Ilissa Samplin is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. Ilissa serves as co-chair of the firm’s Media, Entertainment and Technology Practice Group. She also is a member of Gibson Dunn’s Litigation, Intellectual Property, and Trials Practice Groups.

Ilissa’s practice focuses on complex commercial litigation and trials, entertainment and technology disputes, and intellectual property litigation and counseling. She has represented corporate and individual clients in the media, entertainment, and technology industries in a wide range of litigation in both federal and state court, including breach of contract, unfair competition, copyright, trademark, trade secret, and antitrust matters. Ilissa also regularly advises clients on intellectual property policies and compliance. In addition, she has experience drafting life rights, intellectual property, and licensing agreements and cease and desist letters for clients in the entertainment and technology sectors, as well as advising entertainment clients on profit participation and related accounting practices.

Chambers USA ranks Ilissa among the leading practitioners in four practice areas: IP: Trade Secrets Nationwide, Litigation: General Commercial in California, Media & Entertainment: Litigation in California, and IP: Trademark, Copyright, and Trade Secrets in California. The Legal 500 recognizes Ilissa as a “Leading Partner” in media and entertainment litigation and a “Next Generation Lawyer” in trade secrets. Ilissa has been named to Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Litigators in America guide each year from 2023-2026 and Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Global Entertainment, Sports, and Media Lawyers guide for 2025 and 2026. The Daily Journal named Ilissa one of the top trade secrets lawyers in California in 2024, and one of the top 40 lawyers in California under 40 in 2022.  Benchmark Litigation has repeatedly recognized her on its 40 & Under list of “top emerging talent in litigation,” as well as naming her a “Future Star.” The Hollywood Reporter named Ilissa to its 2025 “Power Lawyers” list of the top 100 lawyers in Hollywood, the Los Angeles Times named her among its “Entertainment Business Visionaries” for 2025, and Variety has featured Ilissa in its Legal Impact Report each year from 2020-2025. She has been named to The World Trademark Review 1000: The World’s Leading Trademark Professionals 2023 through 2026 editions. Ilissa was recognized as a “Rising Star” in Media and Entertainment by Law360 and Euromoney in their 2022 publications, Euromoney Legal Media Group named her as the national 2021 Litigation Rising Star at its Women in Business Law Awards, and she has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America ® as “One to Watch” in Entertainment and Sports Law. Super Lawyers consistently names Ilissa a “Rising Star” in General Litigation in Southern California. In addition, Ilissa was part of the team that earned recognition in the Daily Journal ’s 2020 “Top Verdicts” for a bench trial win for AMC in a profit participation case concerning The Walking Dead.

Representative Trials:

  • Achieved a complete victory for AMC on all issues tried in a first phase bench trial in Los Angeles, in a long-running profit participation and breach of contract litigation concerning the television series, The Walking Dead. Subsequently achieved summary judgment for AMC on a remaining breach of implied covenant claim. Represented AMC in related profit participation and breach of contract litigations in New York.
  • Represented VOOM HD Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation, in a multibillion dollar breach of contract action against DISH Network. The four-week jury trial ended in a lucrative settlement valued at over $1 billion, one of the largest settlements in a breach of contract case in New York State Court history.
  • Achieved a complete victory for a confidential client in a multi-million dollar profit participation arbitration after a two-week hearing.
  • Represented Hewlett Packard Enterprise against claims of copyright infringement, tortious interference, and unfair competition brought by Oracle in a lawsuit relating to a subcontractor’s handling of components of an Oracle Operating System. Achieved summary judgment in part, based on statute of limitations arguments, which was affirmed by the Ninth Circuit on appeal. Defended Hewlett Packard Enterprise in a 3-week jury trial, after which the parties settled on confidential terms.
  • Achieved a complete victory for a confidential client, as the claimant, in a multimillion-dollar ICC arbitration related to power supply contracts.
  • Representation of Rimini Street, a leading software support services provider, in copyright, false advertising, and unfair competition litigation against Oracle in the District of Nevada. Represented Rimini Street in two bench trials in connection with this matter and on appeal.
  • Represented a confidential client in a multimillion-dollar breach of contract and conversion action in California State Court. The team’s aggressive pre-trial briefing strategy secured significant victories for the client, and ultimately a favorable settlement on the eve of trial.
  • Achieved a favorable verdict under the Fair Labor Standards Act for an individual client in New York Federal Court.

Representative Entertainment and Intellectual Property Matters:

  • Securing a major summary judgment victory on willfulness damages, for a leading digital download service provider, in multiple copyright infringement litigations related to musical compositions. The first time a court has held on summary judgment that a digital service provider’s reliance on contractual representations from its content providers can preclude a finding of willful infringement. As a result of the Court’s ruling, plaintiffs’ maximum possible damages award decreased by 80%. Also won Daubert motions resulting in the exclusion of the opinions of three of plaintiffs’ experts at trial.
  • Securing dismissal with prejudice, on behalf of Verizon Media, Yahoo, AOL, and Oath Holdings of trademark infringement claims in two lawsuits brought by Evox in California Federal Court, which was affirmed on appeal to the Ninth Circuit. Achieved favorable settlement of remaining copyright infringement claims.
  • Successfully represented WBTV in confidential profit participation arbitrations.
  • Securing summary judgment for a major digital download service provider in a copyright infringement litigation based on a successful fair use defense.
  • Securing dismissal with prejudice, on behalf of SoundCloud Limited and SoundCloud Inc., of a trade secrets misappropriation action brought by Beatport concerning online music streaming platforms.
  • Securing dismissal with prejudice of trade secret misappropriation and related claims against Oath Holdings, a subsidiary of Verizon, in a lawsuit filed by Investment Science in New York Federal Court. Obtained novel holding that an implied contract of confidentiality does not constitute a reasonable measure to protect a trade secret.
  • Successfully convinced district court to grant Campari America’s motion to stay a trademark litigation filed by the plaintiff pending resolution of the parties’ ongoing proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
  • Achieving default judgment for CrossFit in two trademark infringement and breach of contract litigations arising out of the activities of former CrossFit licensees in Mexico.
  • Securing dismissal with prejudice on behalf of CBS board members in a putative securities class action.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Big Fish Entertainment and REELZ against copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and unfair competition claims brought by A&E in connection with On Patrol: Live.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Theory Entertainment in a breach of contract and conversion action brought by a former executive, after near complete success on a motion to dismiss.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Korn Ferry in a misappropriation of trade secrets and breach of contract litigation brought by competitor, Heidrick & Struggles.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Korn Ferry in a misappropriation of trade secrets and tortious interference litigation brought by competitor, Spencer Stuart.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for a leading mobile gaming company in a trade secrets misappropriation, breach of contract, and fraud litigation.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for a cosmetics company in a misappropriation of trade secrets litigation.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Huda Beauty in a copyright infringement litigation.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Onyx Renewable Partners in a trade secrets misappropriation and breach of contract and fiduciary duty litigation against its former general counsel.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for a social media application and its two co-founders in a bet-the-company dispute that included claims for breach of joint venture agreement, fraud, and breach of fiduciary duty.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for a major technology firm in a trade secrets misappropriation, breach of contract, and breach of loyalty dispute with a former executive.
  • Representing WBTV, WarnerMedia Direct, John Wells Productions, John Wells, Noah Wyle, and Scott Gemmill in a breach of contract action filed by the Michael Crichton Estate relating to a forthcoming medical drama, The Pitt—in which the Plaintiff claims that The Pitt is impermissibly derivative of ER.
  • Representing Range Media Partners in a lawsuit filed by Creative Artists Agency related to departures from CAA.
  • Representing HSBC and employees in a trade secrets and breach of contract action brought by First Citizens Bank, relating to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. Achieved a favorable ruling on a motion to dismiss significantly cutting down the claims and defendants at issue in the case.
  • Representing Applied Materials in trade secres misappropriation litigation against Mattson Technology.
  • Representing Cadence Design Systems in multiple copyright infringement and DMCA-related litigations.

