People

Julie Totten Partner

Sacramento; San Francisco

In doing so, Julie closely collaborates with each client, gathering an in-depth understanding of their specific tensions, challenges and objectives. Legal 500 noted she “truly understands corporate politics and works with in-house counsel to understand the intersections of legal advice and business objectives.” Julie then draws upon nearly three decades of experience to guide clients towards the best possible resolution. Her client-focused approach is one of many reasons she was selected to lead Orrick’s global employment practice, which Chambers ranks as one of the country’s foremost practices and describes Julie as “a big thinker and a thought leader.”

Julie has experience defending both class actions and individual plaintiff cases. She has successfully defended clients in trial and arbitration and helps clients with all types of employment matters, including complex wage-and-hour class, collective and representative actions; pay equity and promotion cases; whistleblower retaliation actions, discrimination, harassment and retaliation litigation and trade secret and non-compete matters. She also guides clients through systemic government investigations and audits. Julie is proactive in helping clients avoid litigation by assisting them with the development of policies and practices designed to minimize exposure, including advice and counselling work in the areas of AI and DEI in selection and recruiting.

Julie is honored to be a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment and a member of the American Employment Law Council. She also served as a Council Member of the American Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Section.

Amy Van Zant Partner

Silicon Valley

For her litigation practice, Amy’s ability to distill the most complicated technology across an array of fields, including telecommunications, semiconductor manufacturing, renewable energy, cloud computing, and big data, into relatable, every day concepts that has made her successful in persuading judges and juries alike. She has led trial teams, litigated, and tried cases in state court in California, numerous District Courts, the International Trade Commission, and has briefed appeals before the 9th Circuit, the Federal Circuit, the Supreme Court of California, and the United States Supreme Court. 

Whether litigating patent, trade secret, or IP contract disputes, Amy strives to put herself in her client’s shoes to ensure personalized results tailored to each client’s business objectives. As SAP’s General Counsel Landon Edmond commented to Acritas, Amy “has acquired a great knowledge of our business, and therefore you know you can trust her in a wide variety of topics and to get the right colleagues within her firm involved across the globe.”

Amy also provides comprehensive IP counseling on issues including trade secrets protection, employee departure investigations, freedom to operate analysis, licensing strategies, data privacy protection, and regulatory compliance. She has also conducted comprehensive patent portfolio reviews and assisted with IP corporate transactions.

In addition to her IP work, Amy devotes significant time to her pro bono work. For more than a decade, she has assisted domestic violence victims, as well as led Orrick’s Bay Area summer program that enables law clerks to be certified to argue in Family Court to obtain Temporary Restraining Orders for domestic violence clients.

Stephen Venuto Partner

Silicon Valley; San Francisco

The Daily Journal has named Stephen one of the Top 100 Lawyers in California (chosen regardless of specialty). Stephen was Facebook’s first lawyer and has advised many other leading companies at critical stages of their lifecycles including Anthropic AI, Asana, Instagram, Pinterest, Warby Parker and WETA Digital.

Stephen cares about the teams he counsels and thrives on providing practical business advice. When The American Lawyer named Stephen “Dealmaker of the Year”, it recognized his corporate work and representation of Instagram in its sale to Facebook and quoted a prominent Instagram board member as saying that he “is an outstanding lawyer, but he’s also an outstanding business partner . . . someone who cares about everybody [who's] involved in a company.” In addition to naming Stephen to its list of Top 100 Lawyers in California, The Daily Journal has named him to its Top Emerging Companies Lawyers list, and Chambers and Partners has recognized and ranked Stephen in two separate categories for several consecutive years.

Numerous standout technology companies and their founders have turned to Stephen for corporate representation at all stages of their life-cycles. Most of his counseling is with technology disruptive clients in fast-growth fields such as artificial intelligence, information technology, metaverse, fin-tech, SaaS, gaming, media and entertainment. His recent prominent counseling includes companies in the artificial intelligence,  metaverse and gaming spaces. For example he recently advised WETA Digital in its metaverse and gaming related asset sale to Unity Software (for $1.6 billion)  and has advised Anthropic AI from formation through each of its financings.

