People

Kristina Arianina Of Counsel

Washington, D.C.

As a member of Orrick’s Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution team, Kristina has extensive experience representing clients in challenging and high-stakes cases. She has a particular focus on trade secret misappropriation cases in the tech industry, where she has both prosecuted and defended claims.

Kristina’s commercial litigation experience includes litigating claims of false advertising, unfair competition, business fraud, negligence, breaches of contract and fiduciary duties. She also has substantial experience with the False Claims Act, both with and without the government’s involvement.

In addition to her litigation experience, Kristina has conducted numerous internal investigations and compliance assessments in the United States and abroad. She has also represented companies and individuals in matters before the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

A first-generation immigrant from Russia to the United States, Kristina is passionate about her pro bono work. She played a leading role in the firm’s collaboration with Public International Law & Policy Group on the Ukraine Accountability Initiative and represented clients in reproductive rights and termination of parental rights cases.

Chiara Bettinzoli Associate

Milan

Chiara assists the team in advising companies and individuals in investigations in relation to white-collar crimes (such as anti-money laundering, financial crimes, corporate crimes, bankruptcy crimes, tax crimes, environmental crimes, occupational health and safety crimes).

Chiara participates in carrying out internal investigations aimed at strengthening the internal control systems of leading national and international companies.

Chiara also collaborates on an ongoing basis in advising major companies and corporate groups in managing potential compliance risks, in particular in relation to the Organisational, Management and Control Models adopted pursuant to Legislative Decree no. 231/2001.

Chiara has been appointed as member of Supervisory Body (Organismi di Vigilanza) of Italian companies.
Since November 2024, Chiara is a PhD student at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Milan (PhD in business, labour, institutions and criminal justice).

Since 2023, Chiara has been teaching assistant in Business and Corporate Criminal Law at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Milan.

Chiara graduated with honours from Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Milan following a study period spent at the University of California - Berkeley.

Chiara is fluent in English, French and Spanish

Aaron Brecher Senior Associate

Seattle

Aaron has defended criminal and civil enforcement actions by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Washington Attorney General's Office, and other state and federal agencies. He has also represented defendants in False Claims Act litigation initiated by private parties, as well as a broad range of other civil litigation. And he has conducted internal investigations on matters ranging from data breaches to harassment to suspected environmental testing fraud. 

Preston Burton Partner

Washington, D.C.

Over the course of his career, Preston has tried more than 50 criminal cases to verdict, representing individual and corporate clients in complex federal white collar criminal cases, governmental and civil proceedings and congressional and internal investigations. He also has handled more than 10 appeals before the D.C. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit and Fourth Circuit.

His work is punctuated by numerous front-page cases, representing such high-profile clients as Monica Lewinsky, former CIA intelligence agent Aldrich H. Ames and former FBI Special Agent Robert Hanssen. He has represented business executives and companies in areas such as public corruption investigations, criminal antitrust matters, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and export control violations, False Claims Act (FCA) cases and procurement fraud. Many of his cases have involved cross-border investigations, including extradition requests and multi-jurisdictional enforcement actions. He has also handled congressional investigations, as well as numerous matters involving national security issues, including the representation of several intelligence agency officials and serving most recently as an amicus appointed by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

Since 2010, Preston has been ranked as a leading lawyer in White Collar Crime & Government Investigations by Chambers USA, which noted, “He is renowned throughout the legal community as someone with great trial skills and a great strategic sense." He has also been recognized for Corporate Investigations and White Collar Criminal Defense by Legal 500, which noted that he “has a formidable reputation for individual representations and is known for strategic thinking and willingness to try cases.” Benchmark Litigation 2019 named him as a top practitioner in White Collar and Securities Litigation.

Before joining Orrick, Preston was a partner at Buckley LLP and a member of the firm’s partner board. He joined Buckley from Poe & Burton PLLC, a boutique litigation firm he co-founded in 2011. Prior to that, he led the litigation practice of Orrick’s Washington, D.C. office. Following law school, he served as a law clerk to the Honorable Boyce F. Martin Jr. on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.

Ciarra Carr Managing Associate

San Francisco

Ciarra’s practice includes white collar criminal defense, global investigations across a broad range of industries, and developing anti-corruption compliance programs. She has extensive experience conducting internal investigations and representing companies against the U.S. government in response to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and sanctions compliance inquiries.

