Gibson Dunn advised Lennar Corporation, one of the nation’s leading homebuilders, as tax counsel in the taxable spin-off of Millrose Properties, Inc. from Lennar through a distribution of approximately 80% of Millrose’s stock to Lennar’s stockholders.
The Gibson Dunn tax team included partners Eric Sloan and Pamela Lawrence Endreny and associate Jennifer Fitzgerald.
Gibson Dunn advised OceanSound Partners and its portfolio company SMX, a leader in next-generation mission support, digital transformation, and IT solutions, on the acquisition of cBEYONData.
The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partner John Pollack and of counsel Robert Banerjea and included associates Owen Alderson, Carli Zimelman and Jessica Egbebike. Partner Aaron Adams, of counsel Tom Brower, and associates Jaclyn Wang and Lily Paulson Stephens advised on financing. Partner Kathryn Kelly and associate David Horton advised on tax aspects. Partner Michael Collins advised on benefits.
Gibson Dunn is advising Cotiviti, a portfolio company of Veritas Capital and KKR and a leader in data-driven healthcare solutions, on its acquisition of Edifecs, a portfolio company of Francisco Partners and TA Associates. The acquisition will enhance connectivity between payers and providers, enable increased collaboration in the delivery of care, and accelerate deployment of value-added solutions in the healthcare system.
The Gibson Dunn corporate team is led by partners John Pollack and Chris Harding and includes of counsel John Kim and associates Ashley Whittington, Andrew Abell and Mona Kalantar. Partner Matt Donnelly is advising on tax aspects, and partner Michael Collins is advising on benefits. Partner Meghan Hungate is advising on IP aspects, and partner Cassandra Gaedt-Sheckter is advising on data privacy aspects.
Gibson Dunn advised AMG, a strategic partner to leading independent investment management firms globally, on its strategic minority investment in NorthBridge Partners, LLC.
The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partners Michael Piazza and Andrew Friedman and included associates Kevin Lafferty, Juliette Rafael and Michelle Lou. Partner A.J. Frey and associates Mitchell Dost and Ali Speiss advised on investment funds aspects. Partner Darius Mehraban and associate Claire Griffet advised on financing. Partner Pamela Lawrence Endreny and of counsel Kate Long advised on tax aspects. Partner Sean Feller and associate Spencer Bankhead advised on benefits. Of counsel Gregory Merz advised on regulatory aspects.
Gibson Dunn advised OceanSound Partners and its portfolio company DMI on DMI’s divestiture of its commerce, marketing & strategy, and digital engineering services segment to Encora, a portfolio company of Advent International and Warburg Pincus and a leader in digital engineering services.
The Gibson Dunn corporate team was led by partner John Pollack and of counsel Robert Banerjea and included associates Paul Lee, Mona Kalantar, Percy Gao, and Carli Zimelman. Partner Aaron Adams, of counsel Tom Brower, and associate Maithili Bagaria advised on financing. Partner Kathryn Kelly and associate David Horton advised on tax aspects, and partner Michael Collins advised on benefits.
Partner Kari Krusmark and associate Jocelyn Shih advised on transition services matters. Partners Joseph West and Lindsay Paulin advised on government contracts. Partner Meghan Hungate and associate Maya Hoard advised on IP aspects. Partner Christopher Timura advised on trade aspects. Partner Michael Farhang advised on litigation aspects. Associates Oren Fishman and Henry Rittenberg advised on real estate aspects.
Gibson Dunn’s Pro Bono Committee is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2024 Frank Wheat Memorial Awards. By harnessing their impressive legal skills, our winners were able to change their clients’ lives and make a positive impact on our global community. The stories of their accomplishments reflect the best of Gibson Dunn.
This year’s Frank Wheat Award winners showcase different aspects of the Firm’s diverse and vibrant pro bono practice, including work on behalf of immigrants, criminal justice reform, defense of survivors of domestic violence, and our newly-launched Justice for Women and Girls initiative. In 2024, more than 2,000 Gibson Dunn attorneys around the world have devoted more than 206,000 hours to pro bono work. In total, these matters were valued at approximately $251 million.
