Michael R. Dziuban is a senior associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where he practices in the firm’s litigation department. He represents and counsels clients in white-collar defense and civil enforcement matters, including investigations and lawsuits under the False Claims Act and related state laws. Michael has advised healthcare companies, government contractors, technology companies, and individual executives at various stages of False Claims Act enforcement, engaging with both government agencies and qui tam relators. He has particular experience handling False Claims Act matters for clients participating in federal healthcare programs, including cases involving allegations of the Anti-Kickback Statute and requirements related to coverage for prescription drugs. Additionally, Michael regularly advises clients on corporate compliance matters related to healthcare fraud and abuse laws.

As part of his broader practice, Michael has guided clients through government and internal investigations under anti-corruption and anti-money laundering laws, advised clients in government contracts disputes, and counseled companies on their corporate compliance programs. He has also dedicated significant time to pro bono criminal defense work at Gibson Dunn, serving on two teams that each won the firm’s Frank Wheat Memorial Award. One of those matters culminated in the release of a client after 20 years of wrongful imprisonment.

Michael received his law degree cum laude from Harvard Law School in 2015. Between college and law school, he worked in the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., where he researched and wrote on U.S. policy in the Middle East.

He is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Rachel Baron is an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She practices in the firm’s Litigation Department with a focus on FDA and Healthcare, Consumer Protection, and White Collar Defense and Investigations.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Rachel was a Trial Attorney at the Department of Justice in the Consumer Protection Branch. Her experience includes handling criminal and civil enforcement actions involving the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the Federal Trade Commission Act, and numerous fraud laws.

Rachel received her law degree cum laude from the Georgetown University Law Center in 2018. She earned her undergraduate degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Virginia.

She is admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia.

Chaim (Ben) Lieberman is an associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and is a member of Gibson Dunn’s Real Estate Practice Group. Ben’s practice covers a broad range of real estate transactions, including acquisitions and dispositions, joint ventures, financings, leasing, development, and loan workouts and recapitalizations. His experience includes single and multi-property transactions with a wide variety of real estate assets, including office buildings, hotels, shopping centers and multi-family apartment complexes.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Ben was an associate of the Real Estate Department of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP.

Ben received his Juris Doctor in 2020 from Columbia Law School, where he was named a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.

Ben is admitted to practice in the State of New York and State of New Jersey.

Lochlan F. Shelfer focuses on Supreme Court, appellate, constitutional, and administrative-law litigation. He represents clients in a wide range of high-stakes appellate and trial matters, including numerous Supreme Court cases. His practice includes litigating cutting-edge constitutional issues, challenging governmental regulations and actions, suing foreign sovereigns, and other complex litigation matters. Lochlan has argued numerous cases before the federal courts of appeals, including before the en banc Fifth Circuit. He has been named in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America multiple times in three separate practice areas: Appellate Practice, Entertainment and Sports Law, and Administrative and Regulatory Law.

His representations have included numerous high-profile victories, including:

• Opati v. Republic of Sudan, 140 S. Ct. 1601 (2020) – Persuaded the Supreme Court to reinstate $4.3 billion in retroactive punitive damages against the Republic of Sudan for its material support of terrorist activity.
• Bank Markazi v. Peterson, 136 S. Ct. 1310 (2016) – Successfully represented victims of state-sponsored terrorism against the government of Iran, defeating a separation-of-powers challenge to a federal statute and thereby enabling execution against nearly $2 billion in assets.
• In re. Fin. Oversight & Mgmt. Bd. for P.R., 104 F.4th 367 (1st Cir. 2024) – Resurrected bondholders’ $8.5 billion claim against Puerto Rico, persuading First Circuit to reverse district court.
• Consumer Fin. Protection Bureau v. All Am. Check Cashing, Inc., 33 F.4th 218 (5th Cir. 2022) (en banc) (argued) – Secured vacatur of the district court’s decision, and persuaded five judges to pen a concurrence arguing that the CFPB’s funding scheme is unconstitutional.
• N.H. Lottery Comm’n v. Rosen, 986 F.3d 38 (1st Cir. 2021) – In a major victory for online gaming, the First Circuit rejected the United States’ interpretation of the Wire Act as applying broadly to non-sports gambling, and instead adopted Gibson Dunn’s position that the Act applies only to sports betting.
• Owens v. Republic of Sudan, 924 F.3d 1256 (D.C. Cir. 2019); 864 F.3d 751 (D.C. Cir. 2017) – Persuaded the D.C. Circuit to uphold nearly $6 billion in damages against Sudan for materially supporting al Qaeda’s 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
• PHH Corp. v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 881 F.3d 75 (D.C. Cir. 2018) (en banc) – Prevailed in the first-ever appellate challenge to a CFPB enforcement proceeding, vacating the CFPB’s $109 million order on numerous grounds, including due process and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, and then persuading the en banc D.C. Circuit to reinstate those rulings.

Lochlan received his law degree from Yale Law School, where he served as an articles editor of the Yale Law Journal and was awarded the Judge William E. Miller Prize for best paper on the Bill of Rights for his work “How the Constitution Shall Not Be Construed,” BYU Law Review (2017), and the Joseph Parker Prize for best paper on legal history for his work “Special Juries in the Supreme Court,” Yale Law Journal (2013), which has been cited in numerous court opinions.

Prior to attending law school, he graduated summa cum laude from New York University with a Bachelor of Arts in Classics and from Johns Hopkins University with a Ph.D. in Classics, specializing in the history of law.