Representative Commercial Litigation Matters:

  • Securing dismissal with prejudice, on behalf of Hewlett-Packard, of a nationwide consumer class action brought on behalf of purchasers of numerous models of HP printers, asserting unfair trade practices, misrepresentations, tortious interference, violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and trespass to chattels based on firmware updates to the printers.
  • Securing dismissal, on the grounds of forum non conveniens, on behalf of General Electric and subsidiaries in a tortious interference action filed in the Southern District of New York, arising from prior proceedings under 28 U.S.C. § 1782. The Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal on appeal and the Supreme Court denied certiorari.
  • Securing dismissal on behalf of General Electric subsidiaries of two follow-on tortious interference actions filed in the District of Connecticut. 
  • Successfully obtaining 28 U.S.C. § 1782 discovery (discovery in aid of a foreign proceeding) on behalf of hedge fund manager, Louis Bacon, the founder of Moore Capital Management, and deposed key witnesses in a subsequent $100 million defamation action brought by Mr. Bacon.
  • Achieving a favorable settlement for Modern Health in a founders’ dispute litigation, involving claims of wrongful termination, retaliation, breach of contract, defamation, and tortious interference.
  • Representing Yahoo in consolidated privacy class actions related to Yahoo ConnectID.
  • Representing Hewlett-Packard in an antitrust lawsuit related to ink cartridges.

From 2012 to 2013, Ilissa served as Law Clerk to the Honorable Joseph F. Bianco, then of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Ilissa received her Juris Doctor degree in 2011 from Stanford Law School. While at Stanford, she served as a Managing Editor of the Stanford Journal of Law, Business, and Finance, President of the Stanford Entertainment and Sports Law Association, and a member of the Cyberlaw Clinic. Ilissa received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College in 2008, where she graduated summa cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Ilissa is admitted to practice in the States of California and New York and is a member of the bars of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth and Second Circuits and the United States District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California and the Southern District of New York. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles chapter of Friends of the Children, an organization that provides mentoring for children of youth who have been in the foster care system.

Brian C. Ascher is a partner in the New York office of Gibson Dunn, where he is Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Media, Entertainment & Technology Practice Group and a member of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group. Brian represents corporate and individual clients in a wide range of complex commercial litigation in both federal and state court, including several trials. Brian’s practice focuses on civil litigation, including contract, profit participation, trade secrets, and other intellectual property disputes. In addition, Brian has significant experience in litigating founder disputes and First Amendment cases.

Brian was named to Variety’s Legal impact Report from 2021-2023, and in 2025, as well as to Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Global Entertainment, Sports & Media Lawyers list in 2025 and 2026. He has been recognized as a Benchmark Litigation “Future Star,” a Law360 2020 “Rising Star” in the Media & Entertainment category, and a 2021-2023 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™ in Entertainment and Sports Law. Previously, Brian was named as one of two Rising Stars in the Media and Entertainment category and recognized nationally in the United States category by Euromoney Legal Media Group. In addition, he was part of the team that earned recognition in Daily Journal’s 2020 “Top Verdicts” for a bench trial win for AMC Networks in a profit participation case concerning The Walking Dead.

Representative matters include:

  • AMC Networks: Representing AMC in breach of contract and profit participation litigation concerning the hit television series, The Walking Dead and Fear The Walking Dead. Part of team that obtained a total victory for AMC following a two-week bench trial in 2020 and a sweeping summary judgment win in 2022, knocking out claims seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in alleged liability.
  • Bob Dylan: Successfully argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, obtaining unanimous affirmance of sanctions award in Mr. Dylan’s favor against opposing counsel in a closely-watched case. Representing Mr. Dylan in various matters, including a successful dismissal of a breach of contract action concerning the sale of Mr. Dylan’s music publishing catalog to Universal Music Group.
  • White House reporters: Represented CNN and its White House correspondent, Jim Acosta, and Playboy White House correspondent, Brian Karem in separate successful First Amendment / Due Process Clause lawsuits to reinstate their suspended White House press credentials. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the district court’s ruling in the Karem case.
  • Pinterest: Achieved a favorable settlement for Pinterest and one of its co-founders in a founder dispute.
  • Heaven’s Door Spirits: Represented premium whiskey brand partially owned by Bob Dylan in a trademark infringement action seeking to enjoin the marketing of the brand shortly after launch, resulting in a favorable settlement.
  • Hamdi Ulukaya and Chobani: Achieved a favorable settlement for Chobani and its founder and CEO, Hamdi Ulukaya, in a founder dispute seeking majority ownership of the company. Subsequently, successfully argued and won two motions to dismiss and two appeals in an action for breach of that settlement agreement.
  • Square: Achieved a favorable settlement for Square and its co-founders, Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey, shortly before trial in a founder dispute that included claims for breach of joint venture agreement, fraud, and misappropriation of trade secrets.
  • Lynn Tilton and Patriarch Partners: Represented prominent CLO fund manager in various litigations in multiple jurisdictions, including a trial win in an SEC fraud action seeking disgorgement of over $200 million, and a favorable settlement achieved on the last day of a jury trial in a fraudulent inducement action.
  • Cablevision: Part of trial team that achieved a lucrative settlement during a jury trial on behalf of Cablevision and subsidiary VOOM HD Holdings in a multi-billion dollar breach of contract action against DISH Network.
  • Prominent sports agent: Represented a prominent sports agent in a confidential baseball-related arbitration.
  • Pro bono representation: Represented the Clooney Foundation for Justice in negotiation of a documentary film contract. Obtained dismissal of a city agency’s statute-of-limitations defense in a trial in an Article 78 action. Represents artists and writers through Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts.

