing plaintiffs, showcasing her versatility and determination to achieve fair outcomes for her clients.

Though her experience spans a range of high-stakes commercial disputes, class action and product liability litigation are cornerstones of her practice. In addition to her skill in product liability, Diana has over a decade of experience litigating a variety of intellectual property matters. Her portfolio includes complex multi-defendant, multi-patent district court infringement actions, fast-paced Section 337 Investigations in the International Trade Commission, and high-stakes copyright and trademark cases.

Beyond her litigation success, Diana is dedicated to fostering talent and diversity within the legal community. She has served as a deputy to Orrick's Women's Initiative and played a key role in Orrick's recruiting efforts. Diana previously co-chaired the Associates Committee of Orrick's Washington, D.C., office, earning the Mentor of the Year award in 2011 for her outstanding contributions.

Since joining Orrick's New York office in 2007, Diana has been actively involved in community service. Before Orrick, Diana practiced law in Miami, where she was involved in the local legal community, serving on the Board of Directors of the Dade County Bar Association and participating in the Dade County eMentor program and the Women's Fund of Miami-Dade.

Rebecca Harlow Partner

San Francisco

Rebecca’s practice includes all aspects of class action and other civil litigation in areas including privacy and data security breach litigation and arbitration and insurance litigation. She has represented multiple companies in class action litigation involving claims by consumers, employees, and institutions relating to security, privacy, and other issues. She also advises clients facing insurance coverage disputes and arbitration of contractual disputes. She has defended litigation arising out of data breaches involving claims by consumers and financial institutions and class actions bringing wiretapping and other claims against companies relating to the use of online technologies and tools like cookies, pixels, and session replay software.

Rebecca has assisted multiple clients across several industries in seeking, obtaining, and disputing the denial of insurance coverage. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, she has advised clients on insurance, contracting, and other unique issues that have arisen. Recently, Rebecca served as the senior associate in a fraud trial that was tried in-person during the height of the Omicron variant and settled after a week of trial. Rebecca’s pro bono practice focuses on immigration and civil rights issues.

Prior to joining Orrick, Rebecca was a litigation associate in the San Francisco office of another international law firm. She previously served as a pro bono fellow at Greater Boston Legal Services representing low-income clients in disputes over state cash and food assistance benefits.

Lynne Hermle Partner

Silicon Valley

Lynne led the trial team that obtained a complete defense verdict for Kleiner Perkins in Pao v. Kleiner Perkins, the high-stakes gender discrimination and retaliation case that garnered intense international media scrutiny. In naming Lynne “Litigator of the Week” for this victory, American Lawyer described her effective voir dire and how she “steadily poked holes in Pao’s testimony.” The Recorder called Lynne’s cross-examination “masterful” and Bloomberg reported that her “charismatic, intimidating oratory made her the trial’s breakout star.”

Following Pao, Lynne secured a complete defense verdict for SpaceX in an $8 million gender discrimination and retaliation suit. The Daily Journal called the outcome “another triumph for Hermle,” observing that her “string of successes for tech clients fighting off gender harassment and discrimination claims got longer.” The publication also pronounced Lynne to be “arguably the most feared employment defense attorney in California.” Eight months later she followed that up with another jury defense verdict for SpaceX in a wrongful discharge and retaliation case.

Lynne has significant experience successfully defending complex discrimination and wage-and-hour class actions for global leaders in the retail and technology sectors including Microsoft, X (formerly Twitter), The Gap, Genentech, Sears, Burlington Coat Factory, Gymboree, Spencer’s Gifts, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Williams Sonoma and Pottery Barn Kids, among many others.

In recognition of these successes and her high-profile career trial work, Lynne was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2017. She is a fellow in the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and many other trial related organizations.

Richard Jacobsen Partner

New York

Rich serves as lead counsel for Credit Suisse’s entire residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) docket in federal and state courts throughout the country. He is lead counsel for Goldman Sachs in two RMBS cases in the SDNY. For nearly a decade, he has been lead counsel for Ocwen Financial Services in all matters concerning its market-leading business servicing loans in residential mortgage-backed securitizations. He is currently lead counsel for Nationstar Mortgage LLC d/b/a Mr. Cooper in a breach of contract action pending in the Delaware Court of Chancery. Rich has also frequently represented companies with respect to disputes involving the distressed debt trading market, including Jefferies and Citibank, and frequently tries nine figure disputes in the most important bankruptcy jurisdictions in the United States for clients such as UBS and Blackstone.