From 2013–2014, Lochlan served as a law clerk to the Honorable Carlos T. Bea of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

He is a member of the bars of Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Claire Piepenburg is an associate in the Dallas office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher where she is a member of the firm’s Labor and Employment Practice Group.

Claire has experience in a wide variety of employment issues. Representative matters include obtaining summary judgment in federal court in favor of a medical practice against age and race discrimination claims brought by a former employee, drafting an executive employment agreement for the board of a regional entity seeking to retain and protect a C-suite executive during transition of leadership to a centralized, national corporate structure, and serving as the lead associate on a workplace investigation in response to a retaliation claim brought by a former employee in connection with a criminal complaint of sexual assault in the workplace.

Claire was recognized by Super Lawyers in 2024 as an Employment & Labor “Rising Star”. She was also recently named to D Magazine’s 2024 “Best Lawyers Under 40” list.

Claire received her Juris Doctor from Vanderbilt Law School in 2018. At Vanderbilt Law School, she made Dean’s List and served as the Senior Notes Editor for the Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment and Technology.

Claire graduated from Southern Methodist University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Anthropology.

Claire is a member of the State Bar of Texas and is also admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Nathan Marak is an associate in the Washington, D.C. office, where he practices in the firm’s Corporate Department.

Nathan graduated cum laude from Duke University School of Law in 2023. While in law school, Nathan served as an Editor of the Duke Law Journal and worked as a research assistant to Professor Gina-Gail S. Fletcher, a scholar of complex financial instruments and market regulation. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2020 with dual majors in Political Science and Economics.

Nathan is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia.

Jeremy S. Smith is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He currently practices in the firm’s Litigation, Class Actions, Privacy, Appellate and Constitutional Law, and False Claims Act/Qui Tam Defense Practice Groups.

Jeremy has represented clients in a wide range of litigation in both federal and state courts. He has defended clients in class actions across numerous substantive areas of law, including privacy, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), consumer fraud, and insurance law. Jeremy also represents clients on appeal in a wide range of matters, with a particular focus on appellate proceedings in California state court. Finally, Jeremy has substantial experience with the federal and state False Claims Acts, in both trial and appellate courts.

In July 2024, Jeremy was named a “Litigator of the Week” by The AmLaw Litigation Daily for his work in securing a jury verdict win for Nike in its endorsement contract dispute with NFL wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

Recent matters include:

• Representing a television channel in a multi-defendant, putative class action based on allegations the defendants have been tracking the online viewing habits of children.
• Serving as appellate counsel for an engineering firm that secured a verdict of over $100 million against a subcontractor.
• Representing a poultry company in a contract dispute seeking more than $27 million.
• Representing an online sports-betting company in class actions challenging product marketing and alleged data incident.
• Representing a boutique clothing retailer and its celebrity founder in a putative privacy class action pending in the Central District of California.
• Representing an engineering firm in mass toxic tort litigation involving more than 400 former workers.
• Obtaining dismissal in the trial court and then affirmance by the Washington Supreme Court of the dismissal of a putative class action in a case brought by policyholders in Washington seeking business income lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Obtaining dismissal with prejudice of a putative class action lawsuit brought against an engineering firm based on allegations that the company caused a nuisance.
• Obtaining dismissal of a putative class action lawsuit brought against a manufacturer of car seats based on allegations of breach of warranty and failure to disclose.
• Obtaining dismissal with prejudice for three Southern California cardrooms in a multi-defendant lawsuit bringing bellwether constitutional and statutory challenges to the legality of the games the cardrooms play.
• Obtaining affirmance from the California Court of Appeal of a dismissal of a putative class action brought against an insurance company based on allegations the company “hacked” files which constituted a trespass to chattels.
• Obtaining decertification of a class action with over 320 thousand class members brought against a major technology company under the TCPA.
• Obtaining affirmance from the Ninth Circuit of a dismissal of a putative class action brought against an insurance company based on allegations of hacking in violation of the Stored Communications Act.
• Obtaining a favorable settlement for a major technology company in multidistrict litigation arising out of multiple data breaches.
• Obtaining a favorable settlement for a prominent technology company in a putative class action pending in the Northern District of California arising out of an alleged data breach affecting one of its clients.
• Representing a home warranty company in dozens of consumer arbitrations.
• Obtaining affirmance from the California Court of Appeal of a summary judgment ruling in favor of a construction company against allegations brought under the California False Claims Act.
• Obtaining affirmance from the Ninth Circuit of a summary judgment ruling in favor of a for-profit educational institution against False Claims Act allegations.
• Obtaining an order enforcing individual arbitration in a putative class action under ERISA brought against a large health plan.
• Obtaining dismissal of a False Claims Act lawsuit brought against a large telecommunications company.
• Obtaining dismissal of a putative class action brought against a health care provider for an alleged data breach involving over 30,000 patients.
• Serving as a first-chair volunteer prosecutor for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office in two jury trials.

Before joining the firm, Jeremy served as a law clerk to the Honorable Kathleen Cardone of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. He has also worked in the entertainment industry before law school where he wrote, directed, and produced commercials.

Jeremy graduated magna cum laude from Cornell University Law School, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif. While attending law school, Jeremy taught two college law courses to staff and inmates at Auburn’s maximum-security prison. Jeremy also served as a judicial extern to the Honorable R. Gary Klausner of the United States District Court for the Central District of California. In 2003, he graduated cum laude and as a Renaissance Scholar from the University of Southern California.

