MFA Legal & Compliance 2022 - Speakers

Mike Asaro is a leader of Akin’s white collar defense and global investigations practice. He focuses on white collar criminal defense, SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) investigations, corporate internal investigations and complex commercial litigation. Mike also regularly advises investment fi rms with respect to compliance with the federal securities and commodities laws.

Mike is a former assistant U.S. attorney from the Eastern District of New York, where he served as deputy chief of the Business and Securities Fraud Section. During his tenure, the office prosecuted numerous complex and high profile securities fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, bribery and money laundering cases.

Earlier in his career, Mike served as branch chief in the SEC’s New York office, supervising staff attorneys as they worked on regulatory investigations and enforcement actions. While he was at the SEC, he was appointed as a special assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York.

Chambers USA has described Mike as “an absolute expert in this practice area” who is “incredibly responsive, and understands his clients’ business and how to factor in commercial concerns.” He regularly counsels companies and individuals in matters involving:

• Insider trading
• Market manipulation and disruptive trading
• Accounting irregularities and public company disclosure issues
• Investment advisor and broker/dealer regulation
• Conflicts of interest and breaches of fiduciary duty
• Anti-bribery and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)
• Complex commercial litigation.

Mr. Backofen is a Managing Director and serves as Chief Compliance Officer, responsible for all compliance matters for the firm, and Head of Operations, responsible for managing the firm’s Operations team. Prior to joining MKP in 2013, Mr. Backofen was a Manager within Financial Risk Management at KPMG providing regulatory, operational, and process advice to investment management institutions. Prior to that role, Mr. Backofen worked for over 10 years as Partner/Vice President at HedgeOp Compliance, LLC implementing and monitoring compliance programs for SEC registered investment advisors and unregistered investment advisors.

Mr. Backofen received a B.S. in Economics from Quinnipiac University.

Tom is the Chief Information Security Officer at Balyasny Asset Management, and oversees the firm’s Information Security program. Prior to Balyasny, Tom was the Chief Information Security Officer at Pine River Capital Management. Tom was previously a Security Engineer at Pine River and a Cybersecurity Consultant at Ernst & Young. Tom holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Security and Forensics from Rochester Institute of Technology.

Rostin Behnam was nominated by President Trump as a Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on July 13, 2017, was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on August 3, 2017, and was sworn in to serve as a Commissioner on September 6, 2017 for a term expiring in June 2021.  The members of the Commission elected Commissioner Behnam as Acting Chairman effective Thursday, January 21, 2021.

Acting Chairman Behnam’s arrival at the CFTC followed extensive experiences in financial and agricultural markets.  After graduating from Georgetown University, Acting Chairman Behnam worked as a proprietary equities trader in New York City before pursuing a Juris Doctorate at Syracuse University.  During his legal studies, Acting Chairman Behnam interned with the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement in the New York Regional Office.

Upon graduation, he returned to his home state of New Jersey and joined the Bureau of Securities within the state’s Office of the Attorney General, focusing his work on fulfilling the Bureau’s mission of protecting investors from investment fraud, and regulating the securities industry in New Jersey.  Following his time with the Bureau of Securities, Acting Chairman Behnam practiced law in New York City, representing public and private companies on a range of corporate law and state and federal regulatory matters.

In 2011, Acting Chairman Behnam joined the U.S. Senate Committee of Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, as senior counsel to Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, the Committee’s Chairwoman.  He primarily focused on policy and legislative matters related to the CFTC and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, agencies within the direct jurisdictional purview of the Committee.  Acting Chairman Behnam’s major responsibilities included advising Senator Stabenow on the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and related matters affecting the Treasury Department, the U.S. prudential regulators, and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Since joining the CFTC, Acting Chairman Behnam has individually and as sponsor of the CFTC’s Market Risk Advisory Committee (MRAC) advocated for the CFTC to use its authority and expertise to ensure the derivatives markets operate transparently and fairly for participants and customers and innovate responsibly in addressing evolving market structures and products and the emergence and movement of risk across clearinghouses, exchanges, intermediaries, market makers and end-users within an appropriate oversight framework.  Through his MRAC sponsorship, Acting Chairman Behnam convenes leading market experts and public consumer groups to engage in public dialog on such timely issues as interest rate benchmark reform, central counterparty (CCP) risk and governance, market structure, and since 2019, climate-related market risk.

Recognizing that weather and climate present risks to economic productivity, financial stability, and household wealth, Acting Chairman Behnam led the creation of the Climate-Related Market Risk Subcommittee to examine climate-related impacts on the financial system.  The Subcommittee’s efforts resulted in the September 2020 release of the report Managing Climate Risk in the U.S. Financial System, the first of-its-kind effort from a U.S. government entity.  Acting Chairman Behnam followed its release with testimony before the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis and presentations in other venues focused on climate-related market risk and incorporating sustainability resilience into our financial systems.  More recently, Acting Chairman Behnam established the Climate Risk Unit or “CRU” within the CFTC to focus on the role of the derivatives markets, and the CFTC as a market regulator, in understanding, pricing, and addressing climate-related risk.

During his time as Commissioner, Acting Chairman Behnam spearheaded efforts to invigorate internal discussions on agency-wide diversity and inclusion initiatives. He remains committed to ensuring that the CFTC remains vigilant in building and maintaining an inclusive workforce, supportive of employees and reflective of the diversity in the markets it oversees and the public it serves.

Acting Chairman Behnam lives in Baltimore with his wife and three daughters.

Matthew Bloom is Chief Compliance Officer and Deputy General Counsel – Regulatory and Litigation responsible for legal, regulatory, and compliance matters. Prior to joining Viking in 2013, Matthew was a Litigation Associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore. He also served as a law clerk to the Hon. Joel M. Flaum of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Matthew received a J.D. from Yale Law School and B.A. in history from Yale College.

Kevin Bloss is AB CarVal’s Associate General Counsel.  He oversees all legal and regulatory matters related to the organization, financing and management of the firm’s private and public credit funds as well as its US and European CLO platforms.  Mr. Bloss also advises on legal and regulatory matters affecting AB CarVal’s management company.

Before joining the firm in 2008, Mr. Bloss began his career advising on a range of corporate matters with a focus on capital markets and private equity transactions at the law firms of Fried Frank, and Cooley LLP in New York.  Mr. Bloss earned his J.D. from the University of Minnesota and received his B.A. from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota.

AB CarVal is an established global alternative investment fund manager focused on distressed and credit-intensive assets and market inefficiencies.  The firm has $16 billion in assets under management in corporate securities, loan portfolios, structured credit and hard assets.

Mr. Bogart is the general counsel for AB Carval Investors. He oversees all of Carval’s legal and compliance matters across the globe. Prior to joining AB CarVal in 2007, Mr. Bogart was a partner at Faegre & Benson in Minneapolis where he practiced for 16 years, specializing in real estate, finance and joint venture law. He received his J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law, graduating with highest honors, and his B.S. degree in marketing and accounting from the University of Colorado.

AB CarVal is an established global alternative investment fund manager focused on distressed and credit-intensive assets and market inefficiencies. Since 1987, AB CarVal’s experienced team has navigated through ever-changing credit market cycles, opportunistically investing $142 billion in 5,675 transactions across 82 countries. Today, AB CarVal has approximately $16 billion in assets under management in in corporate securities, loan portfolios, structured credit and hard assets.

Daniel Bresler is a partner in the Investment Management Group.