Andrew Vogeler Managing Associate

Wheeling, W.V. (GOIC)

Andrew concentrates his practice on matters pertaining to private equity and alternative investment funds, representing both investors and fund sponsors.

On the investor side, he primarily represents institutional investors, advising their participation in funds with a variety of focuses including venture capital, buy-out, real estate, and mezzanine opportunities. He works to ensure fund arrangements not only advance clients' economic objectives, but are responsive to the complex fiduciary and regulatory issues institutional investors must manage on behalf of their stakeholders.

On the sponsor side, Andrew handles various aspects of fund formation relating to the internal structuring of sponsor and management entities, drafting of fund documents, and negotiations with investors.

In addition, Andrew has experience handling a range of issues in M&A, real estate, oil & gas, and pipeline infrastructure transactions.

Jonas Wang Senior Associate

Washington, D.C.

Jonas has represented clients in the technology sector in federal and state courts across the country, with argument experience in the federal courts of appeals.

Before joining Orrick, Jonas served as a law clerk to Judge Beverly B. Martin of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.  A graduate of Yale Law School, Jonas was an Articles and Essays Editor for the Yale Law Journal and a member of the Veterans Legal Services Clinic.

Jonas previously served as a staff attorney at a leading nonprofit and litigated in federal district and appellate courts challenging adverse effects from criminal fines and fees.

Montana Ware Senior Associate

Austin

Montana primarily represents emerging growth companies, venture capital funds and other strategic investors in a wide array of corporate matters, including early and late-stage venture funding rounds, formation and corporate governance, securities issuances and mergers and acquisitions.

Select engagements Montana has advised on include:

• Represented Stripe in its $6.5 billion Series I round
• Represented Solugen in its $350 million Series C and $200 million Series D financings
• Represented Merama in its $225 million Series B and $80 million Series B follow-on financings
• Represented Next Insurance in its $250 million Series C financing, $250 million Series D financing and $250 million Series E financing
• Represented Coatue Management in its investment in the $100 million Series B financing of Mercury Technologies
• Represented D1 Capital Partners in its investment in the $450 million Series D financing of Andruil
• Represented Inspire Semiconductor in its $2.5 million Series A financing and acquisition of Greenfield Acquisition (TSX:GAC.P), a publicly-traded SPAC, by way of a reverse merger
• Represented Codecademy in its $525 million acquisition by SkillSoft (NYS: SKIL), a New Hampshire based provider of educational software
• Represented Envisics in its $50 million Series C financing
• Represented Supabase in its $30 million Series A and $80 million Series B financings
• Represented Coatue Management in its $17 million investment in LiveControl
• Represented a Brazilian digital entrepreneurship platform in its Series A financing
• Represented a cloud software company in its Series C investment in an enterprise blockchain company
• Represented a talent management software provider in multiple financings
• Represented a cloud software company in its $30 million Series B investment in an open source SQL database
• Represented the investment arm of a global financial services company in its Series A investment in an intelligence platform using AI and predictive modeling
• Represented the venture financing division of a large insurance company in its participation in the $29 million Series E financing of an insurance claims technology provider
• Represented a voice-controlled mobile platform in its $20 million Series C financing
• Represented the venture financing division of a large technology company in its Series C investment in an application traffic manager
• Represented Calibrate Ventures in its investment in the $20 million Series A financing of GrayMatter
• Represented Coatue Management in its investment in the $35 million Series B financing of Crivello Technologies
• Represented Fintual, a Chile based company that provides savings and investment options through an online platform, in its $39 million Series B financing
• Represented Flex Capital in its investment in the $23 million Series A financing of GoFreight Inc.
• Represented InsideSherpa in its $25 million Series B financing
• Represented Gym Class in its $8 million Series Seed financing
• Represented Keen Technologies, an AI startup, in its financing
• Represented Radiant in its $12.6 million Series A financing
• Represented Red Sea Ventures in its investment in the $25 million Series A financing of Accrue Savings, Inc.