Jeremy is an active member of his community and is currently on the Board of Teach for America – Los Angeles. He is also the past president of the Associates Board of Teach for America – Los Angeles. He spends as much time as possible with his wife and two sons, and tries to hit a ski slope or a mountain bike trail as often as he can.

Jeremy is admitted to practice in the State of California, the United States Courts of Appeals for the Ninth and Sixth Circuits, and in the United States District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California.

Mike Raiff is a Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher partner in the Texas offices. He has a wide range of litigation experience and has tried numerous cases (jury trials, bench trials, and arbitrations). In addition to his trial and arbitration practice, Mike has argued numerous cases before appellate courts, including Texas appellate courts and several United States Circuit courts. He represents clients in large, complex commercial litigation, including merger and acquisition cases, energy-related cases, contract disputes, class actions, securities litigation, antitrust cases, environmental disputes, infrastructure disputes, partnership disputes, and media-related lawsuits.

Mike is recognized as one of The Best Lawyers in America® for commercial litigation and First Amendment law since 2005, and has been recognized by Chambers USA for his work in litigation. BTI Consulting named Mike to its BTI Client Service All-Stars list; the list features “those rare, exceptional attorneys standing out above all others” identified by the most influential legal decision makers as those who provide “superior client focus,” demonstrating attributes such as “putting the client’s needs and goals first, innovative thought leadership, unmatched business understanding, and outstanding results.” In 2023, The AmLaw Litigation Daily named him as one of its “Litigators of the Week”.  

Mike received his J.D. in 1992 with high honors from The University of Texas School of Law, where he served as Associate Editor of the Texas Law Review and was Grand Chancellor (Spring 1991) and Order of the Coif. He also holds a B.B.A. with highest honors from The University of Texas. Following law school, he served as a Judicial Clerk for The Honorable Thomas M. Reavley, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (1992-1993).

Representative Matters

Merger & Acquisition Litigation, Securities Litigation, and Shareholder Derivative Litigation  

• Representing buyers and sellers in litigation involving merger and acquisitions disputes, including cases involving claims for fraud and claims for breach of representations and warranties
• Representing companies, directors, and officers in securities class actions, shareholder derivative lawsuits, and breach of fiduciary duty cases
• Served as trial counsel for AT&T in the Department of Justice’s antitrust challenge to AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner, Inc.

Energy-Related Litigation

• Representing energy companies in numerous disputes and lawsuits surrounding Winter Storm Uri, including breach of contract lawsuits, tort lawsuits, the Uri MDL, pricing disputes, and other regulatory proceedings surrounding Uri
• Representing energy companies in post-acquisition disputes, including disputes over purchase price adjustments, disputes involving representations of oil & gas assets, and post-closing warranty disputes 
• Representing companies in engineering and construction disputes in the energy industry, including successfully defended two engineering, procurement, and construction firms in a $7 billion arbitration involving the construction of a $10 billion refinery and representing the power generation companies in disputes surrounding the design and construction of battery energy storage facilities  

Environmental Litigation

• Defending energy companies in lawsuits brought by non-governmental organizations alleging violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water Act (CWA), and Resources Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
• Representing clients in several legal challenges to EPA rulemaking relating to the disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCR)
• Defended clients in a federal environmental enforcement case involving the New Source Review provisions of the Clean Air Act  

Media and Entertainment Litigation

• Represented various entertainment clients in numerous disputes involving television shows, movies, music videos, and distribution rights, including MTV Networks, CBS, Paramount, DEJ, Blockbuster, Showtime, and Walker Texas Ranger
• Obtained numerous summary judgments, dismissal orders, and favorable appellate decisions in defamation and invasion-of-privacy lawsuits for various media clients, including CBS Broadcasting, The New York Times, KTVT-TV, KEYE-TV, The Dallas Morning News, Belo, WFAA-TV, Infinity, Viacom, radio stations, and foreign publishers
• Represented Blockbuster for many years as its National Counsel in dozens of class actions pending across the country, and served as trial counsel for CBS in a jury trial in El Paso concerning a 60 Minutes report  

Class Actions

• Defended numerous class actions alleging claims under data-privacy-and-security statutes, such as the Video Privacy Protection Act, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and the Fair and Accurate Transactions Act
• Obtained approval and coordinated nationwide class settlements

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

Evan Rios is an associate in the Dallas office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.  He currently practices in the firm’s Litigation Department.

Evan earned his Juris Doctor cum laude from SMU Dedman School of Law, where he served as President of the SMU Law Review Association and as President of the Hispanic Law Student Association.

Evan served as a law clerk for Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht of the Supreme Court of Texas and Judge Cory Wilson of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Prior to law school, Evan spent three years as a language arts teacher at a public middle school in Jackson, Mississippi.

Evan is a member of the State Bar of Texas and is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Abbey Hudson is a partner in Gibson Dunn’s Los Angeles office. Her practice focuses on environmental matters and complex trial litigation. She devotes a significant portion of her time to helping clients navigate environmental and emerging regulations as well as related governmental investigations. Abbey is ranked by Chambers USA in the Environment – California category, named a Next Generation Lawyer by Legal 500 US in the Industry Focus – Environment – Litigation category, and recognized by Best Lawyers in America for Environmental Litigation.