We are especially honored to include amongst this year’s honorees Scott Edelman as the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award. Scott recently retired from Gibson Dunn after decades as a Partner at the Firm. Scott served as the inaugural chair of Gibson Dunn’s Pro Bono Committee, a role he held from 2005 to 2021. Scott’s dedication to and stewardship of our pro bono practice led it to grow by leaps and bounds and become the pillar that it is today.
Frank Wheat was a former Los Angeles partner, a superb transactional lawyer, SEC commissioner, and president of the Los Angeles County Bar. He was also a giant in the nonprofit community, having founded the Alliance for Children’s Rights in addition to serving as a leader of the Sierra Club and as a founding director of the Center for Law in the Public Interest. He exemplified the commitment to the community and to pro bono service that has always been a core tenet of the Gibson Dunn culture. Recipients of the Frank Wheat Memorial Award each receive a $2,500 prize to be donated to pro bono organizations designated by the recipients.
Gibson Dunn is pleased to announce that Katie Townsend has rejoined the firm’s Litigation and Media, Entertainment, and Technology Practice Groups as a partner in the Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. offices. Katie’s practice will focus on representing clients on a wide range of First Amendment, media, and technology-focused litigation and advisory matters.
“We are delighted to welcome Katie back to Gibson Dunn,” said partner Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. “Katie is an exceptional litigator who, for the last decade, has made a real impact by winning high-stakes cases on behalf of news organizations and journalists. As media companies and technology platforms face increasingly complex First Amendment issues, Katie’s unique experience and insights will prove invaluable to clients navigating this changing landscape.”
“I am thrilled to be coming home to Gibson Dunn,” said Katie. “I’m returning to private practice at a time when the litigation environment is shifting significantly, and media and technology companies alike are facing new and emerging challenges. I know firsthand that Gibson Dunn’s First Amendment media litigation platform is unmatched, and there is no place I’d rather begin the next chapter of my career than alongside this elite team.”
Gibson Dunn’s Media, Entertainment, and Technology Practice Group’s litigators have a winning track record litigating virtually every kind of dispute that arises in the media, entertainment and technology industries. The firm’s experience encompasses First Amendment issues concerning freedom of speech and of the press, litigation for tech companies over the contours of section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, contractual issues such as profit participation and film finance, as well as intellectual property issues such as copyright, trademark and trade secret, and the right of publicity.
Protecting First Amendment rights has long been a hallmark of Gibson Dunn’s practice. The firm has represented major news organizations and journalists for decades in defamation cases, access to courts matters, subpoena battles, and other matters. The firm played a leading role in overturning the largest defamation verdict in history against a news organization and represented White House correspondents in two separate successful First Amendment/Due Process Clause lawsuits to reinstate their suspended press credentials.
About Katie Townsend
Katie is formerly the Deputy Executive Director and Legal Director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. At the Reporters Committee, Katie oversaw the organization’s legal services portfolio, including its litigation, vetting/pre-publication review, and amicus practices. She also led the Reporters Committee’s impact litigation efforts, regularly representing news organizations, journalists, and documentary filmmakers in public records, court access, and legal defense matters.
Katie began her legal career in Gibson Dunn’s Los Angeles office as a summer associate in 2006 and served as an associate from 2007-2014. She earned her law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2007, where she was a member of the editorial board of the Virginia Law Review.
Gibson Dunn advised global private equity firm KKR on its investment in Gulf Data Hub (GDH), one of the largest independent data center platforms in the Middle East focused on serving hyperscale demand across the Gulf countries. This is KKR’s first data center investment in the Middle East.
Upon completion, KKR and GDH have committed to support over $5 billion of total investment to grow GDH’s market-leading position.
The Gibson Dunn cross-border team that advised on this transaction was co-led by Co-Chair of Private Equity in Europe Federico (Fede) Fruhbeck and the Partner in Charge of our Abu Dhabi office Renad Younes, partner Jakob Egle, of counsel Manjinder Tiwana, and associates Andrea Callá, Gisele Zouein, and Krishna Parikh, with the additional support of Anthony Forde and Lena Tarrin (Corporate, Private Equity).
The team was further assisted by partners Alice Brogi and Trinh Chubbock (Projects and Infrastructure), Penny Madden (Litigation), Mohamed Al Hasan (regulatory in KSA), Sandy Bhogal alongside of counsel Bridget English and Cheryl T. Yip (Tax), and of counsel Elizabeth Wood (DD of the financing and share pledge).