Dan primarily represents U.S. and non-U.S. investment managers, commodity pool operators, commodity trading advisors and private funds, including hedge funds, private equity funds and commodity pools. He advises clients on a variety of securities, commodities and corporate law matters, including fund structuring and formation, derivatives regulation and Securities Exchange Act filings. In addition, Dan assists clients in developing and implementing SEC, CFTC and NFA compliance policies and procedures and guides clients through regulatory examinations. He also represents clients in joint ventures, spinouts and other business transactions.

Dan received a B.S. from SUNY Albany, summa cum laude, and a J.D. from Albany Law School, summa cum laude, where he was the Executive Editor for Symposia on the Albany Law Review.

Brad Carpenter is a Supervisory Special Agent with FBI Cyber Division. Brad has been leading critical FBI initiatives to advise global financial companies in the assessment and management of cyber risks as well as the implementation of innovative programs for proactive cyber defense. With over 19 years of experience as a Special Agent, Brad has been responsible for investigating computer intrusions targeting the financial sector, cybercrime, and various other financial crimes to include money laundering in cryptocurrencies and terrorist financing. He has numerous cyber investigations for FBI New York and has played a leading role in the FBI New York Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), responsible for coordinating threat response at high profile Special Events.  During his tenure with the FBI, Brad has been assigned to the FBI Boston Field Office, FBI Counterterrorism Division in Washington DC, US Embassy London, and several other international deployments.  He has also served as an FBI Instructor conducting domestic and international trainings on Cybercrime, Anti-Money Laundering, and Terrorist Financing.  Brad was an Account Executive providing enterprise software solutions to government and Fortune 500 companies prior to his appointment as an FBI Special Agent.

Susanne V. Clark is a Senior Managing Director and the General Counsel of Centerbridge Partners, L.P., an investment management firm registered with the SEC focused on private equity, credit, distressed strategies & special situations and real estate investing, with its primary offices in New York and London.  Prior to joining Centerbridge, Ms. Clark was the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Basso Capital Management, L.P. (“Basso”), an SEC-registered investment adviser managing multi-strategy, convertibles and credit funds.  Prior to Basso, Ms. Clark was the Deputy General Counsel of Amaranth Group Inc., an investment adviser for multi-strategy and long/short equity funds.  Before that, Ms. Clark served as Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at Goldman Sachs, where she was responsible for finance and corporate legal matters involving The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and, prior to that, for legal matters involving the investment banking business of Goldman, Sachs & Co.  Ms. Clark started her career as an Associate in the New York Office of Shearman & Sterling LLP.  Ms. Clark serves on the Boards of Directors of American Renal Holdings, Inc. (and affiliated entities; NYSE: ARA), KIK Custom Products, Inc. (and affiliated entities), the Managed Funds Association (MFA) and as a director/trustee of certain other professional and non-profit organizations. Ms. Clark graduated with honors from Swarthmore College and received her J.D. from Columbia Law School.

Wendy Cohen, co-chair of the Investment Management and Funds group, understands the business realities and challenges of the competitive world of asset management. For three decades, asset managers have turned to her to navigate the minefield of regulation that governs the structuring and operation of private investment funds. From the largest and most established hedge funds to innovative players with alternative strategies, clients rely on Wendy to handle all legal issues that touch their businesses.
Customizing practical plans

Wendy knows that asset managers don’t fit a single mold. She understands each of her client’s businesses, and uses that understanding to suggest practical strategies that are commercial while minimizing the risk of regulatory violations. Those clients have rewarded her with their loyalty. A founder of an investment management firm noted, “We have worked with Wendy on all aspects of fund creation and financial market representation for over 30 years. She is truly exceptional. While expert in the law and with deep business knowledge, it is her personal representation and advocacy for her clients that sets her above and apart.” In an industry where personal connections matter, Wendy forges fast and long-standing relationships with clients large and small.

Wendy has amassed extensive knowledge on the laws most relevant to her client base of private investment funds whether the investment portfolio includes securities, futures or cryptocurrencies. She has particular experience on issues relating to the formation and ongoing operation of fund management, including domestic and offshore offering requirements, futures regulation, investment adviser rules and broker-dealer regulation. She also stays in front of new and changing legal issues that touch other aspects of fund operations — among them cryptocurrencies, cybersecurity rules, US and EU privacy regulations and ERISA-related matters.

What separates Wendy, however, is her ability to account for her clients’ unique needs in a manner that reflects an understanding of their businesses, while minimizing regulatory risk. When an investment manager client wanted to adopt a highly complex compensation structure for its multiple families of funds, for instance, she was able to distill the concepts and craft easily understandable disclosures that would enhance the client’s marketing efforts. Sometimes she simply helps clients navigate regulatory obstacles, as she has done for clients that want to manage funds for their employees’ IRAs. She helps guide them through the complex web of US Department of Labor rules, including receiving an exemption for one client that could not fit within established protocols.

Wendy’s wide-ranging practice frequently touches on cutting-edge issues. She launched one of the earliest investment funds focused on cryptocurrencies, a rapidly changing area fraught with risk. She created comprehensive offering documents that allowed the manager to enter this dynamic new investment space with materials that were compliant with applicable regulation.

Whether it is in law or finance, Wendy is passionate about empowering women. She is active in Katten’s Women’s Leadership Forum, which supports the strategic retention and advancement of women attorneys at the firm through mentoring and professional development programs. She also has a long-standing relationship with 100 Women in Finance as an Angel Member. Wendy routinely hosts roundtable programs and other events in Katten’s New York office on behalf of the 100WF, bringing exceptional speakers from the finance world and facilitating networking opportunities.

Patricia L. Cushing is a Director of Compliance at National Futures Association (“NFA”).  She has worked at NFA since 1990.  Ms. Cushing’s responsibilities include overseeing staff who conduct financial and compliance examinations, investigations and financial surveillance of brokerage firms in the commodity futures industry.  Ms. Cushing manages the design of the department’s exam programs and is responsible for the training of the examination staff.  She leads the Compliance Department’s Member education efforts, advises Members on compliance issues, and presents at industry conferences.  Ms. Cushing has served as a liaison between NFA and the CFTC in the development of rules affecting Commodity Trading Advisors and Commodity Pool Operators.

Ms. Cushing is a graduate of Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana.  She is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Fraud Examiner and a Certified Regulatory Compliance Professional, having received this designation through the FINRA Institute at The Wharton School of Business.

Brian advises fund managers on regulatory, compliance and operational matters. He has extensive experience helping clients navigate their regulatory compliance obligations under the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the National Futures Association (NFA). Brian also regularly represents clients in regulatory examinations, enforcement actions, trading inquiries and in seeking no-action or similar relief. Having spent nearly a decade in-house as general counsel and chief compliance officer at several global investment management firms, Brian is well versed in the wide range of legal and business challenges facing investment advisers, commodity pool operators and commodity trading advisors.

Brian is a recognized leader in advising alternative investment fund managers on regulatory and compliance matters. Chambers Global and Chambers USA list Brian as a “leading individual” in investment funds. Brian is a member of the Managed Funds Association’s Outside Counsel Forum and its CTA/CPO Forum and of the Alternative Investment Management Association’s CFTC Working Group.

Mr. Daniels is the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel, and a member of the Risk Committee. Prior to joining Brigade, Mr. Daniels was an Associate in the Investment Management Group at Seward & Kissel LLP from 2004 to 2010. Mr. Daniels’ practice focused primarily on hedge fund formation, and investment adviser registration and compliance. Mr. Daniels received a BA in Political Economy, cum laude, from Tulane University and a JD from Georgetown University.