Brian received his Juris Doctor degree from the New York University School of Law in 2009, where he served as an Articles Editor of the New York University Environmental Law Journal. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy, with honors, from Colgate University in 2003, where he graduated summa cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

From 2011 to 2012, Brian served as a law clerk to the Honorable Faith S. Hochberg in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Prior to law school, Brian worked in film production and distribution.

Brian is admitted to practice in the State of New York and before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He is also a member of the Entertainment Law Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York.

Connor Sullivan is a partner in the New York office of Gibson Dunn. He represents technology and media companies in high-stakes litigation in state and federal court, including multiple jury trials involving billions of dollars in potential damages. His experience includes founders’ disputes, breach of contract litigation, tort claims, and copyright and trademark issues, involving products ranging from social media platforms to artificial intelligence and fintech applications.

Connor is Co-Chair of the firm’s First Amendment and Free Expression practice group and has significant experience in litigation involving the First Amendment, especially defamation defense, for technology companies, media and entertainment clients, and news media organizations. He has been involved in some of the firm’s major recent First Amendment victories, including winning a complete victory at summary judgment in defeating the first-ever defamation claim arising from generative artificial intelligence output. Before joining the firm, Connor served as a member of the trial team in one of the largest defamation suits ever tried. He is a co-author of “Defamation and Reputation Management in the United States” for the global research platform Lexology and co-hosts the firm’s regular webinar on developments in First Amendment jurisprudence. Connor has also worked on behalf of pro bono clients in connection with immigration and First Amendment rights.

Connor was a member of the team honored with the Financial Times’ Innovative Lawyers North America 2025 award for Disputes and Litigation. For his role in securing a precedent-setting victory based on “hallucinated” AI output, The American Lawyer recognized Connor in its “Litigators of the Week” feature. He has been repeatedly recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America in Entertainment and Sports Law and Appellate Practice, and named to Super Lawyers New York Metro “Rising Stars” for litigation since 2020. 

Significant representations include:*

  • Secured a complete defense victory at summary judgment against the first-ever defamation claim arising from generative artificial intelligence output.
  • Represented the founders, early executives, and employees of the online dating application Tinder in a four-year multibillion-dollar litigation, which settled at the conclusion of a month-long jury trial with the defendants paying Gibson Dunn’s clients $441 million.
  • Defending NBCUniversal Media and its production company partner against a defamation claim brought by the music industry executive Sean Combs arising from a streaming documentary.
  • Represented an AI developer in successfully enforcing a non-competition and non-solicitation agreement against a former employee.
  • Represented a major grocery retailer and wholesaler in a $125 million breach of contract lawsuit arising from a failed merger.
  • Defending Warner Bros. Discovery and Sony Pictures Entertainment against a defamation claim brought by a prominent television producer arising from a streaming documentary.
  • Defended multiple consumer products manufacturers against trademark infringement litigation.
  • Defending a global entertainment company against a breach of contract claim arising from production of an Emmy-winning streaming drama.
  • Representing the MSNBC host Joy Reid in defending against a defamation claim.
  • Defended a national news network against multibillion-dollar defamation and product disparagement claims seeking billions of dollars in damages, including a month-long jury trial.
  • Successfully represented White House in First Amendment and Due Process Clause challenges to obtain the return of their press credentials after they were suspended by the White House Press Office.
  • Defended a global news agency against defamation claims involving international financial fraud.
  • Represented Mary Trump, the niece of President Donald Trump, in successfully defeating an attempt by the Trump family to prevent the publication of her bestselling family memoir Too Much and Never Enough.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Connor was an associate at a prominent firm in Washington, D.C., where he focused on defending news organizations in defamation actions. He was also involved in significant copyright, product liability, and breach of contract actions.

He clerked for the Honorable Thomas B. Griffith of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the Honorable Katherine Polk Failla of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. In the summer after law school, he served as what is now called a Phillips Fellow in the Office of the Solicitor General at the Department of Justice.

Connor graduated from Yale Law School in 2013, where he was a director of the law school’s Supreme Court clinic, an editor of the Yale Law Journal, the Executive Editor of the Yale Journal on Regulation, and a winner of the Morris Tyler Moot Court competition. He published an academic comment entitled A First Amendment Approach to Generic Drug Manufacturer Tort Liability, 123 Yale L.J. 495 (2013). Prior to law school, Connor was a strategy and operations consultant for McKinsey & Company. He graduated with distinction from the University of Virginia in 2008, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Connor is admitted to practice in New York and the District of Columbia, and before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Courts of Appeals for the Second, Third, Fourth, Sixth, Ninth, and District of Columbia Circuits, and the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the District of Columbia.

* Includes matters Connor handled prior to joining Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Samantha Sewall is of counsel in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson Dunn and a member of the firm’s International Trade Advisory and Enforcement Practice Group.

She advises clients on compliance with U.S. legal obligations at the intersection of global trade, foreign policy, and national security, focusing her practice on compliance with U.S. economic sanctions, export controls, anti-boycott laws, customs, and national security reviews of foreign direct investment (CFIUS). Samantha has experience advising companies across a wide range of sectors including aerospace, banking and financial institutions, defense, energy, medical devices and pharmaceuticals, shipping, retail, telecommunications, and travel. She regularly assists clients to assess risk, advocate before regulators, enhance compliance measures, and navigate the shifting international trade legal landscape.

Representative economic sanctions engagements include:

  • Obtaining a specific license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) to provide healthcare-related services to persons resident in comprehensively sanctioned countries for a global provider of business process and digital services.
  • Advising a non-U.S. manufacturer in negotiations with OFAC and the U.S. Department of Justice in connection with a sanctions enforcement action and settlement.
  • Responding to an OFAC subpoena related to screening gaps for a U.S.-based financial institution.
  • Providing a sanctions risk assessment to a digital payments platform provider covering sales in higher risk jurisdictions.
  • Drafting and revising sanctions compliance policies and procedures for clients across industry sectors.
  • Advising on the design of sanctions compliance programs.
  • Providing sanctions-related due diligence for M&A transactions.

Representative export control and antiboycott engagements include:

  • Conducting an internal investigation and submitting a voluntary self-disclosure of export control compliance exceptions for a global oil & gas industry company and obtaining a resolution without penalty.
  • Assessing export control classification and licensing compliance policies and procedures.
  • Providing advice regarding compliance with U.S. antiboycott laws, including reporting requirements and compliance policy development.

Representative CFIUS engagements include:

  • Obtaining CFIUS clearance for the acquisition of an aerospace and defense tooling manufacturer by a U.K.- and Cyprus-owned private fund.
  • Providing CFIUS analysis for private equity transactions, including assessment of target companies’ critical technologies.