He and his Orrick team bring to each representation a combination of deep financial markets knowledge, holistic litigation strategy and a problem-solving mentality. In an industry where many cases are settled, he has established a formidable record at trial and on appeal, while achieving regulatory settlements at a small fraction of the industry benchmarks.

Named Litigators of the Week by The American Lawyer for his representation of Credit Suisse that yielded a precedent-setting decision from the New York Court of Appeals that will change the future of RMBS litigation, clients laud Rich telling Chambers (2022), “He makes my job easier by deploying a combination of impeccable legal skill, excellent judgment and a knowledge of the financial services industry.” “I would recommend Rich to anyone.”  (2024) "He makes my job easier by deploying a combination of strengths - impeccable legal skills, excellent judgment, knowledge of the finance sector and a formidable reputation."  Echoing that praise, clients say (2021) “I would recommend Richard Jacobsen in the highest terms,” he is (2020) “an exceptional litigator” and “a master of navigating commercial disputes.” Chambers also reports that clients regard him as “a commercial disputes wizard.” Clients hold Rich in high regard, telling Legal 500 our commercial disputes team is (2021) “brilliant,” while the publication calls out his “business critical disputes” work for Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs. Clients further endorse Rich when speaking to Legal 500, noting he (2020) “is always available and willing to do what is necessary in any situation. His knowledge of the industry and more importantly where we fit in the industry has paid tremendous dividends from a legal representation perspective. I have not dealt with an attorney from any other firm that had the combination of knowledge, ability, reputation and judgment that Rich has.” Another client called out Rich’s “razor sharp intellect” which sets him apart from other disputes and trial lawyers.

A first-chair trial lawyer recognized as one of Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Litigators in America, Rich has litigated commercial, securities and product liability disputes for clients in many other industries in venues across the country. His clients have included: Amazon, Caesars Entertainment, Inc., The Dow Chemical Company, Microsoft, DISH Network, Acer and Wyeth. He has argued numerous appeals at the state and federal levels and frequently represents clients before state and federal regulators. He has argued multiple times before seven of the eight current justices in the Commercial Division of New York’s Supreme Court, New York County, and has arbitrated before the American Arbitration Association and London Court of International Arbitration.

Matthew D. LaBrie Partner

Boston; San Francisco

In his commercial litigation practice, Matthew represents clients in federal and state court at the trial and appellate levels.  While Matthew routinely assists clients at all stages of the litigation process, through motions practice, discovery, witness preparation, and trial, he has a particular focus on class action defense.  Matthew's litigation experience is broad, including data security litigation, commercial and contractual disputes in all industries, shareholder derivative litigation, and class action defense, as well as commercial arbitration.  His current engagements include representation of clients facing consumer class actions arising out of a data breach of the MOVEit file transfer software; a social media company facing consumer class actions arising out of a data breach; the University of Washington in a pandemic-related class action seeking refunds of tuition and fees on behalf of students; and a series of litigations over the ownership and control of a social media company.  

In his cybersecurity practice, Matthew counsels clients across the globe through all stages of a privacy or data security incident, navigating the relevant legal regimes, managing the response to and investigation of an incident, and handling any litigation or regulatory investigation resulting from the incident.  Matthew spent a year based in Orrick's London office developing and coordinating Orrick's worldwide data breach incident response and litigation capabilities.

Matthew maintains an active pro bono practice. He has assisted individual clients with family law matters, advocated on behalf of veterans' and immigrants' rights, and represented human trafficking survivors in a series of federal cases.

Khai LeQuang Partner

Orange County

Most recently, Khai was lead trial counsel for EFG Bank and Erste Abwicklungsanstalt (which acquired the assets of former WestLB) in their lawsuit against AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company in the Southern District of New York, arising out of Equitable’s cost of insurance rate increase in 2016. EFG and EAA sought close to $100 million in damages. After several years of litigation, the case settled over the weekend before jury selection on very favorable terms. The settlement continued a string of recoveries Khai has achieved for clients pursuing claims against carriers that raised their cost of insurance rates.