Kamand Daniels is the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Palestra Capital Management LLC. Prior to joining the Palestra Capital, Ms. Daniels was the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Marble Ridge Capital LP, a distressed debt investment firm, which she joined in 2019. Prior to Marble Ridge Capital, Ms. Daniels was a Managing Director, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Emerging Sovereign Group LLC, an emerging markets long/short equity and macroeconomic investment firm, from 2014 to 2019. Prior to Emerging Sovereign Group, Ms. Daniels was an associate in the Investment Management Group at Seward & Kissel LLP, advising on matters relating to private funds and investment advisers.

Ms. Daniels received a JD from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law in 2007 and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 2004 with a BA in Political Science and Mass Communications. Ms. Daniels is admitted to practice law in New York.

Christopher B. Davis. Chris Davis is a Managing Director and the Deputy General Counsel of Tudor Investment Corporation. Mr. Davis provides legal advice and support on a wide range of subjects, including transactional, regulatory, technological and corporate governance matters. Prior to joining Tudor in April 2012, Mr. Davis was an associate at Linklaters LLP in New York and London (2008-2012). Mr. Davis is a graduate of Vanderbilt University and the University of Texas School of Law.

Taggart Davis serves as Managing Director, Head of EU Government Affairs at Managed Funds Association (MFA). He is responsible for the development and execution of MFA’s policy engagement strategy for Brussels and the European Union.

Prior to joining MFA, Taggart headed the J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. government relations office in Brussels for a decade and advocated on a range of policy issues, including investment management, banking, transatlantic relations and EU-UK relations. During his time with J.P. Morgan, he also served as Director and Vice Chairman of the Board of the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU (AmCham EU). He also worked in the European Parliament as a Parliamentary Assistant from 2008-2011, where he helped negotiate the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD), the Short Selling Regulation (SSR) and other EU financial legislation.

Taggart earned a B.A. in Spanish from the University of Montana and an M.A. in Comparative Politics from the University of Essex (UK).

Marie is Co-Chair of the firm’s Investment Management group, which has been selected as one of the preeminent practices in the United States for its representation of private funds. Marie represents investment management clients throughout the United States and internationally. Her clients include fund managers, particularly venture fund managers, from first-time and emerging managers to very large and well-established firms; institutional investors considering and negotiating fund investments; and fund professionals joining or separating from investment organizations. Marie specializes in structuring business transactions to maximize the achievement of clients’ goals from both a business and tax perspective. She particularly focuses on venture capital funds; joint ventures; and shareholder, limited partner, and limited liability company agreements.

Reggie started her career in 1997 as an attorney at Anderson, Kill & Olick in New York. Reggie now focuses her practice on corporate, regulatory, governance, and ESG-related matters. Reggie is currently the chairperson of AIMA’s Sound Practices Committee and sits on the board of EMpower – The Emerging Markets Foundation. She joined Emso in 2013. Reggie earned a BA in Philosophy and a JD both from the University of Michigan, and has an MBA from London Business School.

Stefanie joined Southpoint Capital in 2015. Prior to Southpoint, Stefanie was GC/CCO of Tiger Consumer Management.  Prior to TCM, she was the CCO of Sabretooth Capital Management.  Prior to Sabretooth, she was Head of Risk for the alternative investment funds group at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.  Before joining BBH, she was the CCO of U.S. Trust’s alternative investments and mutual funds, then Head of Product Development for Alternative Investment Group at U.S. Trust / BAML.  Stefanie graduated from the University of Rochester in 1995 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Art History, and she holds a JD from New York Law School (2000).  She was admitted to the New York State Bar in 2000.

Jennifer A. Duggins, IACCP® is an Assistant Director and Co-Head of the Private Funds Unit within the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations. Prior to joining the SEC, Jennifer was a Director in Regulatory Risk Consulting within the Advisory Practice of KPMG. Prior to joining KPMG, Jennifer was Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer of Chilton Investment Company. Prior to Chilton, Jennifer was Vice President, Legal and Compliance at Andor Capital Management. Jennifer has served as a Faculty Member and Director of the Board of the National Society of Compliance Professionals (NSCP) and served as a CCO Roundtable Steering Committee Member with the Managed Funds Association during 2009 and 2010. Jennifer has a B.A. in History from New York University and a M.S. in Human Resource Management from Sacred Heart University John F. Welch College of Business. Jennifer is also an Investment Adviser Certified Compliance Professional, IACCP®

Marc E. Elovitz is co-managing partner of the firm. He serves as chair of the Investment Management Regulatory & Compliance Group and as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Marc advises private fund managers on running their businesses consistent with the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and all other applicable laws, regulations and legal requirements. Marc provides guidance to clients on SEC registration, examination and enforcement matters. He also regularly leads training sessions for investment professionals on complying with insider trading and market manipulation laws, and he has developed and led compliance training sessions for marketing and investor relations professionals. Marc works closely with clients undergoing SEC examinations and responding to deficiency letters and enforcement referrals. He develops new compliance testing programs in areas such as trade allocations and conflicts of interest, and he leads macro-level compliance infrastructure reviews with fund managers, identifying the material risks specific to each particular firm and evaluating the compliance programs in place to address those risks. Marc has a cutting edge practice covering the latest trends of interest to private funds, including blockchain technology and digital assets. He advises on the legal and regulatory considerations involving virtual and digital currency business initiatives and the blockchain technology behind them.

Marc is frequently invited to discuss current industry-related topics of interest at leading professional and trade association events. He has presented on whistleblowing, regulatory and compliance issues for private funds and SEC inspections and examinations of hedge funds and private equity funds, among many other topics. Chambers USA, Chambers Global, The Legal 500 US, Who’s Who Legal: The International Who’s Who of Private Funds Lawyers and New York Super Lawyers have recognized Marc as a leading lawyer. He has been a member of the Steering Committee of the Managed Funds Association’s Outside Counsel Forum, the American Bar Association’s Hedge Funds Subcommittee and the Private Investment Funds Committee of the New York City Bar Association. A recognized thought leader, Marc is regularly interviewed by leading media outlets, including Bloomberg, HFMWeek, HFM Compliance, Compliance Reporter, IA Watch, Private Funds Management and Law360, to name a few. Marc is a co-author of Hedge Funds: Formation, Operation and Regulation (ALM Law Journal Press), the “Protecting Firms Through Policies and Procedures, Training, and Testing” chapter in the Insider Trading Law and Compliance Answer Book (Practising Law Institute) and the “Market Manipulation” chapter in the leading treatise Federal Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Matthew Bender). He also wrote the chapter on “The Legal Basis of Investment Management in the U.S.” for The Law of Investment Management (Oxford University Press). Marc received his J.D. from NYU School of Law and his B.A., with honors, from Wesleyan University.

RANAH ESMAILI is a member of the firm’s global Securities Enforcement and Regulatory practice, which is highly ranked in Chambers USA for Securities Regulation: Enforcement, and was named the “Law Firm of the Year” for Securities Regulation in 2020 and 2017 by U.S. News – Best Lawyers®. Ranah’s practice focuses on representing private fund managers, registered fund advisers and trustees, investment advisers to individuals and separately managed accounts, and broker dealers in regulatory and government investigations and examinations. She also provides advice and counseling to clients on a wide range of securities regulatory matters, including conflicts of interest and disclosure, fees and expense practices and disclosure, mutual fund share class selection and disclosures, material non-public information, off-channel communications, and ESG disclosures and compliance.

