Sean Howell is an associate attorney in the San Francisco office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He is a member of the firm’s Litigation Department.
His practice focuses on antitrust and competition litigation, as well as class action litigation. He has experience in a wide variety of matters, including civil antitrust litigation, antitrust counseling, government antitrust investigations, class actions, media litigation and counseling, and appeals.
Sean’s recent experience includes*:
- Defending a social media company in class actions involving unfair competition and privacy claims;
- Defending a technology company in antitrust class actions;
- Representing a different technology company in a civil antitrust investigation;
- Defending a biotechnology company against monopolization claims;
- Defending a news organization against a defamation claim; and
- Representing a petitioner in a successful immigration appeal in the Ninth Circuit.
He also completed a six-month secondment to Facebook’s antitrust group. He has published several articles on competition law, including one that was recently cited by the Ninth Circuit in a published decision.
Sean received his law degree from Berkeley Law in 2016, where he was an editor for the California Law Review and an articles editor for Ecology Law Quarterly. He received several academic awards while in law school, including American Jurisprudence awards in five courses and Prosser Prizes in four courses. Prior to law school, Sean worked for several years as a journalist and nonprofit communications manager. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English from Stanford in 2007.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Sean was an associate at Covington & Burling LLP in San Francisco. He also clerked on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California for the Honorable Charles Breyer, and on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for the Honorable Kim Wardlaw.
Sean is a member of the State Bar of California. He is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Northern District of California and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
*Includes recent experience prior to joining Gibson Dunn.
Liz Sweeney is an associate in the San Francisco office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She is a member of the firm’s real estate group.
Liz received her Juris Doctor from UCLA School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, from Georgetown University. She was an elementary school teacher in Honolulu for five years before entering law school. Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Liz practiced at a large Honolulu law firm in their real estate group.
She is admitted to practice in California and Hawaii.
Douglas Colby is a litigation associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, he clerked for the Honorable Jerry E. Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Douglas received his law degree cum laude from Harvard Law School. While in law school, he served as an Executive Editor on the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy and published a scholarly piece with the Journal. Douglas also served as the President of the Harvard Federalist Society and received the Dean’s Award for Community Leadership.
Prior to law school, he worked as a management consultant and also in nonprofit development. He graduated with distinction from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Economics.
Douglas is admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia.
Zachary Reynolds is a litigation associate in the Dallas office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
Before joining the firm, Zachary clerked for the Honorable Edith H. Jones of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the Honorable Benjamin J. Beaton for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky.
Zachary received his J.D. with Honors from the University of Chicago Law School in 2019. While at the Law School, he was a member of The University of Chicago Law Review. He holds a Master of Arts in Politics from Hillsdale College’s Van Andel Graduate School of Statesmanship and earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Theology from Thomas Aquinas College, where he graduated with distinction in 2014.
Zachary is a member of the Texas bar.
Lynn Anne Shapiro is Of Counsel to Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She is a member of the Firm’s Real Estate Practice Group in the Los Angeles office.
Her practice covers a wide range of commercial real estate transactions. She is particularly focused in projects involving technology and regulated industries and regularly counsels owners, operators, developers, investors and property users with respect to purchase and sales, joint venture investments, space leases, ground leases and build-to-suit leases, and development activities. Her experience covers a wide range of asset classes, including renewable energy projects, hospitals and medical facilities, biotech research and manufacturing space, technology and data center campuses, commercial and industrial properties, office buildings, and retail and mixed-use projects.
Lynn received her law degree from the University of Southern California in 1994. She earned a Bachelor of Science, magna cum laude, in Business Administration from the University of Southern California in 1991.
Lynn is licensed to practice in California.
Sarah Hafeez is an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She is a member of the firm’s Litigation Department, and her practice focuses on white collar defense and investigations.