In-house counsel experiences include:

  • Eight-month secondment to the in-house global trade legal team of a global e-commerce and technology company.
  • Six-month secondment as the in-house global trade counsel to a top-10 global manufacturer of medical devices.*

On a pro bono basis, Samantha has assisted clients with understanding U.S. trade controls and immigration issues, and she has worked with an international rule of law NGO to support law enforcement training efforts to combat transnational human trafficking and forced labor.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, she served as a Political-Economic Program Assistant supporting the U.S. Embassy in Côte d’Ivoire. Samantha was previously an associate with a large international law firm where she was a member of the international trade and investment practice group.

Samantha graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 2012, where she was elected to the Order of the Coif and was a member of the Georgetown Law Journal. She is admitted to practice in the Commonwealth of Virginia, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Court of International Trade.

*Representation occurred prior to Samantha’s association with Gibson Dunn.

Speaking Engagements

  • Panelist, Georgetown Law Institute of International Economic Law, Global Trade Academy, “Economic Sanctions and Export Controls in an Age of Geopolitical Rivalries,” November 6, 2025
  • Moderator, “Legal Developments in Russia-Related Sanctions,” The George Washington University Law School, Business and Finance Law Review Symposium, April 13, 2024
  • Lecturer, Foreign Service Institute, “Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about U.S. Sanctions…But Were Afraid to Ask,” March 27, 2023
  • Moderator, ABA International Law Section, “Fireside Chat on Export Control Enforcement with Assistant Secretary Matthew S. Axelrod,” December 15, 2022
  • Panelist, Gibson Dunn webcast, “CFIUS Enforcement Guidelines: First-Ever Guidance on Enforcement and Penalties in U.S. National Security Reviews of FDI,” December 13, 2022
  • Speaker, Gibson Dunn webcast, “2020 Sanctions and Export Controls Update,” October 15, 2020
  • Featured Speaker, The Knowledge Group “OFAC’s Heightened Enforcement Trends: Practical Compliance Tips and Strategies,” June 30, 2020
 

Kamia is an associate in the Los Angeles office. She practices in the firm’s litigation and white collar investigations departments.

Kamia earned her J.D. from Duke University School of Law, where she served as a legal extern with Duke University’s Office of Counsel. She received her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business.

She is admitted to practice in the State of California.

Harris M. Mufson is widely recognized amongst the top employment litigators in the country.  Clients seek Harris’ advice when confronting their most complex employment issues, including disputes regarding discrimination and retaliation, whistleblowing, sexual harassment, wrongful discharge, defamation, breach of contract, wage and hour laws, and restrictive covenants.  Most recently, Harris secured sweeping injunctions in two of the most high-profile restrictive covenant disputes in the country.  Harris also recently secured a complete victory on behalf of a client in a week-long jury trial of a high-stakes whistleblower retaliation claim under California law.  The jury returned a unanimous defense verdict after 10 minutes of deliberations.

In addition to fiercely defending clients in court, Harris counsels clients on compliance with employment-related laws, as well as the development, implementation and enforcement of personnel policies and procedures.  He has also conducted numerous internal investigations regarding sensitive employment matters.

Recognized as a thought leader in the industry, Harris has delivered numerous seminars before the American Bar Association on key developments in employment laws.  As a result of Harris’ extraordinary talents, he has received numerous distinctions.  Ranked by Chambers for his Labor & Employment work, he was also named to the 2026 Lawdragon 500 Leading Corporate Employment Lawyers Guide, featuring “the nation’s top advisors to businesses, universities, nonprofits and other organizations dealing with the mind-bending matrix of today’s global workforce.” Harris was also named a BTI Client Service All-Star MVP, recognizing “the attorneys delivering the absolute best levels of client service”.  Additionally, he was recognized as a “Labor & Employment Star” by Benchmark Litigation and consistently ranked by The Best Lawyers in America®. 

Representative recent litigations include:*

  • Secured a sweeping injunction to stop a competitor from continuing its tortious interference and unfair competition after its “lift out” of 150 employees (Marsh USA LLC v. Gronovius, et al (S.D.N.Y. 2026));
  • Enjoined former Palantir employees from continuing their plan to “pillage” Palantir’s best engineeers to build a copycat business and requiring forensic remediation to address theft of confidential information (Palantir v. Jain, et al. (S.D.N.Y. 2026));
  • Secured an injunction enforcing non-solicitation and confidentiality agreements signed by former senior employees of Marsh (Marsh USA LLC v. Parrish, et al (S.D.N.Y. 2025));
  • Secured a sweeping injunction in DraftKings’ trade secrets and noncompete lawsuit against the former head of its VIP business (DraftKings Inc. v. Michael Hermalyn (D. Mass. 2024));
  • Won a high-stakes jury trial on behalf of a client in defense of a whistleblower retaliation claim under CA Labor Code §1102.5. (Adam Fox v. Harry Winston, Inc. (C.D.C.A. 2023));
  • Enjoined the Town of East Hampton from proceeding with an unprecedented and highly-publicized plan to close the historic East Hampton Airport—which has operated continuously as a public airport for the past eighty-five years—and reopen it shortly thereafter as a purported “private use” airport subject to substantial restrictions on aircraft operators’ ability to use it in the future (East End Hangars, Inc. et al v. Town of East Hampton, (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 2022));
  • Won a high-profile lawsuit filed by the New York Attorney General alleging health and safety violations under New York Labor Law (Letita James, Attorney General of the State of New York v. Amazon.com Inc. (1st Dep’t 2022));
  • Obtained a temporary restraining order enjoining a former sales executive from engaging in competitive activities in violation of his non-competition obligations (Capchase Inc. v. Sukhraj (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 2022));
  • Obtained a temporary restraining order enjoining a former sports executive from violating his non-competition obligations (Relevent Sports LLC v. Stillitano (S.D.N.Y. 2022));
  • Won a complete dismissal of a Bank Secrecy Act whistleblower lawsuit (Shaikh v. National Bank of Pakistan (2nd Cir. 2021)).

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Harris was a partner in the Labor & Employment Law Department of an AmLaw 50 firm, where he served as co-head of the Whistleblowing & Retaliation Practice Group and the Disability, Accommodation & Leave Management Practice Group.

Harris earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2006, where he was Senior Editor of the Journal of Labor and Employment.  Harris earned a Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania in 2003.

Harris is deeply committed to his pro bono practice and is Chairman of the Mount Sinai Medical Legal Partnership, an organization established in 2016 to provide free legal services to low income patients to prevent and remedy unjust and hazardous social and environmental conditions.  Harris also serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Allen-Stevenson School.

*Some representations occurred prior to Harris’ association with Gibson Dunn.

Caeli A. Higney is a partner in the San Francisco office of Gibson Dunn. She currently practices in the firm’s Litigation Department and is a member of the firm’s Antitrust and Competition Practice Group. She was recognized by Euromoney as a 2022 Rising Star in the Americas for Antitrust.