Environmental and Mass Tort Litigation and Regulatory Compliance. Abbey has handled all aspects of environmental and mass tort litigation and regulatory compliance. She has provided counseling and advice on environmental and regulatory compliance to clients on a wide range of issues, including supply chain transparency requirements, comments on pending regulatory developments, and enforcement counseling. She has experience handling California environmental matters that involve the California Air Resources Board, the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the California Geologic Energy Management Division, and the Regional Water Quality Control Board – Los Angeles Region. Abbey also regularly advises clients regarding Environmental Social Governance (“ESG”) issues, including sustainability, in connection with corporate and real estate transactions.

Abbey also has experience with climate change focused regulations such as the California Air Resources Board’s (‘CARB”) Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), the Zero-Emission Vehicle Program, and the Cap-and-Trade Program. As part of her climate focused work, she helps guide clients to monetize the environmental and low-carbon attributes of their products or services under both voluntary and compliance-based regimes.

Litigation. Over the past decade, Abbey has litigated several of the firm’s most high-profile complex cases. She specializes in helping clients navigate incident response including crafting big picture media and litigation strategies. Abbey also has an expertise in post-incident e-discovery and evidence preservation.

Some of Abbey’s most recent non-confidential matters include:

• Represented Mercedes-Benz and Daimler in an investigation relating to compliance with Clean Air Act requirements governing emissions after-treatment and in related settlement of civil claims with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the California Attorney General, and the California Air Resources Board. United States v. Daimler AG et al., No. 02564 (D.D.C. 2020) & California v. Daimler AG, No. 02565 (D.D.C. 2020).
• Represented Toyota Motor Corporation in an investigation relating to compliance with Clean Air Act requirements governing emissions reporting and in related settlement of civil claims with the U.S. Department of Justice, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. United States v. Toyota Motor Corporation et al., No. 00323 (S.D.N.Y. 2021).
• Representation of major food retailer in confidential matter involving alleged trichloroethylene (“TCE”) contamination in drinking water in a California city. Brought in to advise client in anticipation of potential litigation. Advice is ongoing.
• Representation of aerospace company in confidential matter involving alleged toxic exposures in California city. Brought in to advise client on technical environmental issues in anticipation of potential litigation. Advice is ongoing.
• Compliance and enforcement counseling addressing Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and FIFRA topics in a variety of industries such as chemical manufacturing, consumer product and textile manufacturing, and upstream oil and gas operations.
• Representation of Northrop Grumman against putative class action involving alleged trichloroethylene (“TCE”) contamination in Canoga Park California.
• Tellez v. Dole Food Co.: securing dismissal with prejudice of U.S.-filed toxic tort claims alleging that DBCP caused reproductive harm. This case was featured in The Daily Journal’s “Top Verdict” for 2010.
• Representation of oil companies in connection with civil litigation, environmental enforcement actions, and community complaints.
• Hollingsworth v. Perry: the federal constitutional challenge to California’s ban on same-sex marriage, Proposition 8.
• You v. Japan: defended vehicle manufacturers against alien tort and RICO claims brought on behalf of a purported class of Korean citizens.

Community and Firm Involvement. Abbey is a member of the Firm’s Associates, Diversity, Well-Being, and Community Affairs Committees. Additionally, Abbey helped launch and helps run the firm’s LGBT Women’s initiative. In 2017, Abbey was named one of the 40 Best LGBT Lawyers Under 40 by the National LGBT Bar Association. Abbey also has an active pro bono practice. She regularly represents The Trevor Project, and is also a certified trainer for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy. Abbey also traveled to Kenya and Tanzania with Lawyers Without Borders to facilitate the training of Kenyan and Tanzanian advocates and judges on how to successfully bring claims under those countries’ wildlife conservation laws to trial.

Abbey earned her law degree from Columbia University, where she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, a finalist in the Harlan Fiske Stone Moot Court Competition, and president of OutLaws, Columbia’s LGBT law student organization. Abbey received her Bachelor’s degree with distinction in Political Science from Yale University in 2003.

Jacob Arber is a litigation associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and a member of the firm’s Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Data Innovation and Labor and Employment practice groups. Jacob represents a range of clients in all stages of complex litigation from motions to dismiss to trial and appeal.  He has particular experience drafting winning motions in court and persuasive submissions to regulators. Jacob also regularly advises clients on privacy and tech-related risks, including compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act, Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, and other federal and state laws and regulations.

Representative privacy, artificial intelligence, and technology matters include:

• Securing a favorable settlement on behalf of a gig economy company in an investigation by a State Attorney General related to compliance with a comprehensive privacy law.
• Representing a gaming company in an investigation by a State Attorney General related to compliance with a state privacy law, which resulted in no action taken by the State Attorney General.
• Representing a major e-commerce platform in litigation against a State Attorney General related to its privacy and commercial practices.
• Representing a major technology company in inquiries by multiple State Attorneys General, which resulted in no action.
• Counseling a major venture capital firm on proposed legislation related to artificial intelligence.
• Advising a range of companies on compliance with state privacy laws, including privacy policies, biometrics, and product development.
• Securing dismissal with prejudice on behalf of a major social networking company of data privacy claims and defending that dismissal on appeal.

Representative labor and employment matters include:

• Securing a sweeping preliminary injunction in a trade-secret and non-compete lawsuit against a former executive.
• Defeating a motion to add an executive and senior employee as individual defendants in a discrimination, retaliation, and harassment suit.
• Representing a major company in arbitrations and administrative proceedings related to the classification of workers as independent contractors.
• Securing a favorable settlement on behalf of a major utility related to wage-and-hour claims.

Jacob also maintains an active pro bono practice.  He has briefed and argued multiple appeals in the California and New York state appellate courts on behalf of victims of domestic violence and criminal defendants.  He also represents an inmate alleging violations of his due process rights.