Gibson Dunn is advising Diversified Energy on its $1.275 billion acquisition of Maverick Natural Resources, a portfolio company of EIG. The acquisition combines two complementary asset packages, pairing high-quality Proved Developed Producing weighted production assets with the lowest corporate decline and capital intensity among peers.
The Gibson Dunn corporate team is led by partners Tull Florey and Rahul Vashi and includes partner Hillary Holmes, of counsel Justine Robinson, and associates Jonathan Sapp, Graham Valenta, Joseph Kmetz, Caroline Bakewell, Mariana Lozano, and Malakeh Hijazi. Partner Michael Cannon and associates Josiah Bethards and Duncan Hamilton are advising on tax aspects. Partner Krista Hanvey and associate John Curran are advising on benefits.
A Gibson Dunn trial team won a directed verdict – before closing arguments – on a motion for judgment as a matter of law for client Cisco in a patent infringement trial that had sought more than $120 million in damages. Defense wins like this are exceedingly rare during patent trials.
The ruling capped off a complete defense victory over the course of the entire case: The plaintiff originally filed suit in 2022 with five asserted patents, and the Gibson Dunn team was able to whittle the case down by defeating multiple patents through motion practice, including winning two Rule 12(c) motions invalidating patents as ineligible under Section 101, and winning summary judgment of noninfringement of another patent, before winning the rest of the case during trial. The plaintiff had sought more than $376,000,000 in damages, which Gibson Dunn knocked down to approximately $120,000,000 before trial and to $0 at trial.
The Gibson Dunn trial team included partners Brian Rosenthal and Stuart Rosenberg with associates Audrey Yang, Emily Whitcher, Allen Kathir, Jaclyn Hellreich and Erin Kim.
The case is Corrigent Corp. v. Cisco Systems Inc., case number 6:22-cv-00396, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.
A Gibson Dunn team, led by partners Barry Berke, Dani James and Darren LaVerne successfully defended New York’s former Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin in a bribery and fraud suit, as federal prosecutors finally dropped their suit against Benjamin and ended the nearly three-year-long case against him. Prosecutors said in their nolle prosequi filing that “based on a review of evidence in the case” and in light of [a key witness’s death], “the government has determined that it can no longer prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, the charges in the indictment.”
This resolution comes after the Gibson Dunn team met privately with prosecutors to ask that they drop the case, and to do so before the current administration left office. Upon the charges being dismissed, the team reacted, “Today’s vindication of Brian Benjamin is a timely reminder of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous words: ‘The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.’ It has been a great honor to represent Brian, and we always believed this day would come.”
The suit, brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, had alleged that Benjamin used his position to obtain state grant funds for a Harlem charity in exchange for campaign contributions.
Our 2024 Annual Report provides an overview of the exceptional results we achieved during the year, the many successes we attained for our clients, and the awards and accolades we received. It recognizes our impressive new partners, shines a spotlight on several of our practice groups and offices, and shares our outstanding Pro Bono and Diversity efforts. It also pays fitting tribute to our late partner and friend — and legal giant — Ted Olson. You can read the 2024 Annual Report here.
On behalf of Coinbase, a Gibson Dunn team won a major victory Tuesday against the SEC in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Coinbase challenged the SEC denial of Coinbase’s petition requesting that the agency issue new rules explaining the agency’s views about whether and how the federal securities laws apply to digital assets.
This has been a closely watched case, carrying potentially significant implications for the digital-asset industry, which has been targeted by the SEC in recent years with an aggressive campaign of enforcement actions.
In a blow to the SEC, a unanimous Third Circuit panel held that the SEC’s denial of Coinbase’s rulemaking petition was “conclusory and insufficiently reasoned” and therefore arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act. In an opinion penned by Judge Ambro, the Court remanded Coinbase’s petition to the SEC for a more complete explanation.
A concurring opinion by Judge Bibas further took the SEC to task on due-process grounds. Judge Bibas faulted the agency for failing to provide “meaningful guidance on which crypto assets it views as securities,” adding that the SEC’s “silence and contradictory unofficial signals breed uncertainty,” target “a whole industry,” and risk “de facto banning it.” Judge Bibas added that the SEC’s “caginess” about how the securities laws apply to digital assets “creates a serious constitutional problem” that should be addressed in SEC enforcement actions against crypto firms.