*Please note: Montana’s experience includes that prior to joining Orrick.

Robert Weinhold Counsel

Düsseldorf

Robert has always been fascinated by new technologies and digitization. Pursuing his fascination, he focused his legal studies on media law, intellectual property law and data protection law. Prior to working at Orrick, he also gained experience by founding a company that provided a software as a platform solution and working for a German venture capital investor. His legal advice on technology transactions—in particular, SaaS and IP agreements, e-commerce-related topics, related assistance in mergers and acquisitions or core data privacy—thus reflects not only his legal experience but also his experience and fascination with new technology. Being an IT and IP lawyer with a very commercial mindset, Robert drafts and negotiates all sorts of IT and IP agreements, for small to medium companies and large multinationals. He advises on privacy compliance—in particular drafts, privacy policies, and national as well as international data processing agreements—or provides his knowledge with the assessment of the IP/IT and privacy matters in M&A transactions.

He joined Orrick in 2017 after working as a scientific researcher in the field of Data Privacy.

Ashleigh Williams Associate

Washington, D.C.

Kasey Winshall Managing Associate

New York

Kasey represents tech startups throughout all stages of their lifecycle. She advises on formation, general corporate and governance matters, and a broad range of transactions, such as venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions. Kasey also advises venture capital investors on investment in their portfolio companies. 

Prior to joining Orrick, Kasey was an associate in the Emerging Companies and Venture Capital Group at Fox Rothschild LLP in New York.

Jason Wu Of Counsel

Londra

Jason advises emerging UK and European tech companies and leading investors on US venture financings and other corporate matters. As a US-qualified lawyer based in Orrick’s London office, Jason combines a unique understanding of US, UK and European market practices to guide clients through critical financial and commercial transactions.

Jason regularly advises early-stage companies on Delaware flips and works closely with founders and management teams to navigate multi-jurisdictional operational and governance issues. Through his expertise in cross-border transactions, Jason is able to translate parties’ needs to achieve successful outcomes.

Jason is also able to advise clients with a practical, 360-degree view through his previous experience as a commercial litigator. Jason’s prior practice included representing companies in class action, insurance, and trade secrets litigation, in regulatory proceedings, and in a variety of commercial disputes in US and international forums.

Mike Yang Partner

Santa Monica

Mike's practice focuses on the representation of U.S. and international public and private high technology companies, as well as executives, management teams and founders with compensation and employee benefits issues in the context of M&A transactions, spin-offs, venture capital financings and IPOs.

Mike also advises on day-to-day tax, employment, accounting and securities law issues in connection with the design, administration and implementation of executive compensation and equity compensation arrangements, including employment agreements, severance arrangements, change in control carve-out plans, stock option plans and employee stock purchase plans with a particular focus on Code Sections 409A, 280G and 162(m). In addition, he advises on nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements, tax-qualified retirement plans and welfare benefit plans.

Prior to practicing law, Mike was a Certified Public Accountant with Ernst & Young.

Shannon Yavorsky Partner

San Francisco; Londra

She advises public and private companies across several sectors, including life sciences and health technology, financial services, private equity, insurance, social media and technology on a range of EU and U.S. federal and state privacy laws. Shannon’s strategic counseling advice includes, but is not limited to:

• Advertising and payment card processing self-regulatory frameworks
• Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography And Marketing Act (CAN-SPAM)
• Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA)
• EU AI Act
• EU e-Privacy Directive (EPD)
• EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
• Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
• Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act (GLBA)
• Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
• National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) AI Risk Management Framework (AIRMF)
• Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
• U.S. state breach notification laws
• U.S. state privacy laws in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, Virginia and other states
  

Shannon also helps clients undertake comprehensive privacy, cybersecurity and AI risk assessments, evaluates privacy, security and AI risks in corporate transactions and drafts and negotiates data-related contracts. She advises clients on cross-border data transfers, data breaches and developing global privacy and AI compliance programs.