Ranah joined Sidley in 2021 from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Enforcement Division, where she served as assistant director of the Asset Management Unit. In that role, she oversaw investigations relating to the activities of hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, registered investment companies, separately managed accounts, and their investment advisers.

Prior to her time with the SEC, Ranah was counsel at a leading global law firm where she represented financial institutions, domestic and foreign corporations, and special committees in civil litigation matters, internal and government investigations, and enforcement matters before the SEC, the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

During her tenure at the SEC, Ranah brought significant and groundbreaking enforcement actions, including first-ever enforcement actions against a digital asset hedge fund manager, and a mutual fund adviser for undisclosed conflicts related to securities lending recall practices. She also supervised an enforcement action resulting in one of the SEC’s largest-ever hedge fund settlements. Ranah also developed and led sweeps and initiatives focused on asset management industry practices, including on issues related to securities lending and ESG disclosures. She also served in multiple policy roles within the Division of Enforcement, including a detail as counsel to the Directors of Enforcement and senior advisor to the Asset Management Unit. Before joining the Asset Management Unit, Ranah conducted investigations relating to conduct by public company issuers, audit companies, and municipal bond offerors.

Shawn Fagan is Chief Legal Officer of Citadel, responsible for Citadel’s global legal, compliance, transaction management, and regulatory affairs functions. Shawn is a member of Citadel’s Portfolio Committee.

Prior to joining Citadel in 2005, Shawn was a Partner at Bartlit, Beck, Herman, Palenchar & Scott. Previously, he served as a clerk for Chief Justice William Rehnquist of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Douglas H. Ginsburg of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

Shawn serves on the Board of Directors for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Program on International Financial Systems (PIFS), is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation (ABF), and is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago. He graduated with honors from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in Political Science and holds a J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School where he was a recipient of both the Sears Prize and John E. Thayer Award.

Ms. Farahnakian serves as GCM Grosvenor’s Global Chief Compliance Officer and is a member of the firm’s Operations Committee. She leads the firm’s Compliance Team and is responsible for ensuring that the firm maintains compliance with various federal, state, and international regulations. Prior to joining GCM Grosvenor, she was a Managing Director and Assistant General Counsel at JPMorgan Chase. During this time, she was also Head of Regulatory and Compliance functions for Research, Americas Investment Banking, Americas Control Room, and Disclosure of Interest. She has also worked as an Executive Director in Legal at Morgan Stanley, where she advised its Global Research Department on legal and compliance issues. Prior to that, she practiced as an in-house litigator and Assistant General Counsel at JPMorgan Chase, covering sales and trading, investment banking, research and retail. She began her legal career as a litigation associate at Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP. Ms. Farahnakian graduated with distinction, Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and French. She was also a Morehead-Cain Scholar. She received her Juris Doctor from Yale University. Currently, Ms. Farahnakian is a member of the Illinois Bar, the New York Bar, The Adler Planetarium Women’s Board, The Yale Chicago Board, and the YaleWomen Chicago Board, and the Facing History Advisory Board. Recently, she was honored by the ADL at their 25th Women of Achievement award.

Steven M. Felsenthal.  Mr. Felsenthal is General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Millburn Ridgefield Corporation and all of its US and global affiliated entities.  Prior to joining Millburn in January 2004, Mr. Felsenthal was a senior associate in the investment management group at Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP (September 1999- January 2004), where he represented and advised hedge funds, registered investment companies, investment advisers, broker-dealers and banks in connection with all facets of their asset management businesses, and a member of the tax department of Kramer, Levin, Naftalis & Frankel LLP (October 1996- September 1999).  He graduated cum laude from Yeshiva University in 1991 with a bachelor of arts degree in political science, and order of the coif from Fordham University School of Law in 1996, where he also served as an editor of the Fordham Environmental Law Journal.  Mr. Felsenthal received an LL.M degree in taxation from NYU School of Law in 2001 and has written and been quoted in numerous published articles on various topics related to investment management.

Mr. Friedman serves as the Global Deputy General Counsel with oversight of all legal and regulatory matters. He coordinates Cerberus’ internal legal teams and manages legal and regulatory risks across all desks and departments.

Prior to joining Cerberus in 2021, Mr. Friedman was General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Kensico Capital Management, a multi-billion dollar hedge fund he joined in 2010. Previously, he was a branch chief in the Enforcement division at the Securities & Exchange Commission (New York Office) during the financial crisis where he conducted a number of high-profile investigations, including those of the Galleon/Rajaratnam insider trading ring, the unraveling of the Madoff ponzi scheme, and the collapses at Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers. Mr. Friedman was at the Securities & Exchange Commission from 2006 to 2010. From 1999 to 2006, Mr. Friedman was an associate at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and prior to that, he served as a law clerk to Richard A. Posner, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

Mr. Friedman graduated with honors from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was Articles Editor of the Law Review, and received a bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from Columbia University.

Andy is General Counsel of Viking Global Investors LP. Prior to joining Viking in June 2018, Andy was a partner for 14 years in the Government, Regulatory & Internal Investigations and Litigation practice groups at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York, where he handled a wide variety of white-collar defense and complex litigation matters. From 1998 to 2004, he was an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, where he prosecuted and tried numerous criminal cases and argued a number of appeals, and also served as Deputy Chief of the General Crimes Section. Andy was an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore from 1995 to 1998, and before that served as law clerk to the Hon. Thomas P. Griesa, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He received his J.D. (cum laude) from Harvard Law School in 1994 and his B.A. (summa cum laude) in English from Cornell University, College of Arts & Sciences in 1991.

Mark S. Germann is an Assistant General Counsel at Elliott Management Corporation and also serves as a director to the litigation funder Innsworth Capital, which is owned by the Elliott funds.  Mark joined Elliott in 2019.  From 2010 through 2018, Mark was a senior counsel in the Enforcement Division of the Securities & Exchange Commission and also served from 2017 to 2018 as a special AUSA in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.  Prior to government service, Mark was a counsel at O’Melveny & Myers LLP with a focus on securities and antitrust litigation.  Mark received his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School, and a B.S. in political science from Indiana University.

Since joining Bridgewater in 2007, Helene has led Bridgewater’s compliance function, including creating and maintaining a program that satisfies regulatory, fiduciary, and client contractual obligations, while simultaneously implementing global best practices and standards. She is also responsible for demonstrating assurance to Bridgewater’s clients, auditors, and regulators that Bridgewater’s compliance program meets or exceeds its responsibilities, and for regularly conducting compliance training with Bridgewater employees. Helene is a Partner and manages the firm’s participation in various private fund best practice initiatives, including the Alternative Investment Management Association (“AIMA”), Managed Funds Association and the Standards Board for Alternative Investments.

Outside of Bridgewater, Helene serves as a Council Member for AIMA and as a Director on the Board of Hartford Healthcare.

In 2018, Helene was named among the “50 Leading Women in Hedge Funds” by The Hedge Fund Journal. She regularly speaks at industry conferences on issues relating to alternative asset management risk, compliance, technology, legal, and diversity and inclusion.

Before joining Bridgewater, Helene spent ten years as an attorney in the Enforcement Division of the US Securities and Exchange Commission. From 2004-2007, she co-headed the enforcement program for the SEC’s New York Regional Office, where she oversaw investigations and litigation involving insider trading, market manipulation, accounting fraud, Ponzi schemes, and other fraudulent conduct. She started her career as a litigation associate at Brown & Wood LLP. Helene received her JD from the University of Michigan Law School and her BA from Binghamton University.