The Gibson Dunn team was led by partners Eugene Scalia, Jonathan C. Bond, and Nick Harper and included associate Zach Young.
Gibson Dunn won a complete victory for United Services Automobile Association (USAA) in a class action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, where the plaintiffs sought nearly a billion dollars in damages and demanded changes to USAA’s business model. With this ruling, USAA has defeated every claim asserted in the complaint. The case is Coleman, et al. v. United Services Automobile Association, et al.
The Gibson Dunn team includes partners Kahn Scolnick and Brad Hamburger and associates Daniel Adler, Sean Howell, James Tsouvalas, Roark Luskin, and Milene Minassians.
Gibson Dunn is pleased to announce that Jake M. Shields has joined the firm’s Washington, D.C. office as a partner and member of the firm’s False Claims Act/Qui Tam Defense, Litigation, and White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice Groups.
“We are excited to welcome Jake to Gibson Dunn,” said Jonathan Phillips, Co-Chair of the firm’s global False Claims Act/Qui Tam Defense Practice Group. “The number of False Claims Act cases continue to increase with no abatement in sight. We have built a destination practice for clients facing these high-stakes challenges, and Jake’s DOJ Civil Fraud litigation experience will bring further depth to Gibson Dunn’s defense team. Jake also has strong experience in cybersecurity fraud cases, having handled some of the first such cases to be opened under DOJ’s Civil Cyber Fraud Initiative, and his perspectives will significantly benefit clients facing challenges in this emerging area.”
“I’m thrilled to begin the next chapter of my career at Gibson Dunn,” said Jake. “Gibson Dunn’s premier litigation platform, coupled with its unmatched talent, will serve as a strong foundation on which to build. I look forward to collaborating with this high caliber team to help clients navigate their investigatory and litigation challenges.”
Gibson Dunn continues to attract top legal talent from government amidst one of the fastest growth periods in the firm’s history. The firm’s team includes senior officials from the U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission, and other agencies at the forefront of consumer protection, competition, white collar investigations, transactional, and policy areas. Recent additions to the firm include Osman Nawaz, former SEC Enforcement Senior Officer and National Unit Chief; Katlin McKelvie, who joined after serving senior roles at the Food and Drug Administration and Department of Health and Human Services; Stuart Delery, who formerly held positions of White House Counsel, Deputy Counsel to the President, Assistant Attorney General of the DOJ Civil Division, and Acting Associate U.S. Attorney General; Gus Eyler, who served as Director of DOJ’s Consumer Protection Branch; Svetlana Gans, who served as Chief of Staff at the Federal Trade Commission; and former federal judges Gregg Costa and George Hazel.
About Jake M. Shields
Jake is a former Senior Trial Counsel in the Fraud Section of the Civil Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. While at DOJ, Jake also served on detail to the Technology and Digital Platforms Section of DOJ’s Antitrust Division. Prior to joining DOJ, Jake was in private practice for more than a decade.
With expertise in the False Claims Act, Jake is experienced in matters involving allegations of healthcare fraud, financial fraud, procurement fraud, and customs fraud, as well as violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, Tariff Act, Payroll Protection Program, and restrictions on off-label marketing of prescription drugs. Jake also has had significant involvement in DOJ’s efforts to enforce federal cybersecurity requirements through the Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative. An experienced litigator, Jake has served as lead counsel in multiple False Claims Act and other complex civil and fraud litigations.
Jake earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2003, where he served on the editorial board of the Virginia Law Review. From 2003 to 2004, Jake clerked for Judge Emilio M. Garza on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Gibson Dunn advised the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Finance on the arrangement of its US$2.5 billion (SR9.4 billion) Shariah-compliant revolving credit facility. The three-year facility, secured with the participation of three regional and international financial institutions, will support the Kingdom’s general budgetary requirements and is in line with Saudi Arabia’s public debt strategy to diversify funding sources.
The Gibson Dunn team was led by Riyadh finance partner Mahmoud Abdel-Baky.
Gibson Dunn today announced that a pro bono team of litigators has secured a settlement on behalf of client Dr. Bidisha Rudra, who was the victim of an unprovoked and violent assault unleashed on a group of Indian American women. While the terms of the settlement were not disclosed, the matter has been resolved to the parties’ satisfaction.
