Marco Valdes Associate Banking & Finance, Financial & Structured Products

Rome; Milan

Marco Valdes is an Italian qualified lawyer working at the Milan office as associate.

Marco regularly advises major Italian and international banks, financial and payment institutions, asset management companies, investment firms and other financial intermediaries, public companies and issuers active in the financial markets.

He counsels and supports clients on banking and financial services, financial markets, derivatives and structured products in relation to all relevant regulatory aspects.

Marco has also gained experience in capital markets transactions, advising both credit institutions and financial intermediaries.

During 2014 he earned an LL.M. - with merit - in “International Financial Law” at the King’s College of London.

He is a speaker at seminars and conferences focused on regulatory and financial markets topics.

Cesar Valdez Associate White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation & Compliance

San Francisco

Cesar Valdez is an associate in Orrick's San Francisco office and a member of the White Collar & Corporate Investigations group.

Riccardo Valle Associate M&A and Private Equity, Renewable Energy

Rome

Senior associate in the Orrick corporate team, specialized (in transactional/litigation matters before Civil and Administrative Courts) in providing legal assistance to clients active in highly regulated markets, with specific focus on energy (including generation, infrastructures, incentives, PPA/EFET, and IPEX), environment (including waste, and EIA/IPPC), and pharmaceuticals (including AIFA regulations and wholesale distribution).  

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Michelle Van Oppen Managing Associate Litigation & IP, Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Los Angeles

Michelle proposes creative solutions to achieve clients' desired outcomes in litigation and dispute resolution.  

Michelle's experience includes cases involving breaches of contract, trade secrets misappropriation, and general commercial disputes.

She has also dedicated significant time to pro bono representations in civil rights and unlawful detainer cases. Her bono work has included second chairing a Section 1983 jury trial.

During law school, Michelle worked as a summer law clerk at Orrick and externed for the Honorable Judge Gregory W. Alarcon of the Los Angeles Superior Court.

Danielle Van Wert Senior Associate White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation & Compliance, Securities Litigation, Class Actions and Shareholder Derivative Lawsuits

Silicon Valley

Danielle Van Wert, a senior associate in the Silicon Valley office, is a member of the Securities Litigation Group. Danielle's practice focuses on securities litigation and white collar criminal defense.

She represents companies and individuals in securities-related regulatory investigations, including SEC and FINRA matters, and also represents special committees in internal investigations. In addition, Danielle's practice focuses on shareholder derivative actions and actions brought under federal and state securities laws.

Prior to joining the firm, Danielle was an associate at DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary.

Amy Van Zant Partner Intellectual Property, Trade Secrets Litigation

Silicon Valley

Amy Van Zant, a partner in Orrick’s Intellectual Property Group, has litigated and advised clients on patent, copyright, trademark and trade secret protection. Amy has been trial counsel in several patent infringement trials in U.S. District Courts.

She has litigated before the International Trade Commission and has briefed appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Barrie VanBrackle Partner Technology Companies Group, Banking & Finance

Washington, D.C.

Barrie VanBrackle, a partner in Orrick’s Washington, D.C., office, is a member of the Technology Companies Group. An authority on payments and consumer financial services compliance, Barrie co-leads Orrick’s Fintech team.

Her practice focuses on three areas at the cross-section of the fintech space: consumer-facing financial and banking regulatory counseling and investigations, payment card industry (PCI) and brand operating rules (including PCI Data Security Standards), and strategic transactions and deals on behalf of leading merchants, payment processors and industry vendors. In addition, Barrie has deep experience advising corporate and private equity clients in M&A contexts and other investments in fintech.

Barrie is a sought after speaker on the evolving regulatory and compliance issues surrounding payments and related e-commerce matters. Prior to joining Orrick, Barrie was a partner at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP.

Virginie Vaquette Associate Antitrust & Competition

Paris

Robert P. Varian Senior Counsel White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation & Compliance, Securities Litigation, Class Actions and Shareholder Derivative Lawsuits

San Francisco

Robert P. Varian, senior counsel, served as a partner in Orrick's San Francisco office for 12 years, and was previously a partner in Clifford Chance US LLP and Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison.

