Amanda M. Aycock

Amanda M. Aycock is a partner in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She is a member of the firm’s Litigation Department, as well as the Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation Practice Group, the Crisis Management Practice Group, the Media, Entertainment, and Technology Practice Group, and the White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice Group.

Amanda has defended multinational companies and senior executives in technology, social media, financial and other sectors in commercial litigation, internal investigations, and regulatory matters, including state Attorneys General investigations and enforcement actions. Substantively, her practice is cross-disciplinary and includes experience in consumer protection, data privacy, contract, employment, constitutional, antitrust, and criminal law; she is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US).

The Legal 500 has twice recognized Amanda as a “Rising Star” in corporate investigations and white collar criminal defense, and recommends her for matters involving privacy, cybersecurity, and consumer protection, and for white collar matters emanating from the technology, media, and entertainment industries. She has also been recognized five times by The Best Lawyers in America® as “One to Watch” in Criminal Defense: White-Collar (2021 - 2025).

Representative matters include:

• Represents Meta in wide-ranging and intense matters related to the aftermath of the widely reported Cambridge Analytica issues, leading a complex and novel internal investigation related to data privacy risk from historical developer activity on the Facebook platform, and assisting with numerous domestic and international regulatory investigations, nationwide consumer class actions, and state Attorneys General enforcement actions.
• Represented Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg in a high-profile breach of contract action brought by Paul Ceglia in Federal Court in Buffalo, New York alleging an ownership interest in Facebook. Obtained expedited discovery against Plaintiff, developing evidence of spoliation and fraud concerning Plaintiff’s lawsuit, including Plaintiff’s doctoring the contract sued upon and manipulation of digital evidence. Successfully moved for dismissal of the case, which the Court dismissed as a fraud on the Court, and prevailed on appeal in the Second Circuit.
• Represented daily fantasy sports company when industry was in crisis, developing comprehensive strategy across several wide-ranging and high-profile civil, criminal, and regulatory actions. In particular, defended company in enforcement action brought by New York Attorney General seeking to enjoin ongoing operations, and brought civil action against Illinois Attorney General that sought emergency relief for constitutional violations.
• Represented major telecommunications company in data breach affecting over 70 million accounts, managing notifications and leading fast-paced internal investigation.
• Achieved court victory for Ad Hoc Group of Lenders in federal bankruptcy court on breach of contract and implied covenant claims, managing discovery, depositions, and all trial preparations, and examining witness at trial.
• Represented industry-leading media and technology company in a federal antitrust trial.
• Represented major telecommunications company in antitrust action brought by DOJ, which settled favorably following a motion to dismiss.
• Represented Fortune 500 company in SEC investigation into possible revenue recognition issues, stemming from information provided by former employee whistleblower; the SEC declined to pursue enforcement action.
• Represented European Head of Treasury of Multinational Europena Bank in DOJ LIBOR investigation.

Amanda maintains an active pro bono practice, particularly in connection with immigration matters. For example, she represented Migrant Justice—a Vermont non-profit dedicated to protecting the rights of the migrant farmworker community—in a lawsuit against the federal and local government that alleged unlawful surveillance and harassment in violation of the First Amendment.

From 2014 to 2015, Amanda served as a law clerk to the Honorable Katherine Polk Failla in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Amanda graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2010 with joint degree, consisting of a Juris Doctor, cum laude, and the French equivalent of an LL.M., cum laude, sponsored jointly by the Sorbonne and the Institut d’Études Politiques (Sciences Po). While at Penn Law, she was a Levy Scholar and an Associate Editor of the University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law. Amanda received her Bachelor of Arts in 2007 from the University of Pennsylvania, magna cum laude.

Amanda is admitted to practice in the State of New York, and before the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Capabilities

• Litigation
• Consumer Protection
• Crisis Management
• Media, Entertainment, and Technology
• Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Data Innovation
• Tech and Innovation
• Technology Litigation
• Trials
• White Collar Defense and Investigations

Credentials

Education:

• University of Pennsylvania - 2010 Juris Doctor
• Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne - 2010 Masters
• University of Pennsylvania - 2007 Bachelor of Arts

Admissions:

• New York Bar

Clerkships:

• USDC, Southern District of New York, Hon. Katherine Polk Failla, 2014 - 2015