The suit arose from an August 24, 2022 incident in which Esmeralda Upton began an unprovoked and violent assault on Dr. Rudra and three other Indian American women, Sabori Saha, Indrani Banerjee, and Anamika Chatterjee, in the parking lot of a Plano, Texas restaurant. The attack lasted several minutes, during which Ms. Upton screamed racial epithets, struck the women, and threatened to shoot them. The victims were able to record Ms. Upton’s disturbing behavior on their cell phones while they waited for police to arrive.
Media coverage of the recorded attack sparked national outrage. Following a joint state and federal investigation, Ms. Upton pleaded guilty to three criminal counts of assault and one criminal count of making terroristic threats, with each count accompanied by hate-crime enhancements.
Dr. Rudra, along with Ms. Saha, Ms. Banerjee, and Ms. Chatterjee, filed a civil suit against Ms. Upton for assault, battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Gibson Dunn received Dr. Rudra’s case by referral from The Alliance for Asian American Justice (The Alliance), a national pro bono organization that advocates for victims of anti-Asian hate crimes. The Alliance co-founder and Gibson Dunn partner Debra Wong Yang said: “The Alliance was formed to try to deter acts of hate but to also protect our community of AANHPIs in America and show them they are not alone. We all stand together in condemning acts of hate.”
Following the civil suit settlement, Dr. Rudra looks forward to focusing on the future. Earlier this year, motivated by a desire to serve her community and bolstered by her experience working in the healthcare industry, Dr. Rudra opened the Frisco, Texas office of Senior Helpers, an organization that provides compassionate care to seniors in the Dallas-Fort Worth community while offering much-needed support for primary caregivers.
Commenting on the settlement, Dr. Rudra said: “While this settlement offers a measure of closure, the deep scar left by the racial hate crime I endured remains with me. The pain and trauma are not easily erased, and they fuel my resolve to keep fighting. This crusade against racism is far from over. I will stand as an ally and a voice for those who are too afraid or hesitant to speak out. I am also grateful to Gibson Dunn and The Alliance for Asian American Justice for their support and legal expertise in the fight against racism and bigotry. Together, we must continue the fight to eradicate racial hate and build a more just and equitable society. This journey toward justice continues—for me, for all of us.”
Poonam Kumar, partner at Gibson Dunn, remarked, “Gibson Dunn is proud to have represented Dr. Bidisha Rudra in the wake of this attack and throughout this multi-year litigation. While this case is now over, we look forward to continuing to work with Dr. Rudra and others in the ongoing fight against hatred and bias.”
The Gibson Dunn team representing Dr. Rudra was led by partners Debra Wong Yang, Betty X. Yang, and Poonam Kumar; and included associates Claire Piepenburg, Bina Nayee, Ryan Mak, Arjun Ogale, Maya M. Halthore, Nancy Ding, and Brianna N. Banks.
Gibson Dunn is pleased to announce that Hagen Rooke has joined the firm’s Singapore office as a partner in its Financial Regulatory Practice Group.
Commenting on his arrival, William Hallatt, Hong Kong partner and Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Financial Regulatory Practice Group, said: “We have seen rapid growth in our financial regulatory and fintech practices, and Hagen’s arrival will add firepower to our team. He is a top-ranked expert who is well known throughout the region, and who regularly works with regulators and industry associations across Asia.”
“On a personal note, having worked with Hagen in the past, I’m pleased to once again have him as a colleague,” he added.
“The Gibson Dunn team works with a range of fantastic clients and has made some eye-catching hires internationally, so I’m thrilled to become part of the team,” Hagen said.
Gibson Dunn has significantly expanded its financial regulatory offering in the past year, with the arrival of partners Jason Cabral and Ro Spaziani (New York), partner Sara Weed (Washington, D.C.), and of counsel Sameera Kimatrai (Dubai).
About Hagen Rooke
Hagen advises on regulatory applications and notifications, conduct of business matters, and governance and risk management. He also advises on regulatory investigations and enforcement matters, and terms of business, outsourcing, and brokerage agreements. His clients include financial institutions and corporates, such as banks, brokers, fund managers, and exchanges, as well as commodity groups and proprietary trading firms.