Khai was lead trial counsel for EFG, EAA, and Obra Capital in their lawsuit against John Hancock Life Insurance Company in the Southern District of New York, arising out of John Hancock’s cost of insurance rate increase in 2018. EFG, EAA, and Obra sought over $100 million in damages. The case settled the evening before jury selection on very favorable terms.

Last year, Khai was lead trial counsel for a life insurance agent sued for fraud in connection with a life settlement transaction. The plaintiff sought over $10 million in damages. Following a one-week trial, the jury returned a complete defense verdict, and the case settled before judgment was entered.

Khai was lead trial counsel in a two-week bench trial in an action against a school district arising out of its allocation of $417 million in bond funds. The plaintiffs, led by a taxpayer association, sought $90 million for construction of a new school. After navigating a year-long political imbroglio and defeating plaintiffs’ summary judgment motions following a defense that Judge Pressman described as “brilliantly argued,” the case proceeded to a trial that resulted in a decision in favor of the district on all claims. Khai also defended and argued the appeal, in which the trial court’s judgment was affirmed.

Joseph Liburt Partner

Silicon Valley

Clients turn to Joe again and again as a creative problem solver and trusted advisor in helping them achieve their goals quickly and efficiently.

For example, in a wage class action for Sears, Joe quarterbacked an unusual strategy to dismiss the case. The team discovered that the plaintiff had filed for bankruptcy, and filed a motion to dismiss because the plaintiff no longer owned the lawsuit, the bankruptcy trustee did. But the plaintiff argued he might re-acquire the lawsuit in bankruptcy court, and the district court allowed him to try. In the bankruptcy court, Joe had Sears buy the lawsuit (an asset of the plaintiff’s bankruptcy estate) for a nominal amount, and then returned to the district court where Sears, now the owner of the class action against itself, dismissed the case with prejudice.

In Pao v. Kleiner Perkins, the high-stakes gender discrimination and retaliation case that garnered intense national scrutiny, Joe led the trial team's work on jury instructions and expert witnesses.

Joe is praised by clients, co-counsel and colleagues for his collaborative approach and ability to bring out the best work from the team.

Andrew R. Livingston Partner

San Francisco

Andrew represents clients in a wide variety of industries, but specifically focuses on financial services, retail, technology, and advertising.

He has an extensive class- and collective-action practice. He routinely defends employers in such cases in state and federal courts, particularly in cases alleging violations of the wage-and-hour laws. Andrew also defends employers in numerous other types of cases, such as those related to restrictive covenants and trade secrets, wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment and retaliation.

Andrew is a highly regarded trial lawyer. Chambers USA ranks Andrew as a leading employment law lawyer, with clients reporting that he is "very thoughtful, pragmatic and strategic in his thinking" and "distills very complex matters in a way that's easily understood." Legal 500 recognizes Andrew as a "excellent litigator" and notes that he is "exceptional in his ability to organize complex factual and legal arguments into a simple and persuasive presentation." The Daily Journal has listed him as a Top Labor & Employment Attorney a number of times, and he has been selected as a BTI Client Service Allstar.

Orrick’s Employment Law and Litigation group was named Labor & Employment Department of the Year in California for a fourth consecutive year by The Recorder, the premier source for legal news, in recognition of their significant wins on behalf of leading multinational companies on today’s most complex and challenging employment law matters.

Kathryn G. Mantoan Of Counsel

San Francisco; Portland

Katie was a part of the trial team that obtained a complete dismissal for Oracle in OFCCP v. Oracle, a high-stakes systemic compensation discrimination case that garnered national media attention. Katie and her co-counsel were named "Litigators of the Week" by American Lawyer for the win. Two years later, Katie and her co-counsel were named Runners-Up by American Lawyer for securing decertification of a 3,000-person putative equal pay class action for Oracle.

In fall 2023, Katie co-first chaired a two week federal jury trial in Oregon and obtained a verdict against the client's former general manager, who set up a competing business while employed, on claims for breach of fiduciary duty and intentional interference.

Previously, Katie received California Lawyer’s Attorney of the Year Award in 2016 and was named a Northern California Super Lawyers "Rising Star" for seven consecutive years. She regularly writes and publishes on employment law developments, having presented on topics to three separate state bar associations and a host of national and regional legal and academic conferences.

Katie started her career at Orrick in 2004 and returned in 2015. From 2011 to 2014, she was an associate at a litigation boutique in San Francisco where she handled employment and constitutional law matters.