Jacob clerked for the Honorable Debra Ann Livingston of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and for the Honorable Edward R. Korman of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. He earned his Juris Doctor in 2017 from Columbia Law School, where he was a James Kent Scholar and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Prize recipient. Jacob also served as the Executive Submissions Editor for the Columbia Science and Technology Law Review. He graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service with a Bachelor of Science in Science, Technology, and International Affairs.

He is admitted to practice in the States of California and New York and in the Northern District of California and Southern District of New York.

Alison L. Wollin is of counsel in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Her practice focuses on commercial and business litigation matters in areas such as business torts, breach of contract, real estate, bankruptcy and intellectual property. She has had substantial experience litigating a broad range of matters before state and federal courts at both the trial and appellate levels. Alison has also represented clients in connection with investigations conducted by the Department of Justice and the New York Stock Exchange.

She was part of the trial team that represented Francois Pinault and Artémis, the company he founded, in two federal jury trials against the California Insurance Commissioner arising out of the rehabilitation of Executive Life Insurance Company, which resulted in favorable verdicts. The Daily Journal recognized the complete defense verdict for Artémis S.A. as one of the “Top Ten Defense Verdicts of 2012.”

Alison earned her Juris Doctor in 2002 from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was a senior editor of the University of Pennsylvania Law Review. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania in 1998.

She is admitted to practice in the State of New York, before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She is a member of Gibson Dunn’s Diversity Committee.

Representative Matters

• François Pinault and Artémis: Successfully defended François Pinault and Artémis, the company he founded, in the long-running Executive Life litigation against the Insurance Commissioner of the State of California.
  • In 2005, in a four-month jury trial obtained complete exoneration for Mr. Pinault and successfully convinced the jury to award zero damages against Artémis.
  • In 2012, upon retrial of the sole count that the prior jury had deadlocked on, obtained a complete defense verdict from the jury on the Insurance Commissioner’s remaining $4 billion claim. Recognized as one of the Top Ten Defense Verdicts of the year by the California Daily Journal.
• Deutsche Bank: Represented an affiliate of Deutsche Bank that was the mortgage lender in the foreclosure of the Mondrian SoHo Hotel and related litigation brought by Morgans Hotel Group Management seeking to enjoin the termination of its hotel management agreement. Obtained summary judgment in the foreclosure proceeding for $250 million and successfully conducted the foreclosure auction. Defeated repeated attempts by Morgans to obtain a preliminary injunction that would have allowed it to remain as manager of the Mondrian SoHo Hotel for the next 26 years despite the hotel having been sold at the foreclosure auction.
• UBS: Represented UBS in an action for breach of contract against the Republic of Croatia to collect on approximately $45 million in unpaid bonds owed to UBS pursuant to notes issued by the former National Bank of Yugoslavia and other Yugoslavian banking institutions in 1988. The action was successfully resolved by settlement after the complaint was filed.
• Hedge funds: Represented four equity investors in connection with the multi-billion dollar restructuring of Overseas Shipholding Group and defended against a litigation attack by a consortium of bondholders. The restructuring of OSG was recognized as the Restructuring of the Year (Americas) for 2014 by the International Financial Law Review.
• Merrill Lynch: Represented Merrill Lynch in litigation arising out of the collapse of Adelphia.
• Home Depot: Represented Home Depot in a series of administrative, trial-level, and appellate matters in states across the country relating to sales tax refunds.

Jason W. Myatt is a partner in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He is a member of the firms’ Litigation, Judgment and Arbitral Enforcement and International Arbitration practice groups.

Jason’s practice focuses on complex and high-stakes commercial and financial disputes, including both litigation and arbitration, with a particular emphasis in enforcing judgments and international arbitration awards against sovereign nations and multinational companies. This work includes enforcement actions in the United States as well as coordination of asset recovery efforts across multiple jurisdictions. Jason also regularly advises a global client base on proactive approaches to enforcement strategy and implementation in anticipation of future judgments and arbitral awards. Jason’s clients operate in a number of fields, including the energy, construction, telecommunications, finance, petroleum and mining industries.

In additional to his enforcement-related work, Jason’s experience also includes litigating business torts, breach of contract, ERISA, real estate, and bankruptcy issues, as well as securities litigation, including ground-breaking work in limiting the American Pipe tolling doctrine in the Second Circuit, a change in law that was subsequently affirmed by the United States Supreme Court. He has tried cases in federal and state trial courts throughout the nation, and has argued and won appeals before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Jason has also represented clients in connection with investigations conducted by the Department of Justice, State Attorneys General and other regulatory entities.

He was named by Lawdragon in their 2023 Leading Global Litigators guide and the 2021 Global Litigation 500 for International Litigation, with particular experience of note in enforcement.