The Chambers Fintech Guide ranks Hagen in Band 1 for FinTech Legal – Singapore; clients say that he “consistently offers innovative solutions that address both the letter and the spirit of regulatory requirements.”
He earned his Bachelor of Laws (Distinction) from the University of Sussex and his Doctorate in Public International Law (Magna Cum Laude) from Panthéon-Sorbonne University, Paris. Hagen is admitted to practice in England and Wales. He is also able to practice in permitted areas of Singapore Law under Section 36B of the Legal Profession Act.
On Friday, December 20, Gibson Dunn and Solomon Simmons Law filed a reply brief in the appeal of a dismissed civil rights lawsuit. The case arises out of the death of Terence Crutcher, who was unarmed and had his hands raised, when he was shot and killed by a Tulsa police officer in 2016.
On September 16, 2016, Officer Betty Shelby approached Mr. Crutcher as he was walking down the street and then violently escalated the encounter to deadly force within minutes. Mr. Crutcher’s killing is captured on video—which was released shortly after his death following public outrage. At the time he was killed, Mr. Crutcher’s hands were raised, he had no weapon, and he was not under arrest. The Tulsa County District Attorney charged the officer with first-degree manslaughter, but she was acquitted after trial in May 2017. Mr. Crutcher’s Estate brought a civil rights lawsuit against the officer and the City of Tulsa in June 2017, but the lower court granted the officer qualified immunity and dismissed the Estate’s claims against the City for unconstitutional police practices. Those rulings are now on appeal.
The reply brief responds to several arguments made by Officer Shelby and the City of Tulsa. It notes that the Court cannot set aside the devastating video evidence showing that Officer Shelby needlessly pursued and killed an unarmed man who had his arms raised in the air. The brief further notes that any disputes about how to interpret the video of Mr. Crutcher’s killing should be resolved at trial by the jury. The reply brief also explains that the Estate has made sufficient allegations showing a widespread, unconstitutional culture and practice at the Tulsa Police Department of “shoot first, ask questions later.” For example, the complaint includes statistics showing that Black Tulsans are stopped, cited, arrested, jailed, and subjected to excessive force at disproportionate rates. Between 2012 and 2016 (when Mr. Cruther was killed), Black Tulsans were arrested twice as often as any other race in the City of Tulsa.
The filing of the reply brief means that this case is fully briefed and ready to be heard by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Oral argument is expected to be held early next year.
Karin Portlock, partner at Gibson Dunn, stated: “We look forward to presenting the Estate’s case to the Tenth Circuit. Terence Crutcher had his hands raised and posed no threat to anyone when Officer Shelby shot and killed him. Qualified immunity should not have been granted, and this case should proceed to trial. We are honored to represent the Crutcher family in their continued pursuit of justice for Terence Crutcher’s unjust killing.”
Damario Solomon-Simmons of Solomon Simmons Law also stated: “While I am confident that after watching the video of an unarmed, non-threatening Terence being shot while his hands were in the air, the Tenth Circuit will reverse the district court’s unjust dismissal of our case, we remain heartbroken that Terence’s unnecessary and unconstitutional shooting took him away from his loving family and community. Today, as I have for the last eight years as their lead counsel and decades-long family friend, I stand with the Crutcher family to remember Terence, and look forward to the Tenth Circuit allowing us the chance to hold the City of Tulsa and Officer Betty Shelby accountable for his death.”
Gibson Dunn has elected 35 lawyers to its partnership, effective January 1, 2025.
Commenting on the partnership class, Gibson Dunn Chair and Managing Partner Barbara L. Becker said: “These outstanding attorneys play an important role in the life of our firm and do extraordinary work on behalf of our clients—we are excited to see everything they will continue to accomplish as members of our partnership.”
The newly elected partners are:
John Adams (Litigation / Dallas) is a Texas-focused trial lawyer whose practice involves complex commercial disputes, with an emphasis on disputes in Texas and in the oil and gas industry. He received his law degree from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law in 2015.
Cassie Therese Aprile (International Arbitration and Litigation / London) focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation and international arbitration, representing clients across a broad range of industry sectors. She received her LL.B. from the University of Queensland in 2008.
Maxwell Ball (Mergers and Acquisitions / New York) has experience in a broad range of mergers and acquisitions transactions, with a particular focus on representing private equity sponsors in leveraged buyout acquisitions, joint venture transactions, divestitures, minority investments, leveraged recapitalizations, restructuring transactions, and other complex corporate transactions. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 2015.