Caeli has experience handling a wide variety of antitrust matters in a broad range of industries, such as semiconductors, consumer electronics, retail food, consumer products, automotive parts, and financial services. She has represented companies before appellate and trial courts in matters alleging a range of antitrust-based claims, including allegations of price fixing, monopolization and attempted monopolization, tying, bundling, exclusive dealing, and refusal to deal. For example, Caeli was part of a team that defended a major consumer electronics company in a multi-week antitrust trial against conspiracy claims brought by the U.S. Department of Justice. More recently, Caeli successfully obtained dismissal of conspiracy to monopolize and attempted monopolization claims against a major retailer. She represented and helped negotiate a favorable settlement of price-fixing claims in a large indirect purchaser class action.

Caeli’s antitrust experience also includes representing clients before the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice, and other international antitrust agencies in connection with merger and acquisition matters. She was part of a team that secured worldwide antitrust clearance for a $16 billion transaction in the semiconductor industry.

Caeli has represented clients in connection with investigations by international antitrust agencies, including the European Commission, Korean Fair Trade Commission, Taiwan Fair Trade Commission, and Japan Fair Trade Commission.

Caeli has also represented clients in appellate courts, trial courts, and arbitrations in cases involving class action, consumer protection, breach of contract, and environmental claims. She recently successfully defended a technology company against breach of contract and defamation claims in a multi-day arbitration.

She has authored publications on a range of antitrust-related topics. Concurrences Review recognized Caeli at its 2017 Antitrust Writing Awards for her article “Practical Advice for Avoiding Hub-and-Spoke Liability,” which was selected as the winner in the Business category, Concerted Practices section. The article originally appeared in the October 2016 issue of The Antitrust Source. Caeli served as an Associate Editor of the Antitrust Report, the U.S. law periodical published by Matthew Bender and LexisNexis, and has served as a contributor to the Antitrust Law Developments handbook published by the American Bar Association and the International Comparative Legal Guides to Competition Litigation.

Caeli received her law degree from Stanford Law School, where she served as Vice President of the Stanford Public Interest Law Foundation. Prior to attending law school, she graduated summa cum laude from Washington University in St. Louis, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Caeli is a member of the California Bar. She also serves on the firm’s Pro Bono Committee.

Juliette Michaud is an associate in the Paris office of Gibson Dunn and member of the firm’s Litigation, International Arbitration, and Business Restructuring Practice Groups.

She represents a diverse range of clients — companies, debtors, and creditors — in connection with pre-insolvency mechanisms such as ad hoc mandates and conciliation proceedings, as well as formal insolvency procedures including safeguard, accelerated safeguard, reorganization, and liquidation. Her practice also includes insolvency-related litigation, including disputes among classes of affected parties, grace period petitions, and claims admission disputes.

Juliette also advises clients in civil and commercial litigation matters.

Admitted to the Paris Bar in 2026, she holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration and Liquidation of Distressed Companies (ALED) from the University Paris I – Panthéon Sorbonne, obtained in 2023. During her academic training, she spent one year working alongside court-appointed insolvency practitioners, gaining hands-on experience in distressed company situations and restructuring processes.

She is fluent in French and English.

Elizabeth Papez is a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice and partner in Gibson Dunn’s litigation, appellate, and regulatory groups. Elizabeth has expertise litigating high-stakes complex commercial and class actions, appeals, and parallel government enforcement matters. She has successfully led both the defense and prosecution of several high-exposure matters, and has extensive experience working with economic experts and business personnel to craft powerful legal and factual narratives that resonate with courts and regulators.

Chambers USA has repeatedly recognized Elizabeth as a leading attorney in the area of General Commercial Litigation based on client feedback that she “is phenomenal.”  Elizabeth is also recognized as one of Lawdragon’s “500 Leading Litigators in America,” is recognized in The Legal 500 for her antitrust and appellate work, has been named among The Best Lawyers in America since 2019 for her appellate practice, and has most recently been recognized in the Legal 500 US 2025 guide as a “Recommended Lawyer” in Securities Litigation: Defense.  Benchmark USA has also recognized Elizabeth as a “Litigation Star” and named her a “client favorite” who is “extremely smart and practical and very charismatic.” She is praised by peers as a “fierce, dynamic, bright, powerhouse of a litigator.” Elizabeth has also consistently been named to Benchmark’s “Top 250 Women” list, which is based on “individual litigators’ professional activities as well as client feedback surveys.” 

In addition to her expertise defending competition and securities matters, Elizabeth is one of the few lawyers in the country who has successfully litigated constitutional challenges to high stakes public-private partnerships.  These matters involve the intersection of First Amendment speech and due process rights with education, employment, and commercial ventures involving government partnerships with private enterprise and Universities.    

As a complement to her litigation work Elizabeth also routinely handles enforcement matters with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Small Business Administration (SBA), Food & Drug Administration (FDA), Department of Health & Human Services, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

Elizabeth has testified before Congress on anti-discrimination, federal contracting, and regulation of multiple industries, and served since 2020 as a public member of the Administrative Council of the United States (ACUS).  She is also a Trustee of the U.S. Supreme Court Historical Society, a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Committee on Administrative Law & Regulation, a Master of the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court, and received an award from the Innocence Project for her pro bono work. 

Elizabeth clerked for the United States Supreme Court and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and received her law degree from Harvard Law School, where she was the Supreme Court Chair and Editor of the Harvard Law Review.

Elizabeth’s representative engagements include:

  • Ploss Kraft et al. (NDIL) – lead counsel for multi-national defendant in nationwide class action alleging violations of Commodity Exchange Act and federal antitrust laws
  • Linet v. Hillrom et al. (NDIL, WDMI, 6th Cir.) – lead counsel for multi-national defendant in nationwide antitrust action filed after a $12 billion healthcare merger
  • Johnson v. Georgetown University et al. (DDC) – lead counsel for individual defendant in First Amendment speech and employment discrimination action 
  • Palladino et al. v. Bank of America et al. (SDNY, 2d Cir.) – lead counsel for bank defendant in putative class action alleging federal and state antitrust claims concerning credit and debit card fees
  • Energy Transfer Partners LP v. New Generation Gas Gathering (La. 2d. Cir.) – lead appellate counsel for energy client in antitrust dispute raising First Amendment and state anti-SLAPP claims
  • Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB) v. Citizens Bank N.A. (DRI) – lead counsel for bank client in regulatory enforcement challenge to consumer credit practices
  • PMCC v. Amtrak (SDNY) – lead counsel for capital corporation in leveraged finance dispute
  • CFPB/FTC Investigations (Confidential) – counsel for financial technology companies in various regulatory inquiries and enforcement proceedings involving alleged unfair and deceptive consumer practices
  • U.S. Trust vs. Bank of America N.A. (SDNY, 2d Cir.) – lead district and appellate counsel for national bank association in commercial CMBS dispute
  • In re LIBOR Antitrust Litigation (SDNY) – lead counsel for foreign financial institution and U.S. affiliates in settlement related discovery disputes
  • Washington County Hosp., et al. v. Baxter International, et al. (NDIL) – lead counsel for Baxter in dismissing nationwide class actions alleging antitrust violations in IV saline markets
  • In re Containerboard Antitrust Litigation (7th Cir.) – lead appellate counsel in successful defense of $11 billion MDL of several nationwide antitrust class actions
  • B&R Supermarket et al. v. Visa, Inc. et al. (NDCA/EDNY) – lead counsel for credit card network in nationwide class action alleging antitrust violations in chip card rollout
  • In re Treasury Securities Auction Antitrust Litigation (SDNY) – counsel for global primary dealer in MDL of scores of nationwide class actions and parallel federal investigations concerning potential collusion in the $12T annual market for U.S. Treasury securities
  • In re Interest Rates Swaps Antitrust Litigation (SDNY) – counsel for global financial institution in MDL of nationwide antitrust class actions involving US IR swaps markets
  • Municipal Board Qui Tam Litigation (NDIL) – counsel for global financial institution in multiple qui tam actions alleging fraud on issuers by municipal bond underwriting syndicates
  • United States v. American Express Co., et al. (2nd Cir.) – lead counsel for credit card network in support of U.S. Department of Justice enforcement action
  • Ross et al. v. Bank of America et al. (SDNY;  2d Cir.) – counsel for card network in successful five-week trial and appeal of MDL challenging class waivers in arbitration clauses
  • Tera Exchange et al. v. Bank of America et al. (SDNY) – counsel for global financial institution in antitrust action alleging collusion in market for CFTC-regulated CDS trading
  • In re Credit Default Swaps Antitrust Litigation (SDNY) – counsel for global financial institution in multi-billion dollar MDL alleging antitrust violations in the global CDS market

Taylor Hathaway-Zepeda is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Gibson Dunn. Her practice focuses on mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, equity investments, restructuring transactions, and general corporate governance. She works with companies in a broad array of industries, and has extensive experience working with media, entertainment and technology companies and private equity sponsors.

Taylor was named a Leading Global Entertainment, Sports & Media Lawyer by Lawdragon in 2025 and 2026, and recognized as a Rising Star by Super Lawyers. In 2025, Taylor was also selected by the LA Times Studios as part of the Inspirational Women Forum & Leadership Awards, as well as featured in Variety’s Women’s Impact Report. In 2024, the Los Angeles Times recognized Taylor on its list of “Entertainment Business Visionaries,” which honors “uniquely talented visionaries” whose “expertise fuels the engines that drive the industry forward.” She was also named a leader in mergers and acquisitions, as well as corporate governance, in the 2024 Lawdragon 500 X – The Next Generation, which highlights “the future leaders of the law.” Additionally, Taylor was recognized by the Los Angeles Business Journal in its 2024 “Women of Influence: Attorneys” feature, which spotlights the region’s noteworthy women legal professionals.

Taylor currently serves on the Board of Directors of the California Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, where she is also Chair of the Governance Committee. She also serves on the Board of Trustees of the Children’s Center at Caltech, where she is a member of the Executive Committee. Additionally, she is a member of Gibson Dunn’s Hiring Committee. She has also served on the Corporations Committee of the California Lawyers Association, and on the Board of Directors of the Harvard Law School Association of Los Angeles.

Taylor is admitted to practice in the State of California and the State of New York.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Taylor served as managing law clerk to Chief Judge Sandra Lynch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. She received her law degree from Harvard Law School, where she was an editor of the Harvard Law Review and a finalist in the 100th Ames Moot Court Competition. Prior to law school, she earned a master’s degree with a focus on international economics from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom as a recipient of the Frank Knox Memorial Fellowship. Taylor received her undergraduate degree magna cum laude in Economics from Harvard University, where she was also elected to Phi Beta Kappa and served as Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard International Review.

Selected Transactions

  • The North Road Company, a global, multi-genre studio, in its formation and various transactions including:
    • the investment of up to $500 million by Providence Equity Partners
    • the acquisition of Words + Pictures
    • the investment of $150 million by Qatar Investment Authority
  • Universal Pictures in its investments and partnerships with:
    • Amblin Partners
    • Blumhouse Productions
  • Block, Inc. (formerly Square, Inc.) in its acquisition of a majority stake in Tidal, the streaming and entertainment platform founded by Jay-Z
  • Chernin Entertainment in its formation of content studio Words + Pictures with former ESPN executive Connor Schell
  • SpringHill Entertainment, a production company founded by LeBron James, in a capital raise from investors including Guggenheim Partners and Sister, the production company founded by Elisabeth Murdoch, Stacey Snider and Jane Featherstone
  • Epygenix Therapeutics in its sale to Harmony Biosciences
  • Ahern Rentals in its acquisition by United Rentals
  • WndrCo in its formation of Quibi, a short-form premium content distribution platform, including the raising of $1 billion of capital commitments
  • The Chernin Group in various investments and transactions, including:
    • the sale of its controlling interest in Otter Media, an internet video joint venture between The Chernin Group and AT&T
    • the sale of The Action Network to Better Collective
    • its partnership with Providence Equity Partners, Qatar Holding, and other investors
  • Oak View Group in its redevelopment of the Seattle Key Arena and bringing an NHL team to Seattle
  • Azoff MSG Entertainment in the formation of LaneOne, a joint venture with Live Nation Entertainment
  • Platinum Equity Advisors in its acquisition of:
    • Cision Ltd., a global provider of software and services to public relations and marketing communications professionals
    • The water care business of Lonza Group AG
    • Highway Toll Administration, an electronic toll collection and technology company
  • F45 Training in its acquisition agreement with Crescent Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company
  • La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company in its acquisition of Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals
  • AmaWaterways, a luxury river cruising company, in its partnership with travel and hospitality investor group Certares LP
  • Array Technologies in its sale to Oaktree Capital’s GFI Energy Group
  • Otter Media, an internet video joint venture between The Chernin Group and AT&T, in its acquisition of a majority stake of Fullscreen, a multichannel network
  • Aurora Capital Partners in its acquisition of:
    • Petroleum Service Corporation, a product handling and site logistic services provider
    • Zywave, a provider of insurance brokerage software solutions
    • National Technical Systems, a provider of environmental simulation testing, inspection, and certification solutions
  • Technicolor in:
    • the sale of the transactional streaming service M-Go to online ticketing service Fandango
    • the acquisition by TiVo of Digitalsmiths, a provider of TV and movie content discovery recommendation services
  • Group Health Cooperative in its acquisition by Kaiser Permanente
  • The Sports Authority in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy, including the sale of its IP portfolio and e-commerce platform to Dick’s Sporting Goods
  • CVC Capital Partners and Leonard Green & Partners in the sale of Leslie’s Holdings, Inc. to a group led by L Catterton
  • The Artémis Group, parent company of Château Latour and Christie’s Auction House, in its acquisition of Araujo Estate Wines
  • GI Partners in the sale of Duckhorn Wine Company to TSG Consumer Partners
  • The Rubicon Project in its acquisition of iSocket, Inc., a provider of automated online advertising solutions
  • Motorsport Aftermarket Group in its merger with Tucker Rocky/Biker’s Choice, a motorsport distribution company
  • Leslie’s Poolmart in e-commerce and retail acquisitions including:
    • Nationwide Group Service, Inc. and NPS Pool Supply, LLC, online retailers of pool and spa products
    • Pool Supply World, Inc., an online pool and spa retailer
    • Warehouse Pools, Inc., a pool and spa retailer
  • March Capital in its investment in Morty
  • Eminence Capital in its investments in:
    • xAD d/b/a GroundTruth, a location-based marketing and advertising platform
    • Quartzy, a laboratory management platform
    • Comprehend Systems, a clinical intelligence and cloud software company
  • Alpha Edison in its investments in:
    • The Baby Box Company, a provider of newborn starter kits and parent education programs
    • Emagispace, a modular construction company
  • Acumen Fund in its investment in:
    • Sanergy, a provider of waste management services in East Africa