Commissioner Goldsmith Romero was sworn in as a CFTC Commissioner on March 30, 2022, after being nominated by President Joseph Biden in September 2021, and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Prior to becoming a CFTC Commissioner, Commissioner Goldsmith Romero served for a decade as the Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP), a role for which she was nominated by President Barack Obama and unanimously confirmed by the Senate on March 29, 2012. In that role, she led a nationwide federal law enforcement agency and watchdog over TARP, a program where the U.S. Government became a shareholder in banks, the automotive industry and insurance industry; owned, exchanged, and traded in corporate securities and derivatives; and administered foreclosure relief for consumers.

Commissioner Goldsmith Romero also served on the staff at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. She served on the Executive Staff during the financial crisis, as counsel to SEC Chairwoman Mary Schapiro and Chairman Christopher Cox. In that role, she advised the Chairs, and served as a liaison to SEC commissioners and staff. For four years she served as senior counsel in the SEC’s Enforcement Division, where she investigated securities law violations, including related to financial institution fraud, insider trading, hedge funds, and retail investor fraud. Prior to her service at the SEC, Commissioner Goldsmith Romero served as an associate and counsel at law firms, and served a federal judicial clerkship.

Commissioner Goldsmith Romero’s leadership has protected markets, the financial system, investors and consumers. She has testified before Congress 12 times, and meets often with Congress on policy issues related to the financial system and regulation. She served on a group of inspectors general conducting oversight of the Financial Stability Oversight Council. She led SIGTARP’s investigations into bank fraud, securities fraud, violations of bank and securities laws, money laundering, corruption, mortgage fraud, and conspiracy. These investigations resulted in recoveries of more than $11 billion, criminal charges against 465 defendants, and Department of Justice, SEC, and other federal and state enforcement actions against financial institutions, corporations, and individuals. These landmark cases had lasting impact to make the financial industry safer.

Under Commissioner Goldsmith Romero’s leadership, SIGTARP was known for its unique ability to find fraud in financial institutions. SIGTARP’s investigations resulted in criminal charges against more than 100 bankers, with courts sentencing 74 bankers to prison. Commissioner Goldsmith Romero’s actions to protect markets and investors led SIGTARP to uncover fraudulent sales practices by broker dealers in mortgage-backed securities that had never been addressed by any other federal agency. These cases resulted in Department of Justice prosecutions, SEC civil enforcement actions, and widespread changes to industry sales tactics. Commissioner Goldsmith Romero has also written on, and investigated, harm to consumers. She also led investigations resulting in prison sentences for more than 100 mortgage fraudsters.

Commissioner Goldsmith Romero has received national recognition for her work. She has written extensively on issues related to the financial system, including on systemic risk, the interconnected nature of the financial system, Too Big to Fail, capital, lending, and market issues. Her work and publications have received substantial media coverage by ABC, NBC, USA Today, The Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Financial Times, Reuters, Forbes, Bloomberg, The Washington Post, The Washington Examiner, Politico, CNBC, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, American Banker, NPR, The Guardian, The International Business Times, The Los Angeles Times, The San Francisco Examiner, The Charlotte Observer, and many other local and trade news outlets.

Commissioner Goldsmith Romero lives in Virginia with her wife, and is an empty-nester to three adult daughters.

Rachel Grand is a vice president of D. E. Shaw & Co., L.P. and a member of the D. E. Shaw group’s Legal & Compliance department. Ms. Grand served as an associate in the D. E. Shaw group’s Legal department from 2006 to 2010 and as a vice president in its Legal & Compliance department from 2013 to 2017. Prior to rejoining the firm in 2018, she was general counsel and chief compliance officer at Matarin Capital Management, LLC. Ms. Grand previously served as general counsel and chief compliance officer at Chalkstream Capital Group, L.P. and deputy general counsel at Tower Research Capital, LLC. She began her career as an associate at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP. Ms. Grand received a B.A. in political science, with distinction, from Yale University and her J.D. from New York University School of Law, where she was managing editor of the Journal of Legislation and Public Policy.

Harry Greenbaum is a Deputy General Counsel for Citadel.

Prior to joining Citadel in 2018, Mr. Greenbaum was Senior Counsel at Bridgewater Associates, where he was responsible for various investment fund and client related legal matters. Previously, he was an Associate at Sidley Austin LLP in the Investment Funds group, where his practice focused on hedge funds and other alternative investment products and their investment advisers in connection with corporate, regulatory and compliance matters.

Mr. Greenbaum received a bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, from Brandeis University and a J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.

Peter D. Greene, Partner and co-head of the Investment Management Group, focuses his practice on all matters related to the formation and structuring of private funds and management companies, compliance and regulatory requirements, and public to private investment opportunities. He has particular experience in insider trading determinations, including the purchase, analysis and use of alternative data and related enforcement. Peter has advised on many of the leading hedge fund launches over the past 17 years; his clients include well-pedigreed managers launching their first funds and some of the largest hedge fund managers. Having previously served as the General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer of a buy-side investment firm, Peter has a unique understanding of his clients’ goals and the nature of their interactions with investors, regulators, auditors, administrators, employees and outside counsel.

Peter is recognized as a leading investment funds lawyer for his work in the hedge funds space by Chambers USA, Chambers Global and The Legal 500 US, with clients stating that “he is the lawyer that I rely most heavily on and he is a really good resource for commercial legal advice” and “an exceptional lawyer” who “combines an excellent business sense with a strong legal background.” Business Insider recently recognized Peter as one of “the 29 bankers, advisors, and lawyers to know if you’re thinking about starting your own hedge fund.” Peter has served on the Board of Directors of the Managed Funds Association (MFA), the leading trade association for the hedge fund and global alternative investment industry. He is also Chairperson of the Board of Directors of The Acceleration Project, a female-founded, female-led business advisory non-profit dedicated to keeping local economies vital and channeling talent into the economy.

Gurbir Grewal is the Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. Immediately before joining the Commission, Gurbir was the Attorney General for the State of New Jersey. Prior to that, he served as the Bergen County Prosecutor, the chief law enforcement officer for New Jersey’s most populous county. Earlier in his career, Gurbir served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, where he was Chief of the Economic Crimes Unit, and an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, where he was assigned to the Business and Securities Fraud Unit. He was also an attorney in private practice. He holds a J.D. from the College of William & Mary, Marshall-Wythe School of Law, and a B.S. in Foreign Service from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.

Daniel Gutin is the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Brinley Partners, LP. Prior to joining Brinley, Daniel was a Managing Director and Associate General Counsel at Oak Hill Advisors, L.P.  Prior to that role, Daniel was an associate in the private funds group at Simpson Thacher & Barlett LLP. Daniel earned his J.D., magna cum laude, from the Georgetown University Law Center, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif, and a B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania.

Isaac Haas has been associated with HBK since 2015 and serves as HBK’s General Counsel, with primary responsibility for managing the firm’s legal function. Prior to joining HBK, Isaac was an attorney at Haynes and Boone, LLP, where he advised investment funds and operating companies on corporate and securities matters. He began his legal career as an associate at Jones Day. Isaac received a B.B.A. degree in Finance and Risk Management & Insurance in 2004 from Baylor University. He received a J.D. degree magna cum laude in 2011 from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, where he was a Sumners Scholar and served on the editorial board of the SMU Law Review Association.