Select Representative Experience

• Representing Crystallex International Corp. in connection with proceedings in Washington, D.C., Delaware, New York and elsewhere to enforce a $1.4 billion judgment against Venezuela, including successfully a writ of execution over the shares of the Delaware parent of Citgo Petroleum Corp. to Crystallex’s arbitral award against Venezuela.
• Representing terrorism victims in New York and elsewhere in efforts to enforce more than $10 billion in judgments against state sponsors of terrorism.
• Representing Sociedad Concesionaria Metropolitana de Salud S.A. in the enforcement of its $139 million arbitration award against WeBuild.
• Representing Yukos Capital in the enforcement of its $5 billion arbitration award against the Russian Federation.
• Representing Sea Search Armada in an UNCITRAL arbitration under the U.S.-Colombia FTA concerning the expropriation of Sea Search Armada’s interest in the treasure it found on the San José Galleon—sunk in 1708—the largest treasure discovery in history.
• Represented Tethyan Copper Company in connection with proceedings in the British Virgin Islands, Washington, D.C. and New York enforcing $6 billion arbitral award against Pakistan, resulting in a multi-billion dollar settlement.
• Represented Arcelor Mittal in connection with proceedings in New York, London and the Cayman Islands resulting in a successful settlement of ArcelorMittal’s $1.3 billion arbitral award against Essar Steel.
• Represented Pearl Petroleum, Crescent Petroleum and Dana Gas in connection with enforcement of arbitral award against Iraqi Kurdistan in proceedings in the UK, United States, and Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), resulting in a substantial settlement with Iraqi Kurdistan.
• Represented PDL Biopharma, Inc. in successful enforcement of multiple guaranties of a $100 million loan.
• Represented Artémis and François Pinault in two federal jury trials brought by the California Insurance Commissioner, alleging fraud in connection with the rehabilitation of Executive Life Insurance Company. Both juries returned defense verdicts. Recognized as one of the Top Ten Defense Verdicts of the year by the California Daily Journal.
• Represented numerous securities underwriters in securities class action lawsuits involving more than $56 billion in mortgage pass-through certificates, including the affirmance in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit of a ruling declining to extend the American Pipe tolling doctrine to the statute of repose of the Securities Act of 1933.
• Represented of Lehman Brothers, and subsequently, Barclays, in connection with Chapter 11 proceedings of Asarco, LLC, including in a trial relating to Barclays’s fees.
• Represented Verizon in a bench trial against a competitive local exchange carrier, obtaining a $60 million judgment (having previously obtained a prejudgment attachment) against Global NAPs and several alter egos leading to the appoint of a receiver in aid of execution.

Jason earned his Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the University of Wisconsin, where he served as an Articles Editor for the Wisconsin Law Review and was elected a member of the Order of the Coif. He received his Master of Science in Bacteriology from the University of Wisconsin in 2003 and his Bachelor of Science in Biology from Duke University in 1998.Jason is a member of Gibson Dunn’s Diversity Committee. He is admitted to practice in the States of New York and Wisconsin, before the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the Western District of Wisconsin and before the United States Court of Appeals for the First, Second, Third and Ninth Circuit.

Amanda Bello is an associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Amanda received her J.D. from Harvard Law School in 2022, where she served on the Harvard Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law and received the Dean’s Scholar Prize for Fair Trial and Professional Responsibility.

In 2018, Amanda graduated cum laude from the University of Florida, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in English and History.

Amanda is admitted to practice law in the state of New York.

Alan Williams is an associate in the Houston office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where he is a member of the Capital Markets and Securities Regulation and Corporate Governance practice groups. Alan is experienced in representing issuers, investment banks and institutional investors in a broad range of registered and private securities offerings. His representative experience includes investment grade debt offerings, initial public offerings, follow-on offerings, high-yield bond offerings, at-the-market programs and medium-term notes programs. He also has experience advising companies regarding ongoing SEC reporting requirements and corporate governance matters.

Alan received his J.D. with honors from the University of Texas School of Law and was admitted as a member of the Order of the Coif. During law school, he served as a Judicial Intern to the Honorable Paul W. Green at the Supreme Court of Texas and was a Research Assistant to Professor Jay L. Westbrook, researching international insolvency matters. Prior to law school, Alan received a Bachelor of Business Administration with a focus in Finance from the C.T. Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston.

Prior to joining Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Alan was an associate at an international law firm where he focused his practice on capital markets transactions.

John Partridge, a Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s FDA and Health Care Practice Group and Chambers-ranked white collar defense and government investigations lawyer, focuses on government and internal investigations, white collar defense, and complex litigation for clients in the life science and health care industries, among others. John has particular experience with the Anti-Kickback Statute, the False Claims Act, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, including defending major corporations in investigations pursued by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In its rankings, Chambers & Partners has reported that John’s clients regard him as a “smart and strategic tactician,” “incredibly responsive and thorough,” and “extremely knowledgeable.” In 2022, John was recognized by BTI as a Client Service All-Star.

Health Care Fraud and Abuse Matters. John has defended clients in criminal and civil enforcement actions relating to alleged health care fraud and abuse, including actions conducted by DOJ, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and State Attorneys General. His substantive experience includes cases involving allegations tied to, among other things, clinical trials, drug pricing, importation of regulated products, off-label promotion, product manufacturing issues, sampling practices, and anti-kickback issues relating to speaker programs, meals and travel, consulting arrangements, product support activities, patient support programs, physician locators, royalties, and investment interests. Among other current matters, John is defending:

• A multinational biopharmaceutical company in an Anti-Kickback Statute-premised False Claims Act investigation focused on educational speaker programs conducted nationwide.
• A multinational pharmaceutical company in an Anti-Kickback Statute-premised False Claims Act investigation focused on patient support program activities and relationships with physician-owned pharmacies.
• A multinational medical device company in an Anti-Kickback Statute-premised False Claims Act litigation relating to marketing efforts.
• A multinational pharmaceutical company in a False Claims Act case based on purported fraud on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
• A clinical-stage pharmaceutical company in DOJ and SEC investigations relating to alleged clinical trial fraud.