Harriet is an associate in the London office of Gibson Dunn and is a member of the Private Equity and Mergers and Acquisitions Practice Groups. She is currently on secondment.

Harriet’s practice focuses on private equity M&A and cross-border M&A transactions.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Harriet worked in the London office of another major global law firm.

Dominic Solari is an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson Dunn. He practices in the firm’s Litigation Department.

Dominic earned his Juris Doctor magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 2023. At Harvard Law School, Dominic was a senior editor for the National Security Journal. He also interned for several offices in the U.S. Government, including the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of Justice, and the U.S. Department of the Interior. He has also written for the national security publication Lawfare.

Dominic graduated summa cum laude from Georgetown University in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in government and history and a minor in economics.

Dominic clerked for the Hon. Jerome Holmes, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Dominic is a member of the Bar of the District of Columbia and is admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Cléo Batista is an associate in the Paris office of Gibson Dunn and member of the firm’s Litigation, International Arbitration, and Business Restructuring Practice Groups

Cléo specializes in dispute resolution and restructuring.

She has developed significant experience in a wide range of disputes, from civil and commercial litigation to both commercial and investment arbitration. She regularly assists clients in complex proceedings before French courts as well as in international arbitration cases conducted under major institutional rules.

She also acts on debt restructuring, where she advises clients in connection with pre-insolvency and insolvency proceedings.

Prior to her admission to the Paris Bar in 2026, she graduated in 2023 with both a Master in Private International Law and International Trade Law and a University Degree of the Collège de droit and Ecole de droit, from the University Paris II – Panthéon Assas. Cléo also graduated with a Master of Laws (LL.M) in International Commercial Law and Dispute Resolution from Bond University (Australia) in 2024.

She speaks French and English fluently, with working knowledge of Spanish.

Arjun Rangarajan is an associate in Gibson Dunn’s Palo Alto office.

Arjun advises clients on artificial intelligence, complex technology transactions, privacy compliance and agreements, intellectual property strategy and licensing, open source software, and software technology products.

With experience in both private practice and in-house roles at major technology companies, Arjun understands the need to operate at high velocity while managing sophisticated legal risk. He provides pragmatic and contextual advice that aligns legal strategy with business execution. He has counseled closely on the development and deployment of cutting-edge AI technologies and has worked on industry-shaping transactions in this space. Arjun counsels on AI model development and deployment, data licensing and training arrangements, privacy agreements, cloud and infrastructure partnerships, enterprise SaaS and platform agreements and strategic technology collaborations. His work frequently sits at the intersection of engineering, product, and executive leadership, helping clients translate technical innovation into scalable and defensible commercial structures.

His international experience includes leading IP licensing initiatives for a global consumer electronics company in Bangalore, India. Prior to law school, Arjun worked as a semiconductor engineer for multinational technology companies in Silicon Valley and San Diego, giving him a technical foundation that informs his legal practice.

Arjun is admitted to practice in the State of California.

Ksenija Radonjić is a Senior Associate in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and a member of the Dispute Resolution Group.

Ksenija’s practice covers a wide range of disputes, including transnational litigation, class actions, contentious antitrust matters, and regulatory investigations.

She focuses particularly on advising global technology clients on complex contentious matters and regulatory engagement. This includes coordinating multi-jurisdictional strategies at multiple levels of appeal, proceedings before the European Court of Justice, certification challenges, jurisdictional and applicable law challenges and motions to dismiss.

In addition, Ksenija has a strong background in international trade as well as financial crime matters. Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, she worked for international law firms in the UK and Europe, and at the European Commission in Brussels, gaining significant experience in commercial cross-border disputes tried before the European Court of Justice, corporate crime, international sanctions and trade.

Most recently, she was an associate at a large global law firm in the Trade, Regulatory and Disputes team in London. Her experience there focused on a broad spectrum of compliance issues, including financial and trade sanctions, anti-corruption and anti-money laundering regulation. She has also been on client secondment to a major investment bank.

Beyond her client work, her pro bono practice focuses on human rights matters, and her pro bono clients include Clooney Foundation for Justice, Human Dignity Trust, Domestic Abuse Response Alliance and Legal Services New York City. Ksenija also acted for a number of pro bono clients providing comprehensive sanctions advice, from engaging with regulators and making licence applications to investigations and contentious advice.

Ksenija is fluent in English, Serbian, German and Portuguese, and has worked on matters in all four languages.

Georg Bilek is an associate in the Munich office of Gibson Dunn. He is a member of the firm’s Corporate, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Private Equity Practice Groups.

Georg advises clients on private equity transactions, management and other participation programs, as well as general corporate law.

He studied law at the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. During his legal clerkship, he gathered experience at the Los Angeles and Munich offices of Gibson Dunn. Georg has been admitted as a German Lawyer (Rechtsanwalt) since 2025.

In addition to his native German, Georg speaks English.

Hazim Alfreahat is an associate attorney in the Abu Dhabi office of Gibson Dunn. He is a member of the firm’s Mergers and Acquisitions and Projects and Infrastructure Practice Groups.

Hazim advises clients on complex local and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and corporate transactions. His practice includes advising on matters across a broad range of sectors, including energy and infrastructure, as well as providing advice on the UAE Commercial Companies Law and related regulatory matters.

Hazim received his Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Trade and Commercial Law from Nottingham Trent University. Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, he worked in the Abu Dhabi office of an international U.S. law firm. He trained at a top-tier law firm in Jordan and is admitted to practice in Jordan.