Her experience includes representing clients in government investigations involving the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and other regulatory and enforcement agencies, and advising clients regarding the development of their compliance and ethics programs. She also has experience serving as part of a monitorship team and conducting internal investigations. Before joining Gibson Dunn, Sarah was an associate at a large international law firm.
Sarah received her Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center, where she was an Executive Editor of The American Criminal Law Review and a Legal Research and Writing Fellow. During law school, she served as an extern in the Division of Enforcement at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Sarah received her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Los Angeles.
She is admitted to practice in New York and the District of Columbia.
Mariella Rutigliano is an associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher.
She received her Juris Doctor, summa cum laude, in 2021 from New York Law School, where she served as Staff Editor of the New York Law School Law Review and President of the Dispute Resolution Team. Mariella was affiliated with Center for Real Estate Studies and she received the D. George Levine Memorial Award for the Highest Grade in the Law of Real Property.
Mariella received her Bachelor of Art in Political Science from Boston College in 2017.
She is admitted to practice in the State of New York.
Grant H. Dowd is Of Counsel in the Orange County office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He is a member of the firm’s Real Estate Department.
His expertise includes representing portfolio lenders (including life insurance companies, banks, and specialty finance companies), debt funds, private equity firms, and CMBS lenders in transactions involving mortgage and mezzanine loan originations, construction financing, loan purchases and sales, and post-closing modifications and work-outs.
Grant also routinely represents institutional capital partners and real estate developers in acquiring, developing, leasing, operating and selling a broad range of commercial real estate asset classes, including industrial projects, shopping centers, and multifamily complexes located throughout the United States. In connection with such investments, he also has broad experience in negotiating joint venture and development agreements, construction contracts, and management and brokerage agreements.
Prior to joining the firm, he was a partner in the Real Estate Finance practice group of Ballard Spahr LLP. Grant earned his Juris Doctor in 2005 from the Columbia University, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. He graduated with highest distinction from the University of Minnesota in 2002, majoring in finance.
Grant is admitted to practice in California.
Ronit Wineman is an English qualified associate in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, practicing in the firm’s Dispute Resolution Group.
Ronit has broad experience of commercial litigation, international arbitration and regulatory investigations. She trained at Gibson Dunn.
Alexandra L. Buettner is an associate in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where she is a member of the firm’s Litigation department.
Alexandra graduated from Duke University School of Law in 2020, where she served as a submissions editor for the American Journal of International Law and participated in the school’s International Human Rights Clinic.
Prior to law school, she worked as a litigation paralegal. In 2015, she received her undergraduate degrees with high distinction from Indiana University, where she was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society.
Alexandra is admitted to practice in Washington, D.C. and California.
Chris R. Mullen is an associate in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s Washington, D.C. office, and a member of the International Trade Practice Group. His practice focuses on international trade and investment.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Chris was an associate at a large international law firm where he counseled clients on a range of matters, including navigating export controls under the ITAR and EAR, global economic sanctions, anti-money laundering regulations, CFIUS review, and FCPA compliance. Chris also advised companies on international trade matters related to corporate mergers and acquisitions, as well as compliance with anti-money laundering obligations at the state and federal levels.
He received his law degree from New York University, where he served as Editor in Chief of the New York University Journal of International Law and Politics. Chris received a Bachelor of Arts degree with high distinction from the University of Virginia in History and Politics.
Chris is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia.
Sam Whipple is an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He practices in the firm’s Litigation Department.
Sam earned his law degree in 2020 from Yale Law School, where he served as an editor of the Yale Law Journal and participated in the Housing and Legislative Advocacy clinics. He earned undergraduate degrees in political science and economics, summa cum laude, from The Ohio State University, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
From 2021–2022, he clerked for Chief Judge Algenon L. Marbley of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
Sam is a member of the District of Columbia Bar.
Kirsten Frank is an associate in the San Francisco office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She is a member of the firm’s Real Estate Department.