Ciarra's practice also includes online safety, including advising companies regarding statutory reporting and legal reporting in the data privacy space.  Her experience involves best practices with regard to child sexual abuse material (CSAM), cyber harassment, sexual exploitation, and terrorist/hate speech.  Ciarra's expertise includes providing strategic advice to clients with respect to quickly evolving online safety issues such as reporting obligations for social media and internet platforms as well as content moderation and identity verification controls.

Ciarra remains committed to serving her community through varied pro bono matters, including the Criminal Justice Act where she has experience advising individuals charged in large racketeering conspiracies and other federal criminal statues. Most recently, Ciarra served as one of Orrick's inaugural Racial Justice Fellows, working for fifteen months in Howard University School of Law's Civil Rights Clinic. During this time, she assisted the Clinic in filing five amicus briefs in the U.S. Supreme Court, achieved a meaningful settlement on behalf of the family of a man killed by police officers in Greenville, Mississippi (after convincing the district court to deny qualified immunity for the officers involved), and published an academic article about the genesis of Section 1983 and the Ku Klux Klan Hearings of 1871.

Prior to joining Orrick, Ciarra graduated from Brooklyn Law School where she received a distinction in criminal law. While there, she authored timely CLE materials as a Center for Criminal Justice Fellow. She also interned with various non-profit and government agencies, including the Bronx and Kings County district attorney’s offices in the child abuse and sex crimes bureau.

Jean-Paule Castagno Partner

Milan

Jean-Paule has more than 20 years of proven experience in white collar and corporate investigation, managing all phases of crisis management, such as internal investigations – including those of a cross-border nature –, the court defence in the context of criminal proceedings and the sanction proceedings before the Supervisory Authorities, in the interests of both individuals and legal entities (according to the D. Legislative Decree no. 231/2001). Jean-Paule advises clients in high-profile and complex cases with specific reference to anti-money laundering, financial crimes, false accounting, bankruptcy offenses, tax crimes, corruption and bribery in both the public and private sector, environmental crimes, occupational health and safety offenses, intellectual property crimes, data protection and privacy crimes/cybercrime, and import/export sanctions.

Thanks to her broad experience in conducting internal investigation and assisting individuals and legal entities in criminal and sanctions proceedings, she has been involved in advising Italian and foreign companies to address potential compliance risks, in performing due diligence focused on risk management and compliance risk in the context of extraordinary transactions and IPOs as well as in preparing and updating compliance programs (adopted under Law No. 231/2001) and in leading relative training to the board and to the employees.

She has also been appointed as member and chairwoman of the surveillance committees (Organismo di Vigilanza) of many Italian and foreign companies.

Harry Clark Partner

Washington, D.C.

Harry is experienced in areas such as CFIUS/Exon-Florio examinations of foreign investment, military and “dual use” export control regulations (ITAR/EAR), economic sanctions administered by the U.S. Treasury Department (OFAC), customs regulations, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, anti-money laundering rules, anti-boycott requirements and defense industrial security requirements. He executes internal corporate investigations regarding trade and investment rules and advises on such rules in the context of corporate transactions.

Additionally, Harry has extensive experience with government contracting matters. His government contracting work has included, for example, design and implementation of U.S. Defense Department renewable energy projects. He also represents broad industry coalitions on major trade litigations and international negotiations. His experience in these areas includes a leading role in what is often considered the largest-ever international trade dispute: the controversy regarding unfair softwood lumber imports from Canada. It has involved myriad administrative proceedings before federal agencies, NAFTA panel appeals, WTO dispute proceedings, judicial proceedings and international settlement agreements.

Harry has represented a coalition of major U.S. oil companies in antidumping and countervailing duty litigation. As a related matter, he pursues policy issues with congressional and executive branch officials and advises on international trade rules (e.g., GATT, WTO agreements and NAFTA).

Chambers 2022 recognizes Harry as a leader in the field of export controls and economic sanctions (Chambers Global and Chambers USA), as well as CFIUS (Chambers USA). Previous editions have also recognized Harry’s achievements regarding his work related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Clients note that Harry provides “accurate, straightforward guidance incredibly efficiently” and “he has an ability to translate complex legal requirements and rules into business-friendly jargon.”