Along with colleagues at Gibson Dunn, John wrote the criminal enforcement and pharmaceutical sampling chapters of PLI‘s Pharmaceutical Compliance and Enforcement Answer Book 2023. In 2018, LMG named John “Best in Life Sciences” among its “America’s Rising Stars.”

FCPA and International Anti-Corruption Matters. John also has represented companies from multiple industries (e.g., life sciences, specialty chemicals, technology, telecommunications) in criminal and civil enforcement actions pursued by DOJ and/or the SEC and internal investigations relating to allegations of corruption involving ex-U.S. operations. In recent years, he defended a multinational medical device and pharmaceutical company in parallel DOJ and SEC securities fraud and FCPA investigations relating to the company’s activities in more than a dozen countries in Asia. Previously, he served as a member of an international team of Gibson Dunn lawyers assisting the compliance monitor appointed in connection with one of the largest FCPA settlements to date (Siemens AG). His compliance monitoring work includes activities in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America.

Compliance Counseling Matters. In addition to advising multiple publicly traded corporations on investigations and litigation relating to potential healthcare fraud and abuse and FCPA issues, John regularly counsels clients on the structure and effectiveness of their anti-corruption compliance programs.

Government Investigations Experience. Among other engagements, John has counseled clients on:

• A series of FCPA investigations involving a medical device company’s relationships with distributors and HCPs in China.
• An FCPA investigation for a telecommunications company involving alleged kickbacks, meal and travel expenditures, and consulting arrangements in China.
• AN FCPA investigation for a mining company in Ghana.
• An FCPA investigation relating to security- and site-access-related payments in Mexico.
• An FCPA investigation relating to payment irregularities in Latin America.
• FCPA investigations relating to a client’s business activities in Russia and the Middle East.
• A False Claims Act investigation involving a private equity client’s portfolio company in the electronic health records space, which focused on the company’s interactions with health care providers and certifications of its technology.
• A False Claims Act investigation involving a medical device company’s alleged off-label promotion of one of its devices.
• A False Claims Act investigation involving a medical device company’s alleged efforts to deceive FDA with regard to the severity of a design issue impacting the efficacy of the company’s product.
• A False Claims Act investigation involving a pharmaceutical company’s sampling practices.
• A False Claims Act investigation involving a Fortune 500 hospital management company (and stemming from an extensive national investigation).
• A grand jury investigation focusing on a former customer of a medical device company.
• An SEC investigation relating to the accounting and disclosures of a for-profit education company.
• An SEC investigation focusing on the work of the independent auditors of a company that allegedly engaged in accounting fraud.

Civil Litigation Experience. John also has represented clients in a variety of matters before state and federal courts at the trial and appellate levels. Among other matters, John has represented:

• A dietary supplement company in putative class actions relating to product labeling issues that raised questions relating to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
• A pharmaceutical company in a False Claims Act case in federal court based on alleged fraud on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and purported product pricing issues tied to the patents at issue.
• A pharmaceutical company in a False Claims Act case in federal court based on alleged violations of the Anti­-Kickback Statute tied to sampling practices.
• A medical device manufacturer in a case involving alleged violations of, among other laws, California’s Unfair Competition Law and False Advertising Law. John persuaded a California state court to sustain demurrers without leave to amend on federal preemption grounds.
• A pharmaceutical company in a False Claims Act case in federal court based on purported violations of the Anti-­Kickback Statute relating to product-support services, educational grants, and speaker events.
• A large energy company in multiple federal court civil actions aimed at exposing and preventing enforcement of a fraudulently obtained, multi-billion dollar foreign judgment.
• A retailer of home improvement and construction products in a series of administrative and trial-level matters in states across the country where the retailer was denied refunds of sales tax payments (including in two trials in state court).

While seconded to the Denver City Attorney Office’s Prosecution and Code Enforcement Section, John tried more than twenty criminal cases to juries or the court.

John also has appellate experience. In addition to appeals associated with certain cases listed above, his appellate matters include:

• Open Door Ministries v. Lipschuetz, No. 14-SC-787 (Colo. 2016), in which John persuaded the Colorado Supreme Court to reject an intervenor’s argument that a faith-based ministry’s promissory estoppel case against the City and County of Denver was barred by the Colorado Governmental Immunities Act.
• Clyma v. Sunoco, Inc., 594 F.3d 777 (10th Cir. 2010), in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit appointed John as amicus curiae to brief the court on jurisdictional and First Amendment issues raised by a non­party’s appeal.

Education and Clerkship. John received his J.D., with distinction, from Stanford Law School in 2007. While there, he served as an Executive Editor of the Stanford Law Review and was awarded the Law Review’s Board of Editors’ Award. John graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Dartmouth College in 2002 with a B.A. in History and Psychology. Before joining Gibson Dunn, John clerked for the Honorable David M. Ebel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit from 2007 to 2008.

Committees and Community Involvement. John serves as a member of Gibson Dunn’s Pro Bono and Hiring Committees-and as a Hiring Partner for Gibson Dunn’s Denver office. He also is a member of the Board of Directors of KIPP Colorado, a network of six college-preparatory public charter schools serving students in several neighborhoods in Denver. In the past, he has served on the Board of Trustees of the Legal Aid Foundation of Colorado, a non-profit dedicated to supporting access to justice for low-income residents of Colorado. In recognition of his community involvement and professional achievements, he was recognized by the Denver Business Journal as a “40 Under 40” winner in 2019.

Admissions. John is admitted to practice law in the states of California and Colorado, as well as in the District of Columbia and the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the Eighth and Tenth Circuits, the U.S. District Courts for the District of Colorado and the Northern District of California, and the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Piers Plumptre is an English qualified partner working in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. Piers is a member of the Dispute Resolution and International Arbitration Groups.