Jennifer Han serves as Associate General Counsel at Managed Funds Association (MFA).  In her position, she advocates and shapes legislative and regulatory policies affecting the alternative investment industry in the U.S., Europe and Asia.  She advises on, develops and implements strategies for MFA members in seeking legal, regulatory and compliance changes and/or guidance for investment advisers, commodity trading advisors and commodity pool operators.  She has extensive experience working with policy makers and regulators, such as throughout the financial crisis, post-crisis and to refinement of today’s regulatory framework.  She works regularly with legislative policy makers and regulators, including the SEC, CFTC, Department of Treasury, Federal Reserve, NFA, ESMA, UK FCA and IOSCO, among many others.

As background, MFA represents the global alternative investment industry and its investors by advocating for sound industry practices and public policies that foster efficient, transparent, and fair capital markets. MFA, based in Washington, DC, is an advocacy, education, and communications organization established to enable hedge fund and managed futures firms in the alternative investment industry to participate in public policy discourse, share best practices and learn from peers, and communicate the industry’s contributions to the global economy. MFA members help pension plans, university endowments, charitable organizations, qualified individuals and other institutional investors to diversify their investments, manage risk, and generate attractive returns over time. MFA has cultivated a global membership and actively engages with regulators and policy makers in Asia, Europe, the Americas, Australia and many other regions where MFA members are market participants.

Prior to joining MFA, Jennifer was a staff attorney in the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations at the SEC, where she conducted inspections and examinations, and advised on legal and compliance matters relating to developments in securities regulations and industry practices.  Jennifer began her legal career as an associate with Pickard and Djinis LLP, a boutique securities law firm in Washington, D.C.  She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University and her Juris Doctor from American University.  While in law school, she was an Editor of the American University International Law Review.  Jennifer is a member in good standing of the Virginia bar.

Amanda Hector is General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer. Prior to joining D1, Amanda served as General Counsel of another investment firm. Prior to holding that position, Amanda spent eight years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, where she most recently served in the Business and Securities Fraud Unit. Before becoming a federal prosecutor, Amanda was a litigation associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett for four years.

Amanda graduated from Princeton University, Woodrow Wilson School of Public Policy, Phi Beta Kappa in 1999. She received a JD from Yale Law School.

Scott Hendler is Deputy General Counsel – Funds and Trading at Viking Global Investors LP. Prior to joining Viking in 2017, Scott was an Executive Director in the Legal and Compliance division at Morgan Stanley, and an Associate at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. Scott received a J.D. from the New York University School of Law, an MBA from Columbia Business School, and a B.A. in economics, summa cum laude, from Binghamton University.

Samuel Hest is Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel at Eminence Capital, LP.  Prior to joining Eminence in 2015, Sam was Senior Compliance Officer and Counsel at Ziff Brothers Investments.  Prior to that, Sam was Senior Vice President at HedgeOp Compliance, where he developed, administered, and tested the full range of compliance policies and procedures for numerous hedge funds.  Prior to his role with HedgeOp, Sam was an associate at the law firms Schulte Roth & Zabel and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, where he focused on counseling hedge funds in connection with fund regulatory, compliance, and structuring issues.  Sam received his BA from Emory University and his JD, with honors, from The George Washington University Law School.

Robert J. Jackson, Jr. is the Pierrepont Family Professor of Law, Co-Director of the Institute for Corporate Governance and Finance, and Director of the Program on Corporate Law and Policy at the New York University School of Law. Among other premier publications, his work has been featured in the Journal of Finance, the Journal of Law and Economics, and the Harvard Law Review.

He was nominated and unanimously confirmed by the Senate to be Commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2017 and served in that role until February 2020. Commissioner Jackson was an outspoken advocate for protecting investors, consistently calling for more transparency in capital markets and championing evidence-driven policymaking. Jackson challenged Silicon Valley insiders on dual-class stock that enables intergenerational transfers of control of America’s largest public companies and called competition economics the “forgotten fourth pillar” of the SEC’s mission. Jackson’s Office helped lead the SEC’s unanimous adoption of a pilot to study effects of stock-exchange payments on market dynamics.

Jackson’s research has consistently produced bipartisan legislation to address the gaps created by application of securities law to modern markets. His paper identifying significant insider trading before the announcement of significant corporate developments led to legislation to outlaw that trading. Another study identifying how SEC systems gave high-speed traders an advantage over ordinary investors led to bipartisan demands for a level playing field. And Jackson’s calls for an insider-trading law for the 21st century produced a bipartisan bill to close gaps in existing law.

Prior to his nomination to the Commission, Professor Jackson taught at Columbia Law School, where students honored him with the Reese Prize for Excellence in Teaching. Before that, he served as a senior policy advisor at the U.S. Treasury Department during the financial crisis and as deputy to Kenneth Feinberg, Treasury’s Special Master on Executive Compensation. Earlier in his career, Professor Jackson practiced law at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and was an investment banker at Bear, Stearns. Jackson holds two undergraduate degrees (one in finance, another in philosophy) from the University of Pennsylvania, an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School of Business, a Master of Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School, and a law degree from the Harvard Law School. He was born in the Bronx, is a lifelong fan of the New York Yankees, and lives in New York with his wife Bryana and son Briggs.

Commissioner Johnson was sworn in as a CFTC Commissioner on March 30, 2022, after being nominated by President Joseph Biden in September 2021, and unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate. Commissioner Johnson is a nationally recognized expert on financial markets risk management law and policy with specialization in the regulation of complex financial products including the origination, distribution, and secondary market trading, clearing, and settlement of securities and derivatives. She is an internationally recognized expert on financial markets regulation and corporate governance, compliance, and risk management. Her recent work examines the implications of emerging innovative technologies including distributed digital ledger technologies that enable the creation of digital assets and intermediaries and artificial intelligence technologies that target commercial and consumer financial transactions, transfers, and assessments.

In April of 2021, she testified at a hearing before the United States House of Representatives Financial Services Committee Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions entitled Banking Innovation or Regulatory Evasion? Exploring Trends in Financial Institution Charters. The single-panel hearing discussed policy considerations with respect to banking charters and explored disintermediation in legacy financial markets such as banking and the provision of clearing and custody services. In July of 2019, she testified before the United States House of Representatives Financial Services Committee Task Force on Financial Technology and the Task Force on Artificial Intelligence entitled Examining the Use of Alternative Data exploring the implications of integrating artificial intelligence in financial technology (fintech) platforms.

Prior to joining the Commission, she held endowed professorships at Emory University and Tulane University Law Schools and visiting professorships at prestigious law schools around the nation. She taught courses in the regulation of securities and derivatives markets, financial institutions, including courses on fintech, the development of blockchain technologies and artificial intelligence, as well as corporations and ethical leadership. She is an elected member of the American Law Institute, an American Bar Foundation Fellow, and Chair of the Securities Regulation Section and the Executive Committee of the Business Associations and Financial Institutions and Consumer Financial Services Sections of the Association of American Law Schools.

