Cybersecurity: Managing Risk Through Legal and Technical Strategies for In-house and Outside Counsel

Aravind Swaminathan Partner

Seattle; Boston

As a strategic cybersecurity advisor, Aravind partners with clients to proactively plan for a crisis and develop strategies to improve resiliency, respond efficiently and effectively, protect their business and brand, and defend them in the onslaught of litigation and enforcement actions that follow. He guides organizations from large public company financial institutions to start-up technology companies to critical infrastructure providers through incidents, and develops business- and brand-centric strategies to mitigate and manage risk. He has directed more than 200 cybersecurity incident and data breach investigations, including enterprise-wide network intrusions to cyberattacks with national security implications. 

With extensive trial, litigation and appellate experience, he defends his clients in cyber, privacy, and payments related class actions and other civil litigation (particularly Computer Fraud and Abuse Act matters), and in when these issues lead to regulatory investigations by the SEC, DOJ, FTC, and State Attorneys General.   

Aravind’s background as an Assistant United States Attorney and Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section attorney gives him first-hand understanding of federal agencies that allows him to swiftly navigate the system, partner with investigators and find creative solutions for his clients. As a federal cybercrime prosecutor, Aravind investigated and prosecuted a broad array of cybercrime cases, including hacking, phishing, trade secrets theft, click fraud, cyber threats, and identity theft. Aravind also led the cybercrime outreach program, where he worked with members of the Department of Justice, state and federal regulators, law enforcement and other organizations on cybersecurity and related privacy issues. During his time as federal prosecutor in the Complex Crimes Unit, he also investigated and prosecuted a wide array of white-collar crimes, including investment schemes, corporate fraud and embezzlement, securities fraud, tax evasion and the nation’s largest bank failure.

John Wolfe Partner

Seattle

John is consistently recognized in The Best Lawyers in America and recommended by The Legal 500 United States as a white collar criminal defense lawyer. John relies upon a multi-disciplinary crisis management strategy to assist clients and address both legal and reputational risks.

John has extensive experience representing clients in federal and state criminal and civil investigations, including state attorney general investigations, related to alleged health care fraud and standards of care violations resulting in death, consumer protection violations, public corruption and campaign finance violations, environmental violations (both land-based and maritime), including catastrophic industrial accident response and investigations, cybersecurity investigations and securities and tax fraud, including money laundering. John is an accomplished and seasoned trial lawyer who has represented public and private clients in more than 100 jury trials, and appeared in state and federal proceedings throughout the Pacific Northwest, as well as California, Florida, Montana, New York, and Wyoming.

Honors:

In 2004, John chaired the Magistrate Selection Committee for the Federal District Court in the Western District of Washington. He has also served on several Merit Selection panels identifying candidates for appointment to the federal bench in the Western District of Washington. He is currently co-chair of the Federal Appointments Committee for the Federal Bar Association and has served as a Ninth Circuit Representative. He was once appointed to serve as a Special Master in a matter pending before the Federal District Court in the Western District of Washington to investigate issues related to a multi-party joint defense agreement.