Hazim is also a Certified Board Secretary from the Hawkamah Institute of Governance, in partnership with the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), qualifying him to serve listed companies on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) and DFM.

Eric Thompson, Jr. is an associate attorney in the New York office of Gibson Dunn.  He practices in the firm’s Litigation Department and maintains an active pro bono practice.

Eric earned his Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law in 2024, where he served as Senior Editor of the New York University Journal of Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law. While at law school, he was also a student mediator for the Mediation Clinic, the Database Chair for the Sports Law Association and a member of the Black Law Students Association.

Eric received a Bachelor of Arts in Government from the College of William & Mary in 2021.

Eric is admitted to practice in the State of New York.

Robert Banerjea is of counsel in the New York office of Gibson Dunn. He is a member of the Private Equity, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Infrastructure Practice Groups.

Robert represents private equity and infrastructure funds, and public and private companies in connection with mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, recapitalizations, and other complex corporate transactions. His infrastructure practice comprises digital, energy, power, transportation and social infrastructure. He also advises clients on corporate governance, shareholder activism, takeover preparedness, and general corporate matters. In addition to his domestic practice, Robert regularly advises on Latin American matters with a particular focus on growth equity investments in Brazil. 

Robert’s recent representations include:

  • Igneo Infrastructure Partners in its acquisition of Vault Digital, a 75 MW U.S. Wholesale Data Center Portfolio
  • Elliott Investment Management LP in the $2.8 billion acquisition of Cubic Corp. and the $16 billion acquisition of Nielsen Holdings plc
  • Veritas Capital in various matters, including the acquisitions of CAES Space Systems from CAES, a portfolio company of Advent International, and of IDSI, LLC, the Defense Solutions division of Crescend Technologies, LLC
  • OceanSound Partners and its portfolio companies in the acquisitions of Antenna Research Associates, Inc., Digital Management Holdings, LLC, Datastrong LLC, C2 Consulting, Inc., Creoal Consulting LLC, and cBEYONData among others, and the divestiture of Digital Management Holdings’ commerce, marketing & strategy, and digital engineering services segment to Encora
  • RedBird IMI in the £1.15 billion acquisition of All3Media
  • Apollo Global Management and Athene Holding Ltd. in the acquisition of Petros PACE Finance LLC
  • L Catterton in its $400 million PIPE investment in Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.
  • I Squared Capital and its portfolio company Star Leasing in the acquisitions of Commercial Trailer Leasing and the Canadian business of TIP Group, a European-based truck and trailer leasing company
  • Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp. III, a SPAC sponsored by affiliates of Fifth Wall, in its merger with Mobile Infrastructure Corp., one of the largest parking asset owners in the U.S.
  • Fly Leasing Ltd. in its $2.36 billion sale to The Carlyle Group
  • Cell Site Solutions, Brazil’s largest operator of cell towers, in its sale to IHS Holding Ltd

Robert’s growth equity transactions include investments by Goldman Sachs in Simetrik Inc., Digibee Inc., Conexa Saúde, Unico, Olist, and Paige.AI.

He has also advised each of Centerview Partners, Citibank, Evercore Partners, Goldman Sachs, and Guggenheim Securities as financial advisers on public M&A transactions.

Robert has represented pro bono clients in death penalty, immigration, and corporate matters.

Robert has authored and co-authored numerous publications on M&A and corporate law issues, including a treatise on derivative actions.

Robert earned his LL.M. in 2002 from New York University School of Law. He received his doctorate in corporate law (Ph.D. equivalent), magna cum laude, from the University of Bonn in 2000 and his law degree (J.D. equivalent) from the University of Cologne in 1997.

He is admitted to practice in the State of New York, and is a former member of the German bar.

Stephenie Gosnell Handler is a partner in Gibson Dunn’s Washington, D.C. and Munich offices and a trusted advisor to global companies on cybersecurity, data governance, and technology-driven regulatory and national security risk.

Stephenie counsels multinational organizations across the full lifecycle of cybersecurity — from proactive regulatory strategy, governance design, and preparedness to managing major cyber incidents and strengthening resilience and compliance post-event. She represents clients in high-impact data breaches and cyber incidents involving nation-state threat actors, ransomware and extortion groups, supply chain compromises, insider threats, and widespread cross-border data exposures. She leads incident response engagements, coordinating with technical experts and regulators while guiding global notification strategies, executive and board engagement, and interactions with regulatory authorities, including the SEC, DOJ, and states attorneys general.

Her counseling practice encompasses a broad range of advisory work on cybersecurity requirements, data and technology governance, AI and data-risk frameworks, data localization and cross-border transfer strategies, digital-transformation risk, and enterprise cybersecurity and third-party risk programs. She regularly partners with boards and senior leadership to align governance with evolving regulatory expectations, compliance drivers, and enterprise risk objectives.

Stephenie maintains a robust CFIUS practice that leverages her leading cybersecurity, emerging technologies, and data governance expertise. She helps clients on both the buy- and sell-side understand and develop strategies to manage complex national security risks across the transaction life cycle, including fund formation and transaction structuring, as well as navigating the CFIUS filing process and negotiation of mitigation agreements. 

Stephenie’s deep export controls experience with the ITAR and EAR informs her counseling for national security and national security-adjacent matters, including development of compliance guardrails for AI models and cybersecurity program development to reflect regulated data requirements. Stephenie serves as co-chair of the Firm’s Department of Justice’s Data Security Program Task Force, counseling clients on the regulatory requirements establishing national security restrictions on access to bulk sensitive personal data.

She brings deep operational insight from her prior role as McKinsey & Company’s Director of Cybersecurity Strategy and Digital Acceleration, where she led the firm’s global cybersecurity program, enterprise cyber standards and certifications, and technology and data governance initiatives. She also previously led McKinsey’s in-house cybersecurity legal function, counseling global teams on cyber regulations, threat-driven risk management, and incident readiness.

Stephenie’s counsel has been recognized in leading industry guides, including Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Global Cyber Lawyers and 100 Leading AI & Legal Tech Advisors, Foreign Investment Watch’s Top Advisors, as a Distinguished Adviser in Financier Worldwide’s Power Players: Foreign Investment & National Security, and as a Thompson Reuters Stand-Out Lawyer. Stephenie also served as the Chair of the Future of Privacy Forum’s Privacy and Cybersecurity Advisory Committee. She is a frequent speaker on the topics of cybersecurity, emerging technologies, national security, and navigating the evolving regulatory and geopolitical landscape. Stephenie is also Chair of the Firm’s Cybersecurity and Data Governance Committee.

Prior to her legal career, Stephenie served as a U.S. Marine Corps officer, deploying to Iraq and throughout Asia as a logistics and political-miliary officer. She holds degrees from Stanford Law School, Georgetown University, and the U.S. Naval Academy.