Kirsten received her Juris Doctor from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law. While in law school, she served as Senior Content Editor of the Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal and was a member of the Intellectual Property and Technology Law Clinic. Prior to law school, Kirsten graduated with high honors from the University of California at Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Arts in Global and International Studies and a minor in Professional Writing.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, she practiced as a corporate associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in Los Angeles.
Kirsten is admitted to practice law in the State of California.
David Brzozowski is an associate in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s Washington, D.C. office. He practices in Gibson Dunn’s Intellectual Property Practice Group. His practice focuses on litigating intellectual property cases in U.S. District Courts, where he has experience in many phases of litigation, including motions practice, fact discovery, claim construction, and trial preparation.
He has experience representing clients across an array of technologies and industries. Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, David worked in the Intellectual Property group of the Washington D.C. office of a large international law firm, where he also gained experience with inter partes reviews before the U.S. Patent Trial & Appeal Board.
David received his law degree summa sum laude from the Catholic University of America where he served as Staff Editor of Catholic University Law Review and served as Vice-Chancellor for the Seigenthaler-Sutherland Moot Court Competition. He received his Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude from the University of Connecticut in 2012.
Arlen Gharibian is a litigation associate in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. His practice focuses on representing and advising companies on labor and employment matters under California and federal law. Arlen has significant experience litigating complex employment matters, including single, multi-plaintiff, and class action lawsuits.
During law school, he served as a judicial extern to the Honorable R. Gary Klausner in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. Additionally, Arlen was an executive editor and published member of the Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review. He also participated in Loyola’s Ninth Circuit Clinic where he represented a client with an appeal pending before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Arlen is admitted to practice law in the State of California and before the United States District Court for the Central District of California.
Kai Wen Chua is an associate in the Singapore office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He is a member of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions and Capital Markets Practice Groups.
His practice focuses on a variety of corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, equity capital markets and joint ventures. He has experience advising both public and private entities. His experience also includes advising on compliance with listing regulations and securities law in Singapore.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Kai Wen was an associate with a leading Singapore law firm.
Kai Wen received his Bachelor of Laws from the National University of Singapore in 2017. He is an Advocate and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Singapore.
He is fluent in English and Mandarin.
Andrew Freire is a litigation associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
He received his Juris Doctor in 2020 from Harvard Law School, where he served as a teaching assistant for the Trial Advocacy Workshop and training director for the Harvard Mediation Program. Andrew graduated summa cum laude from Fordham University with a degree in Business Administration.
Andrew is admitted to practice law in the State of New York and before the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.
Ronald A. Lee is a litigation associate in the Orange County office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He practices in Gibson Dunn’s Intellectual Property Practice Group, with a focus on patent litigation. Ronald has broad experience in all stages of litigation from pre-suit due diligence and investigation through trial in district court. His patent litigation practice spans a wide range of arts and practices, including pharmaceuticals, biologics, and cellular network technology. Ronald also has experience in post-grant proceedings, including ex parte reexamination and inter partes review filings.
He received his Juris Doctor from the New York University School of Law. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Molecular and Cell Biology with high distinction from the University of California, Berkeley.
Ronald is admitted to practice in the States of California and New York.
Nneka N. Chukwumah is a corporate associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher where she currently practices in the firm’s Capital Markets Practice Group and she is a Certified U.S. Information Privacy Professional.
Nneka received her Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School, where she was named a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and was a recipient of the Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law Certificate of Achievement. Also, she served as Senior Editor, on The American Review of International Arbitration Journal. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Government, magna cum laude, from St. Lawrence University.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, she practiced in the capital markets group of a major law firm in New York.
Nneka is admitted to practice in the State of New York.
Shaquille Grant is litigation associate in the Dallas office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
Shaquille graduated magna cum laude from SMU Dedman School of Law in 2020. He served as Associate Managing Editor of the Journal of Air Law and Commerce and Treasurer of the Black Law Students Association. Shaquille graduated magna cum laude from Hendrix College with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics.
Shaquille is a member of the Texas bar.