He has been named to Lawdragon's Top 500 Leading Lawyers in America list, one of the most elite accolades in the legal profession, and as one of the top 20 lawyers of the year by The California Lawyer. He is one of the few attorneys in the United States who has successfully tried securities class actions to verdict (twice), and won one of the National Law Journal's top 10 defense verdicts in the United States in the major securities class action jury trial.

Bob has extensive experience in defending securities class actions, SEC investigations and enforcement proceedings, and derivative lawsuits throughout the United States. He has led a wide variety of internal investigations centered in the United States and China, and has represented executives, directors and auditors in internal investigations, SEC investigations and enforcement actions, and in securities class actions and other shareholder litigation. He also has extensive experience in defending consumer class actions and complex business cases, and special expertise in representing Chinese companies and individuals in litigation and investigations.

Bob has successfully litigated numerous high profile cases that have received coverage in the national media.

Michael Vaz D'Almeida Associate Antitrust & Competition

Paris

Michaël Vaz d'Almeida is a Competition lawyer in Orrick's Paris office.

His practice focuses on French and European competition law, including anticompetitive practices, merger control, distribution law and State aid.

Prior to joining Orrick, Michaël worked as a legal intern at UGGC Avocats and Magenta and in the legal departments of Thales Communications & Security and Dexia Life & Pensions (Luxembourg). He was previously an intern at the French Competition Authority and at the Appeal Court of Paris.

Christopher Vejnoska Partner Mass Torts & Product Liability, Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution

San Francisco

L. Christopher Vejnoska, Partner and member of the Mass Torts and Product Liability practice, is located in the San Francisco office. Chris, a trial lawyer with more than 25 years of experience handling precedent-setting trials, focuses on complex commercial, product liability, class action, mass tort and insurance coverage litigation. Chris typically handles an average of eight trials per year.

Involved in what The Washington Post described as the largest trial in U.S. history, at the time, Chris has counseled multinational companies entangled in lengthy, enterprise-threatening litigation and negotiated legal and business solutions involving billions of dollars.

Chris actively works on cross-office teams in the defense of Chinese companies and their products against American consumer claims; and has significant experience in assisting foreign aerospace companies with international arbitration disputes with first-tier aircraft manufacturers. Chris also has extensive experience in complex and commercial litigation, ranging from insurance recovery disputes to trade secret issues.

A notable complement to Chris's litigation practice is his transactional work earlier in his career. He previously represented large public companies in mergers, acquisitions, strategic investments and private financings; private companies in initial public offerings; and emerging growth companies in general corporate matters. Chris' experience also offers clients a unique perspective on risk mitigation strategies to avoid costly litigation in the future.

Prior to joining the firm, Chris was a partner at Clifford Chance and a partner at Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, where he was a member of the Policy Committee, a member of the Executive Committee, Chair of the Risk Management Committee and Chair of the Hiring Committee.

Stephen Venuto Partner Technology Companies Group, Corporate

Silicon Valley; San Francisco

Stephen Venuto, a partner who works out of both the Silicon Valley and San Francisco offices, is a member of the Technology Companies group. His practice focuses on advising high-growth technology and media companies and their founders, advisors and investors.

Steve was Facebook’s first lawyer and is widely recognized as one of the leading startup lawyers in the country. The American Lawyer recently named him “Dealmaker of the Year”, recognizing his corporate work and representation of Instagram in its sale to Facebook, and quoting a prominent board member as saying that Steve “is an outstanding lawyer, but he’s also an outstanding business partner . . . [He] is someone who cares about everybody [who’s] involved in a company.” In September of 2013, the Daily Journal named him to its list of Top 100 Lawyers in California. In February of 2014, the Daily Journal named him to its inaugural Top Emerging Companies Lawyers list.

Numerous standout technology companies and their founders have turned to Steve for representation including Asana, Bleacher Report (sold to Time Warner), Facebook, Instagram (sold to Facebook), Mailbox/Orchestra (sold to Dropbox), Ooma, Pinterest, ResearchGate and Quora. He also works with new media companies including Brit & Co., Full Picture Productions (executive producer of Project Runway), Say Media, U2, Upworthy and Zuckerberg Media. Steve provides general corporate legal counseling and represents companies at all stages of their life-cycle.