Abbey A. Barrera (Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Data Innovation / San Francisco) focuses on privacy and technology litigation, counseling, and regulatory matters, and represents several technology and social media companies in complex privacy class actions. She graduated from New York University School of Law in 2014.
Alex Bluett (Projects / Paris) is an energy and infrastructure specialist, advising all types of clients (infra funds, industrials, developers, funders) across all asset classes (infrastructure, renewable energy, energy transition) in relation to their industrial contracts, their financings, and their M&A transactions. He received his law degree from the University of Cambridge Faculty of Law in 2008.
Tyler Cohen (Private Equity / Hong Kong) has experience across a broad range of private equity, M&A and corporate matters across the Asia-Pacific region, including leveraged buy-outs, growth equity investments, convertible instruments, infrastructure investments, and general corporate governance. He received his law degree from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law in 2015.
Dana Lynn Craig (Litigation / San Francisco) leads the most consequential discovery challenges our clients encounter, establishing herself as an authority in effectively and efficiently guiding all stages of the process, including motion practice, oral argument, and framing trial themes. She graduated from Stanford Law School in 2007.
Jakob Egle (Private Equity / London) is an experienced private equity lawyer who assists sponsor clients with purchase agreements, shareholder arrangements, management equity plans, and other transactional requirements in a cross-border context. He received his LL.M. from Columbia Law School in 2015.
Sara Ghalandari (Land Use and Development / San Francisco) focuses her practice on land use law, advising clients on all aspects of land use and development, including entitlement processes, zoning regulations, environmental documentation, and transactional agreements between private and public entities. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 2010.
Gina Hancock (Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits / Dallas) focuses her practice on compensation and employee benefits aspects of corporate transactions and initial public offerings, including advising on incentive plans, employment and severance agreements, ERISA benefit plans, and corporate governance matters. She earned her JD from Georgetown University Law Center in 2015.
Nick Harper (Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice / Washington, D.C.) specializes in appeals and administrative law, with a particular focus on representing clients in the crypto sector. He received his law degree from the University of Chicago Law School in 2015.
Grace E. Hart (Litigation / New York) represents clients in a wide range of complex commercial, employment, and trade secret litigation in federal and state courts, and has significant experience in matters involving emerging and established technology companies. She received her law degree from Yale Law School in 2016.
Scott K. Hvidt (Litigation / Dallas) focuses his practice on complex civil litigation and trial advocacy and is particularly experienced in antitrust litigation and commercial disputes in Texas courts. He earned his JD from Columbia Law School in 2015.
James Jennings (Tax / New York) has a broad transactional tax practice with a focus on complex M&A and capital markets transactions, as well as a variety of tax advisory matters, and particular experience in partnership taxation. He received his law degree from the University of Virgina School of Law in 2015.
Michael J. Kahn (Securities Litigation / San Francisco) focuses his practice on securities litigation, including shareholder class actions and derivative lawsuits. He earned his JD from New York University School of Law in 2012.
Harrison A. Korn (Mergers and Acquisitions / Washington, D.C.) advises public and private companies, private equity firms, boards of directors and special committees in a wide variety of complex corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, asset sales and other carve-out transactions, leveraged buyouts, spin-offs, joint ventures, and strategic investments and corporate governance matters. He earned his JD from Yale Law School in 2014.
Allison Kostecka (Securities Litigation / Denver) focuses her practice on securities litigation and complex civil litigation and has advised clients facing a broad range of commercial disputes in state and federal courts, as well as with regulatory agencies. She graduated from Duke University School of Law in 2010.
Poonam G. Kumar (White Collar Defense and Investigations / Los Angeles) focuses her practice on white collar criminal defense and investigations, litigation, and trials, helping clients in a wide range of industries navigate complex civil and criminal matters. She received her law degree from the University of Michigan Law School in 2007.
Melanie E. Neary (Capital Markets and Life Sciences / San Francisco) advises clients in the life sciences industry on a wide range of complex transactions and matters, with a particular focus on capital markets and private company financings and securities regulation and corporate governance. She earned her JD from the University of Michigan Law School in 2016.
