People

Catherine Y. Lui Partner

San Francisco

Cathy also engages in complex commercial litigation including employee mobility, breach of contract, and fraud cases. Her matters are often high-profile and industry-changing. Cathy's practice also includes trade secrets investigations as well as counseling on joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, third-party vendor relationships, and emerging technology to help minimize the risk to companies. Cathy has significant experience in actions arising from the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), which created the first federal civil misappropriation of trade secrets claim in May 2016. Cathy has helped shape DTSA law on behalf of her clients through her involvement in some of the earliest DTSA litigation. Many of her trade secrets cases involve parallel criminal proceedings.

For her achievements, Legal 500 recognized Cathy as a "Leading Lawyer" in trade secrets in 2024. The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association also honored Cathy as a 2019 Best Lawyer Under 40. This annual list recognizes individuals within the APA community who have achieved prominence or distinction in their field and demonstrated a strong commitment to the APA community or civic affairs.

Cathy also regularly speaks and writes about trade secrets issues. She previously served as the Co-Vice Chair of the Trade Secrets Interest Group of the California Lawyers Association's (formerly of the California State Bar) Intellectual Property Section and she writes an annual column about trade secret hot topics in the CLA's "New Matter" publication.

Cathy is very active within the firm and her community. Cathy previously served as the Hiring Partner for the San Francisco office. Orrick selected Cathy to serve as the firm's 2020 Fellow for the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity, and Cathy previously served as the Co-Chair of the Asian American Bar Association's Judiciary Committee, which is focused on increasing representation on the bench.

Cathy also maintains an active pro bono practice. Cathy's dedication to pro bono service was demonstrated by her work in an asylum merits hearing representing a Salvadoran religious activist persecuted by gangs in El Salvador. For her work on this matter, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights honored Cathy with the Father Cuchulain Moriarity Award. In addition, the Justice & Diversity Center of the Bar Association of San Francisco recognized Cathy as an Outstanding Volunteer in Public Service in 2014 through 2020 for her work with helping homeless clients remove outstanding warrants barring them from access to housing and employment.

Emily Luken Senior Associate

Washington, D.C.

Emily routinely handles all aspects of civil and class action litigation, from early motions practice to trial before a jury or arbitration panel. Her extensive litigation practice concentrates on antitrust and competition law, and she has represented plaintiffs, defendants, and third parties in high-stakes matters.

In addition to her litigation practice, Emily also advises clients on a spectrum of critical antitrust and competition matters, spanning government investigations, merger clearance, and strategic counseling. She adeptly navigates clients through the intricacies of regulatory inquiries and enforcement actions, specifically from the FTC and DOJ. She represents clients across a diverse range of industries, including technology, healthcare and life sciences, automotive, oil & gas, and professional membership organizations.

Notably, Emily has developed a focus on issues at the intersection of antitrust and intellectual property, with a particular emphasis on standards-essential patents (SEPs) subject to a commitment to license on fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory terms (FRAND). In addition to representing clients in licensing negotiations, litigation matters, and government outreach with respect to SEPs and FRAND, she has authored extensive thought leadership on this topic.

Prior to law school, Emily worked as a research assistant and project coordinator at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.

Ed Lukins Partner

London

He regularly advises on IPOs, direct listings, follow-ons, de-SPACs, reverse mergers and takeovers on UK, U.S. and European stock exchanges, domestic and cross-border public and private M&A deals, venture capital, private and growth equity investments, debt financings, joint ventures, carve-outs, and restructurings, as well as on governance, disclosure, compliance, and strategic advisory matters.

His broad industry experience includes working with clients in the AI and technology, healthcare and life sciences, logistics, retail, media, marketing, financial services, energy and natural resources sectors.

WC Managing Atty

San Francisco

Ashley works on single plaintiff and class action cases, defending against discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage claims. She also advises employers on employment policies and practices, including compliance with evolving pay transparency laws.

Before becoming a lawyer, Ashley worked in education. She was also a 2020 Pro Bono Orrick Fellow at the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County, where she practiced eviction defense and special education law.

Jing Luo Senior Associate

Silicon Valley

Jing’s practice is primarily focused on patent and trade secret litigation. Her experience covers a broad range of technologies including small molecules (salts, polymorphs, formulations, and process patents) and biologic drugs, medical devices, diagnostics, software, and semiconductors.  She has worked on Hatch Waxman (ANDA) litigation as well as Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) cases defending multi-billion-dollar diabetes and cancer drugs from generic/biosimilar challenges. Her clients have ranged from big pharmaceutical companies, to biotechnology companies, to pre-IPO startups, which uniquely positions her to counsel companies at all stages on portfolio strategy. Jing’s extensive background in biosciences, including years of laboratory research experience, serves her clients well in  high-stakes matters before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, U.S. District Courts, and Federal Circuit. Recently, Jing helped defend the validity of all challenged claims in a salt/polymorph patent in an IPR and was instrumental in developing parallel district court cases for a blockbuster diabetes drug.

Alongside her intellectual property practice, Jing has the privilege of using her Federal Circuit experience to represent veterans pro bono in their appeals to the court.

Prior to joining Orrick, Jing served as a judicial law clerk for Judge Raymond T. Chen at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and was an associate at a Vault 100 litigation boutique in Washington, D.C. Before law school, Jing was a Marshall Scholar, and she pursued dual graduate degrees in biosciences and policy studies while conducting public policy research in the U.K. and the United States.

Lisa Lupion Partner

New York

She begins by gathering an in-depth understanding of her client’s business and goals, and then evaluating the specific issue at hand, so that whether navigating a counseling issue or a complex litigation, she can understand every possible angle and design the best possible solution.

Lisa, who serves as a member of Orrick's Management Committee, regularly litigates a broad range of employment issues in court, administrative agencies, and arbitration. Lisa also helps companies at all stages of development avoid litigation or prevent a single-plaintiff matter from escalating to a class action. She has successfully handled a number of high-stakes arbitrations and internal investigations. In addition, she offers counseling on discrimination, harassment, equal pay, wage and hour issues, disability accommodations, termination and compensation.  Lisa regularly advises clients on a variety of employment-related issues, including human resources policies and procedures, offer letters, severance agreements and employee termination. 

Prior to joining Orrick, Lisa served as a law clerk to the Hon. Peter Leisure in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. 

Chek-Lhy Luu Senior Associate

Paris

She advises French and international groups on all French employment and labor law matters. In particular, on the following matters: company restructurings, merger and acquisition transactions, transfer of activity, collective and individual relationships, hiring and termination of top managers, litigation.

Prior to joining Orrick, Chek-Lhy was an associate for three years in the Employment, Pensions & Benefits department of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, and for four years in the employment team of Linklaters.