Prior to entering the academy, Commissioner Johnson served as Vice President and Assistant General Counsel in the Treasury Services Division of one of the largest financial institutions in the world supporting private funds cash management services, a corporate associate at Simpson, Thacher, and Bartlett LLP’s New York and London offices where she represented issuers and underwriters in domestic and international debt and equity offerings, lenders and borrowers in banking and credit matters, and private equity firms and publicly-traded companies in mergers and acquisitions. Before attending law school, Commissioner Johnson served as an analyst in the Asset Management Division of a storied financial institution. She clerked for a federal judge who previously served on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Commissioner Johnson has a B.S. with honors from Georgetown University Edmund Walsh School of Foreign Service and a J.D. from The University of Michigan Law School where she served as a senior editor on the Michigan Law Review and received the Clara Belfield and Henry Bates International Research Fellowship.

Brendan Kalb is the General Counsel of ExodusPoint Capital Management, LP. Prior to joining ExodusPoint, Brendan was a partner in the Investment Management Group at Morgan Lewis in New York. Prior to joining Morgan Lewis, Brendan was the General Counsel at AQR Capital Management, LLC, a quantitative registered investment adviser based in Greenwich, CT, where he was responsible for managing the full spectrum of the firm’s legal affairs. Prior to joining AQR, Brendan worked as an associate at the law firms of Willkie Farr & Gallagher and Seward & Kissel. Brendan received his JD from Cornell Law School and graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in International Relations & Economics from the University of Pennsylvania. Brendan has served as a member of the Board of the Directors of the National Futures Association and as a member of the Managed Funds Association’s Investment Adviser and Government Affairs Committees, and as Chairman of the MFA’s CTA, CPO and Futures Committee. Brendan also serves on the Board of Advisors of the Institute for Law and Economics, a joint research center between the Law School, the Wharton School and the Department of Economics at the University of Pennsylvania

Michael Kitson joined Bridgewater in 2015 and is Bridgewater’s Deputy Chief Compliance Officer. Together with Bridgewater’s Chief Compliance Officer, Michael is responsible for the oversight of the firm’s compliance program and advising Bridgewater’s senior leaders on key compliance initiatives and regulatory developments. Michael regularly represents Bridgewater with industry groups and best practices organizations, such as the Managed Funds Association and Alternative Investment Management Association, and is a frequent participant in panel discussions on a variety of topics including investment adviser regulation, financial crimes compliance, cross-border regulatory developments, and the structure and resourcing of in-house legal and compliance functions. Prior to joining Bridgewater, Michael held multiple legal and regulatory roles at global financial institutions and advised on topics such as the sales and trading of securities and derivatives, cross-border trade financing, anti-money laundering, sanctions, and consumer lending. 

Michael received his J.D. from Fordham University School of Law and his B.A. degree from Boston College. He is a member of the New York and New Jersey bars and is Authorized In-House Counsel in Connecticut.

Ele Klein practices in the areas of shareholder activism, mergers and acquisitions, securities law and regulatory compliance. He represents activists, investment banks and companies in matters ranging from corporate governance and control to proxy contests and defensive strategies. His recent representations have included representing Engine No. 1 in ExxonMobil; Trian Fund Management in multiple matters; Elliott Management in Marathon Petroleum, Akamai Technologies and Hess Corp.; JANA Partners in Jack in the Box, Whole Foods, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Tiffany; D.E. Shaw in Emerson Electric; Greenlight Capital in General Motors; Cevian Capital in Autoliv, ABB and LM Ericsson; Starboard Value in Papa John’s International and Acacia Research; Caligan Partners in Knowles Corp. and AMAG Pharmaceuticals; Blue Harbour in Investors Bancorp; venBio Select Advisor in Immunomedics; Saba Capital in First Trust; Oasis Capital in Stratus Properties; Altimeter Capital Management in United Continental Holding; SRS Investment Management in Avis Budget Group; and Anchorage in connection with board representation at Houghton Mifflin. Ele works on numerous activist campaigns and related transactions every year for some of the largest private investment groups and investment banks in the United States and abroad. In addition, he advises on private investments in public equity (PIPEs), initial public offerings and secondary offerings, venture capital financing, and indenture defaults and interpretation, and he counsels clients in the regulatory areas of insider trading, short selling, Sections 13 and 16, Rule 144, insider trading and Regulation M/Rule 105.

Ele is recognized as a 2022 Dealmaker of the Year in The American Lawyer, for his work on Engine No. 1, the largest proxy fight in history, which resulted in the addition of three directors to the ExxonMobile board of directors. He is also ranked as a leading lawyer in Chambers USA, The Legal 500 US, New York Super Lawyers – New York Metro Top 100 and Super Lawyers Business Edition. He has served as a moderator and speaker at numerous conferences and events addressing Shareholder Activism, regulatory and reporting issues, PIPEs, M&A deals, the capital markets and other topics of interest to the alternative investment industry. He is a regular contributor to the Shareholder Activism Insight report and The Activist Investing Annual Review, produced annually by Activist Insight in association with SRZ. Ele received his J.D. from Yale Law School where he was senior editor on The Yale Law Journal.

Kelly Koscuiszka advises private funds on regulatory and compliance matters, particularly the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, and works closely with clients undergoing SEC examinations. She also advises clients on environmental, social and governance (ESG), regulatory risks associated with alternative data and other innovative research strategies, privacy and data security and the regulatory challenges presented by new technologies. She leads training sessions for clients, including on topics such as alternative data, insider trading, ESG, the new marketing rule and best practices for electronic communications and technology usage. When necessary, she represents clients in regulatory investigations and enforcement actions by the SEC, DOJ and FINRA as well as in complex civil litigation matters. Kelly is admitted to the Bar in New York and has Court Admissions in the US Supreme Court; the US District Court of New Jersey; the US District Courts in Eastern and Southern Districts of New York.

Kelly received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and her B.A. from Rutgers University.

Nicole Krea is a partner in the corporate department and asset management group. Nicole focuses her practice on private investment funds, and routinely advises fund sponsor clients regarding various fundraising, regulatory and compliance matters. Nicole also represents institutional investors and funds of funds in connection with their investments in private funds and in co-investments.

Prior to joining the firm, Nicole worked as a Staff Attorney Fellow with Kids In Need of Defense (KIND). Nicole continues to work with KIND and provides pro bono representation to unaccompanied children in removal proceedings.

Ken started his career at ACA Compliance Group (formally Cordium) as a consultant for hedge funds, private equity firms, and other investment managers to help them meet their regulatory challenges.  Following that, Ken joined Emso in 2016, where he has assisted with management of the Firm’s day-to-day compliance program as well as advising the Firm on regulatory legal matters.  Ken was promoted to Deputy Chief Compliance Officer in 2019, and further promoted to Chief Compliance Officer in April 2023.

Ken earned a JD from the University of Connecticut School of Law and holds a BA from Trinity College (CT), with High Honors, in History.

Robert G. Leonard is a partner in the Hedge Funds Group at Proskauer. For more than 25 years Rob has been structuring, organizing and representing hedge funds, funds of funds and other private investment funds (both domestic and offshore) and investment advisers. He has structured and organized numerous master-feeder, side-by-side and mini-master-feeder funds for hedge fund managers engaged in myriad strategies, including long/short equity, multi-strat, credit, distressed credit, mortgage-backed securities, risk arb, emerging markets, global macro, stat arb, relative value and event driven.

Rob has advised managers on seed deals, founder’s classes, funds of one and placement agreements and develops innovative ways of building asset bases. He also has worked with managers on bringing in and retaining talent through structuring employment, “phantom” equity and true equity arrangements.

Rob has handled a variety of regulatory and other compliance matters, including registrations with the SEC, CFTC and state regulators, filing Form PF and filings with the Treasury Department and Bureau of Economic Analysis. In addition, he works on SEC and other regulatory examinations and investigations, as well as investor and third-party actions.