Daniel Nowicki (Appellate and Constitutional Law / Los Angeles) focuses his practice on complex civil litigation—with an emphasis on trial advocacy and appellate brief-writing—and has litigated numerous cases at the trial and appellate level, as well as in arbitration. He received his law degree from New York University School of Law in 2014.
Andrew Robb (Intellectual Property / Palo Alto) has a wide range of experience litigating intellectual property disputes, with a focus on patent litigation. He earned his law degree from the University of Chicago Law School in 2013.
Sophie C. Rohnke (Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Data Innovation / Dallas) has broad experience defending clients in regulatory investigations and high-profile class actions, with a particular focus on technology companies facing consumer protection and data privacy issues. She received her law degree from the University of Oxford Faculty of Law and her LL.M. from Harvard Law School in 2011.
Elizabeth Romefelt (Mergers and Acquisitions / New York) has experience in a broad range of M&A transactions, including representation of both public and private companies and financial sponsors in connection with mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, minority investments, restructurings and other complex corporate transactions. She received her JD from The University of Texas School of Law in 2014.
David P. Salant (Litigation / New York) has a broad litigation practice focused on complex commercial, securities, and white-collar disputes in state and federal courts. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 2015.
Dennis Seifarth (Private Equity / Munich) focuses on private equity and M&A transactions and advises clients on complex domestic and cross-border acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, divestiture transactions, management equity programs, joint ventures, and all aspects of their M&A activities. He received his law degree in 2008 and his Dr. iur. in 2015 from the Friedrich Schiller University Jena Faculty of Law.
Stephen D. Silverman (Business Restructuring and Reorganization / New York) focuses on a broad range of restructuring and special situations matters, including comprehensive in and out of court restructurings, recapitalizations, financings and complex liability management transactions, in each case with a focus on creditor and investor side representations. He graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 2015.
Prerna Soni (Real Estate / San Francisco) has a broad real estate practice that includes acquisitions, joint ventures, mortgage and mezzanine financings, workouts, debt restructurings, and foreclosures. She received her JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2014.
Wesley Sze (Class Actions / Palo Alto) represents clients in class actions and complex civil litigation, with a particular focus on disputes at the intersection of law, technology, and privacy. He received his law degree from Stanford Law School in 2015.
Kate Timmerman (Investment Funds / New York) specializes in the establishment and operation of private funds, as well as advising fund managers with respect to GP-led secondary transactions and advising investors with respect to their investment in private funds and transfers of interest from such funds. She earned her LL.B. from Bond University Faculty of Law in 2012.
Todd J. Trattner (Life Sciences / San Francisco) focuses on intellectual property transactions in the life sciences industry, including royalty financings, licensing transactions, commercial agreements, asset acquisitions, and advising on complex intellectual property issues in connection with M&A and financing transactions. He earned his JD from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 2011.
Jessica L. Wagner (Appellate and Constitutional Law / Washington, D.C.) is an appellate litigator who brings her strong analytical skills to a range of practice areas, including administrative law, judgment enforcement, and torts, helping clients present crisp arguments before all levels of federal and state courts. She earned her JD from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2015.
Frances Waldmann (Artificial Intelligence / Los Angeles) advises clients in global regulatory compliance and enforcement, product counseling, litigation, and transactional matters related to artificial intelligence, data privacy, and emerging technologies. She received her law degree from the University of Oxford Faculty of Law in 2009.
Geoffrey E. Walter (Securities Regulation and Corporate Governance / Washington, D.C.) focuses his practice on advising public companies on a wide range of securities and governance matters, including corporate governance, shareholder activism, SEC compliance, annual meetings, investor engagement, and executive compensation. He received his law degree from Columbia Law School in 2013.
Adam Whitehouse (Mergers and Acquisitions / Houston) focuses his practice on M&A and advises clients ranging from private equity sponsors and portfolio companies to public companies, with particular experience in the energy space, including related to oil and gas, energy transition, oilfield services, and tax credit sales. He graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2010.
David A. Wolber (International Trade / Hong Kong) focuses on international trade and financial crime regulatory matters, spearheading the firm’s International Trade offerings in Asia, particularly around economic sanctions, export and import controls, cross border investment controls, and general geopolitical and national security-based advisory matters. He earned his JD from Georgetown University Law Center in 2011.