Alison Epperson Senior Associate

New York

Alison represents individuals and corporations in a broad range of white collar criminal defense, anti-corruption, regulatory, and trade matters across the globe with a focus on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and other anti-corruption laws and regulations. Alison's practice involves conducting internal investigations, representing clients in matters before the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, and U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Controls, and enhancing corporate compliance programs. Alison has extensive experience responding to subpoenas and information requests from government entities and has trial and litigation experience in multiple federal district courts. She has also helped clients navigate shareholder books and records inspection demands and shareholder derivative lawsuits. Alison has represented companies around the world in the oil and gas, medical technology, digital entertainment, pharmaceutical, education, blockchain, technology, and financial industries.

Alison's practice also includes online safety issues, including advising companies on compliance with online safety-related obligations and best practices in the US and conducting online safety compliance risk assessments, especially as it relates to user safety on internet dating platforms. Alison's experience includes representing clients in connection with criminal and civil investigations conducted by state attorneys general related to state online safety legislation. 

Alison remains committed to serving her community through pro bono representation and has experience in reproductive rights cases and policies, immigration and asylum matters, death penalty cases, policing and racial justice cases and policies, and a range of other constitutional issues. Alison has represented clients on civil and criminal matters in federal court, including a domestic violence survivor in a Hague Convention proceeding. Most recently, Alison helped achieve a meaningful settlement on behalf of the family of a man killed by police officers in Greenville, Mississippi after convincing the district court to deny qualified immunity for the officers involved.

Prior to joining Orrick, Alison graduated from Case Western Reserve University School of Law. In addition, while pursuing her undergraduate degree from Centre College, Alison worked on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., specifically in the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee. In 2016, Alison co-founded the non-profit, CTE Hope, an organization dedicated to addressing the issues and research of traumatic brain injures and chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

Justin Giovannettone Senior Career Associate

Sacramento

Justin has represented individuals, corporations and public entities in connection with civil lawsuits, government investigations, insurance conservatorships, and compliance monitorships.  He has managed civil litigation matters and corporate internal investigations relating to accounting fraud, harassment, securities laws, and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.  He has also been a member of two government-appointed SEC and DOJ Monitorships, and helped represent a medical device company under a multi-year Monitorship ultimately resulting in dismissal of the criminal Information against the company. 

In October 2018, Justin represented the victim of a sexual assault in a jury trial in Yolo County Superior Court.  Sitting first chair at trial, Justin obtained a unanimous verdict and full damages for this pro bono client.

Prior to attending law school, Justin served on active duty for nine years in the United States Air Force.  He is currently a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserve.

Jackson Hagen Managing Associate

Washington, D.C.

Prior to joining Orrick, Jackson was an associate at Buckley LLP.

Meg Hennessey Of Counsel

San Francisco; Orange County

Meg helps online service providers comply with online safety and consumer protection laws by marrying her knowledge of the data-driven environment with a decade of experience in white-collar and regulatory investigations. She also advises her clients on developing Trust & Safety compliance programs to manage the risks of misleading or harmful content online such as child exploitation or hate speech that could lead to investigations or litigation.

As a crisis responder, Meg assists clients at every stage, from starting a dialogue with regulators to responding to formal inquiries to managing investigations. She has led diverse teams of lawyers and consultants in conducting investigations, including those initiated by the DOJ, SEC, FTC, OIG, State AGs, and Congress. She has also acted on both sides of corporate Monitorships, serving on two Monitorship teams, and representing two international companies undergoing years-long scrutiny of an external Monitor. This experience provides her with unique insight into best practices in the assessment and development of ethics, integrity, and online safety trust and compliance programs.

Meg co-leads Orrick’s Orange County women’s inclusion network. Early in her career, she worked with LGBTQ+ youth at the National Center for Lesbian Rights and in the Juvenile Unit at the Santa Clara County Office of the Public Defender. She works pro bono for immigration and women's health organizations. She lives in California with her spouse and kids.

Benjamin Hutten Partner

New York

Ben has a deep understanding of sanctions and AML regulations and enforcement. In addition to his client work, he has participated in numerous financial industry group regulatory initiatives related to sanctions and AML issues, including The Clearing House Guiding Principles for Anti-Money Laundering Policies and Procedures in Correspondent Banking, initiatives to address “de-risking” and related to BSA information sharing. Ben also conducts international trainings in AML and sanctions issues for the Financial Services Volunteer Corps.

He has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America as "One to Watch" and by Super Lawyers as a "Rising Star." Prior to joining Orrick, Ben was counsel at Buckley LLP and an associate at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP.