Praised by clients as ‘the absolute best in class when it comes to cyber response’, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP‘s cyber, privacy and data innovation team counsels clients through regulatory compliance, incident response, and litigation challenges. Practice head Shannon Yavorsky, based in San Francisco, is a go-to for international data transfer issues, and leads the firm’s AI working group. In Boston, Heather Egan heads the firm’s strategic advisory and government enforcement business unit, pairing technical breach response expertise with extensive knowledge surrounding global regulatory requirements. Seattle-based Aravind Swaminathan is recommended as ’extremely pragmatic and business savvy‘, noted for his growing California Invasion of Privacy Act and state wiretap litigation prowess. In San Francisco, Michelle Vassar stands out for her ’fantastic judgment’ in cybersecurity enforcement actions; Emily Tabatabai, in Washington DC, handles student and children’s data privacy, ‘a niche that few people know better’. Also in DC, Thora Johnson‘s practice sits at the intersection of life sciences, health, and privacy, particularly in regards to growing technology use in healthcare spaces. The firm’s February 2023 merger with Buckley LLP adds Amanda Lawrence and Elizabeth McGinn to the team, both in DC, bolstering the team’s fintech expertise. Douglas Meal departed the team in December 2023.
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Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘The Orrick team has exceptional depth and breadth of experience, including attorneys like Heather Egan who have shaped the field.’
‘Emily Tabatabai is the best with respect to Student Data and Children's privacy issues. It is a niche that few people know better.'
- 'Aravind Swaminathan is the best when it comes to how to manage a data breach. He is my go to lawyer. Extremely pragmatic and business savvy.’
‘The Orrick team is the absolute best in class when it comes to cyber response and everything that goes along with it. I have complete trust in this team, in a way that I do not with other law firms. From partners to junior associates, everyone is truly excellent at what they do.’
‘Michelle Visser is a star. She has fantastic judgment and sees three steps ahead.'
- 'Joe Santiesteban has done an excellent job quarterbacking cyber incident response.’
Key clients
- Anker Innovations Limited
- Block, Inc.
- Carnival Corp.
- Dermalogica, LLC
- FanDuel, Inc.
- JumpStart Games, Inc.
- Microsoft Corporation
- Wells Fargo Bank N.A.
- Zillow Inc.
- ZoomInfo Technologies Inc.
Work highlights
- Secured the voluntary dismissal in a CIPA putative class action against FanDuel that the Orrick team removed to the Southern District of California.
- Represented Lowe’s, Inc. in class action litigation in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, alleging violations of Wiretapping and Electronic Surveillance Control Act (WECSA) and other consumer protection-styled claims regarding screen capture and recording technology used on Lowes.com.
- Representing CalPERS in a data breach class action filed in California state court following a data breach at its vendor, PBI, that was the result of unauthorized access to data PBI stored in its MOVEit application.
Lawyers
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The lawyers at the very top of the profession, widely known and respected by peers and clients for their longstanding involvement in market-leading work.
Practice head
Shannon Yavorsky
Other key lawyers
Heather Egan; Aravind Swaminathan; Michelle Visser; Emily Tabatabai; Thora Johnson; Amanda Lawrence; Elizabeth McGinn; Joe Santiesteban