Piers’s practice includes international arbitration and enforcement, complex commercial litigation, financial services disputes, and international fraud and white collar crime. He has extensive experience of international litigation and arbitration matters, spanning multiple jurisdictions, and in a wide variety of sectors.

Piers’s recent commercial arbitration experience includes acting for a major international contractor in a US$ 4 billion dollar ICC arbitration arising out of a Middle Eastern infrastructure project, acting for an energy company in an ICC arbitration against an African State concerning a power project, and acting for a global mining company in a US$ 2 billion LCIA arbitration (and related English High Court proceedings) concerning a long-term supply contract.

Piers has significant investment treaty arbitration experience, including ongoing representation of the former shareholders in a major oil company in a long-running US$ 6 billion UNCITRAL arbitration against the Russian Federation. Piers has also represented an Egyptian telecoms company in an ICSID arbitration against Canada, and continues to act for a major personal care products company in an investment treaty arbitration against Venezuela.

Piers also regularly acts for clients seeking to enforce arbitral awards and judgments, both in the UK and elsewhere. Examples include recently seeking and obtaining a freezing injunction and related relief from the English High Court, in connection with a US$ 550 million ICC arbitration award arising out of a mining dispute. He has also appeared (as junior to Charlie Falconer) in the recent proceedings bought by Tethyan Copper Company in the BVI (where he is admitted to practice), seeking to enforce an ICSID award worth more than US$ 6 billion against the Government of Pakistan.

Piers’s experience of offshore litigation also includes acting for UBS in BVI proceedings brought by the liquidator of the largest Madoff feeder funds to recover monies paid out during the lives of the funds; including representing UBS before the BVI High Court, the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal and the Privy Council (sitting as the ultimate BVI appellate court).

Piers is recognised by The Legal 500 UK 2024 for International Arbitration, Public International Law and Oil & Gas. He is also recognised by the 2023 edition of Best Lawyers in the United Kingdom as “One to Watch” for International Arbitration. He is also ranked for International Arbitration in the Lawdragon 500 Leading Global Litigators guide 2024. 

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Piers completed his pupillage at a leading commercial/chancery barristers’ chambers, having been called to the Bar of England and Wales in November 2011. Reflective of the international nature of his practice, he is also admitted to the bar of the British Virgin Islands. In 2016/2017, he spent 18 months working in Gibson Dunn’s New York Office, focusing primarily on international arbitration.

Lily Paulson Stephens is a corporate associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.

Lily received her Juris Doctor in 2023 from Fordham University School of Law, where she graduated magna cum laude and was elected to the Order of the Coif. During law school, Lily served as Symposium Editor on the Fordham Intellectual Property, Media & Entertainment Law Journal. She graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Trinity College and earned a Master of Arts in Art History and Museum Studies from Tufts University.

Before law school, Lily worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the American Wing curatorial department.

Rebecca West is an English qualified lawyer and associate in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She is a member of the firm’s Finance, and Transportation and Space Practice Groups.

Rebecca practices banking and finance law and has experience in global asset finance, focused on aircraft financing and leasing.

Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Rebecca was an associate in the Global Asset Finance Group of Clifford Chance LLP. Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, she completed client secondments with Avolon Aerospace Leasing Limited, CDB Aviation and GECAS/AerCap (the combination of the latter creating the largest aircraft lessor with a balance sheet of more than $70 billion).

Rebecca has also spent time within the New York offices of Clifford Chance LLP working on various asset backed securitisations and New York law financing and leasing transactions.

Representative Experience*

• FTAI Aviation on a sale and leaseback transaction for in excess of 30 aircraft with LATAM Airlines Group that includes bespoke engine maintenance provisions.
• Sculptor Asset Management on its LUNAR 2020-1 asset backed securitization, whereby the issuer issued $325.8 million of notes backed by multiple aircraft based in various jurisdictions.
• Fortress Transportation and Infrastructure Investors LLC on various leasing transactions.
• GE Capital, the financial services arm of GE, on the sale of the appx $4 billion PK AirFinance aviation lending business to Apollo Global Management and Athene Holding Ltd.
• GECAS, in relation to an ECA financing for over thirty new Airbus aircraft.
• The world’s largest regional aircraft lessor, on the successful scheme of arrangement in respect of approximately $6bn of its secured and unsecured debt.
• BBAM, in relation to its latest enhanced equipment trust certificates backed by various Delta aircraft.
• KDAC Aviation Finance (Cayman) Limited, KDAC Aviation Finance (USA) LLC and DVB Bank SE, London Branch on an issuance of US$722.5 million of fixed rate secured notes. The proceeds from the issuance of the Notes were used by KDAC to acquire a portfolio of 36 Airbus and Boeing aircraft.
• Large international syndicates on numerous secured portfolio aircraft financings.
• Various banks in relation to a series of JOLCO transactions.
• Aircraft leasing companies in relation to the drafting and negotiation of various operating and financing lease agreements.
• Various lenders and lessors in relation to the restructuring of multiple loan and lease agreements as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

*Includes representations made by Rebecca prior to her association with Gibson Dunn.

Victoria Jones Yilmaz is an associate in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She practices in the firm’s Finance Practice Group.

Victoria received her law degree in 2018 from The University of Chicago Law School. She received her Bachelor of Arts, summa cum laude, in Global Affairs from George Mason University in 2015, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.