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Meg Hennessey

Of Counsel

San Francisco

Orange County

Meg Hennessey is a trusted online safety advisor with broad experience guiding clients through the regulatory and reputational risks of the digital landscape.

Meg helps online service providers comply with online safety and consumer protection laws by marrying her knowledge of the data-driven environment with a decade of experience in white-collar and regulatory investigations. She also advises her clients on developing Trust & Safety programs to manage the risks of misleading or harmful content online such as child exploitation or hate speech that could lead to investigations or litigation.

As a crisis responder, Meg assists clients at every stage, from starting a dialogue with regulators to responding to formal inquiries to managing investigations. She has led diverse teams of lawyers and consultants in conducting investigations, including those initiated by the DOJ, SEC, FTC, OIG, State AGs, and Congress. She has also acted on both sides of corporate Monitorships, serving on two Monitorship teams, and representing two international companies undergoing years-long scrutiny of an external Monitor. This experience provides her with unique insight into best practices in the assessment and development of ethics, integrity, and online safety trust and compliance programs.

An advocate for diversity and inclusion, Meg co-leads Orrick’s Orange County women’s inclusion network. Early in her career, she worked with LGBTQ+ youth at the National Center for Lesbian Rights and in the Juvenile Unit at the Santa Clara County Office of the Public Defender. She lives in California with her spouse and kids.

  • Online Safety

    • Advising online service providers in the AI, social media, and big tech space on online safety-related obligations and in relation to potentially harmful content (e.g., instances of suspected child abuse, sexual exploitation, terrorist and hate speech).
    • Conducting online trust and safety compliance risk assessments and preparing and implementing related policies and procedures - for internal and external audiences - related to identity verification, content moderation, transparency reporting, and reporting to law enforcement.
    • Responding on behalf of a leading social platform for online creators client to UK Parliament and Ofcom inquiries related to the UK's Online Safety Act.
    • Representing a client through a multi-year voluntary online trust and safety monitorship.

    Regulatory

    • Representing global IoT device maker in investigations by the FTC and multiple state attorneys general involving alleged unfair and deceptive acts and practices related to marketing and data security.
    • Representing multiple companies responding to Civil Investigation Demands and responding to investigations into violations of the False Claims Act (FCA).

    Anti-Corruption Compliance and Internal Investigations

    • Serving on the Monitor teams for two DOJ and SEC-appointed Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Monitorships, as well as representing two multinational corporations under the review of independent Compliance Monitors.
    • Conducting anti-corruption compliance risk assessments and preparing and implementing related policies and procedures for internal and external audiences.
    • Conducting internal investigations in Argentina, Brazil, China, Columbia, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, South Africa and Thailand.
    • Conducting pre- and post-acquisition anti-corruption due diligence and assisting in remediation.
    • Representing individuals and companies in connection with criminal investigations conducted by the DOJ FCPA Unit, Healthcare & Government Fraud Unit, as well as several individuals in connection with criminal investigations conducted by the DOJ Antitrust Division into the automotive parts industry.
    • Responding to Civil Investigative Demands issued by the DOJ and OIG for companies responding to FCA allegations.
    • Representing a company in relation to multiple congressional inquiries conducted by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

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