Courtney is currently Chief Compliance Officer and General Counsel of Marshall Wace North America.  She is also a member of the Global Operating Committee. Prior to joining the firm, Courtney was Chief Compliance Officer and General Counsel of Hound Partners, which was seeded by Tiger Management.  She began her career at Systematic Financial Management, an affiliate of Affiliated Managers Group.

Courtney gained a Bachelor of Arts (2007) from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study and a Juris Doctorate with a Masters in International Political Economy and Development (2010) from Fordham University.  Courtney is an adjunct professor in Fordham Law School’s Masters of Compliance program, for which she also helped develop the course curriculum in Investment Management Regulation.  She is also Board Chairperson of Literacy Partners, an adult literacy non-profit organization focused on having a two-generation impact on education.

Jeremy focuses his practice on futures and derivatives law. Jeremy regularly advises asset managers including mutual funds, hedge funds, private equity funds, family offices, endowments and insurance companies on commodities law matters including CPO/CTA registration, regulation and compliance issues. Jeremy has significant experience working with regulators, including the CFTC, NFA, futures exchanges and swap execution facilities, on behalf of clients in connection with regulatory inquiries, enforcement actions, regulatory audits and obtaining no-action relief.

In addition, Jeremy regularly advises “buy side” clients on derivatives and trading arrangements. Jeremy frequently represents public companies in connection with equity derivatives transactions, including accelerated share repurchase programs, capped calls and call spread overlays. Jeremy also has experience structuring and negotiating total return swaps.

Prior to joining Ropes & Gray, Jeremy was in-house counsel at a CFTC regulated futures exchange. While in law school, Jeremy was a legal intern with the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement.

Mr. Lloyd joined Campbell & Company in September 2005.  Mr. Lloyd is involved in all aspects of legal affairs, compliance and regulatory oversight.  Since January 2019, Mr. Lloyd has served on the Board of Directors of Campbell & Company, LLC, the general partner of Campbell & Company.  From July 1999 to September 2005, Mr. Lloyd was employed by Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., a broker/dealer subsidiary of a global investment bank, in several positions, including Managing Director and head of the legal group for Deutsche Bank Alex. Brown, the Private Client Division of Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.  From 1997 to 1999 Mr. Lloyd served as a Counsel in the Enforcement Department of NASD Regulation (now FINRA).  From 1995 to 1997 Mr. Lloyd served as a Staff Attorney in the Enforcement Division of the United States Securities & Exchange Commission.  Mr. Lloyd holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Maryland, and a J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law.  Mr. Lloyd is a member of the Bars of the State of Maryland and the United States Supreme Court.

Co-leader of Morgan Lewis’s global financial institutions practice, Christine Lombardo advises investment managers and broker-dealers on financial regulatory matters. She concentrates her practice on securities regulation for a broad range of financial firms including retail asset managers, private fund managers, family offices, broker-dealers, other professional traders, and high-net-worth individuals. Christine also counsels legal, compliance, and business personnel on the structure, operation, and distribution of advisory programs, including digital advisory offerings, and investment products, including hedge funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, real estate funds, and other alternative investment products. Christine also counsels financial firms through examinations by industry regulators, as well as on enforcement related matters. She also serves as a co-leader of the firm’s financial technology (fintech) industry team. Before joining Morgan Lewis, she was an associate at an international law firm in New York and worked for the Division of Enforcement at FINRA.

Edward McNicholas co-leads Ropes & Gray’s global data, privacy & cybersecurity practice. He represents technologically-sophisticated clients facing complex data, privacy, and cybersecurity issues.

Recognized by the National Law Journal as a “Cybersecurity & Data Privacy Trailblazer,” Ed has significant experience with litigation and counseling matters involving privacy and data protection, cybersecurity, cloud computing, the Internet of Things, online advertising, and big data/data science.  Chambers USA has included Ed in its rankings of the country’s Leading Lawyers since 2008 and notes that he “impresses sources with his outstanding knowledge and responsive service . . . handling complex privacy matters in his trial and appellate practice.” Chambers Global has recognized the global reach of Ed’s U.S. data protection practice since 2011.

Ed previously served as an Associate Counsel to President Clinton, where he advised senior White House staff regarding various Independent Counsel, congressional and grand jury investigations. He has developed unique experience representing clients in the midst of media-driven legal challenges. His crisis management skills are particularly useful in coordinating the swirl of complex litigation, congressional hearings, and federal and state investigations that can follow from major privacy and cybersecurity incidents.

Mr. McNicholas received his J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.  He received his A.B. from Princeton University, and served as a clerk for the Honorable Paul Niemeyer on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Brian Meyer is a Partner, Co-Chief Operating officer and General Counsel of Fir Tree Partners.  Brian is responsible for overseeing the firm’s legal, compliance, human resources and regulatory matters.  Prior to joining Fir Tree, Brian was a Managing Director at Veronis Suhler Stevenson, a media-focused private equity firm and investment bank.  From 1997 until 2004, Brian worked closely with Fir Tree Partners as General Counsel of The Official Information Company, a Fir Tree investment.  From 1993 to 1997, he was Senior Corporate Counsel at Revlon, Inc.  Brian began his professional career specializing in M&A, corporate, securities and banking law at the law firms of Latham & Watkins (1990 – 1993) and Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy (1986 – 1989).  Brian received a J.D. degree from U.C. Berkeley’s Boalt Hall (1986), where he was Executive Editor of the California Law Review, and received a B.A. in History and graduated magna cum laude from the University of California at Berkeley (1982).

Elizabeth Mitchell is a partner in WilmerHale’s Securities and Financial Services Department in Washington, D.C.  She has in-depth experience in matters involving trading, market structure, market conduct, adviser and broker-dealer regulations, disclosure, governance, and internal controls, and regularly represents public and private companies, investment advisers, broker-dealers, and proprietary trading firms, as well as their executives and employees, in regulatory and internal investigations focused on these topics.  She also has an active regulatory counseling practice.  Elizabeth is ranked in Chambers, where her “extremely pragmatic, very thoughtful and creative” approach to helping clients achieve regulatory and business objectives has been highlighted. She is a long-term board member and former board chair of the District of Columbia’s Legal Counsel for the Elderly and has an active pro bono practice. From 1999 to 2001, Ms. Mitchell served as a Trial Attorney in the Torts Branch of the United States Department of Justice and represented the White House and numerous federal agencies.

Kelli Moll is a partner of the Private Funds Group. With over 25 years of experience amassed advising large institutional asset managers to independent sponsors across the spectrum of asset classes, Kelli is considered a leading lawyer in the funds industry.

Kelli’s practice particularly focuses on counseling investment advisors on the formation and ongoing operations of hedge funds, credit funds and growth equity funds. Kelli regularly advises fund sponsors on fund formation, co-investment arrangements, upper tier arrangements, seed capital arrangements, asset manager M&A, complex fund restructurings, funds-of-one, managed accounts and various regulatory issues.

Recognized for her deep knowledge of the industry and superior dedication to her clients, they have deemed Kelli as “fantastic; smart and commercial” and “very knowledgeable” in directories such as Chambers and Legal 500, where she is ranked as a top practitioner in her field year after year.  Kelli is also a staple at industry events, where she is regularly engaged for her thought leadership on business and regulatory trends in the marketplace.

Kelli is impassioned with the arts and serves as a member of the American Ballet Theatre charitable board.

Highly respected by industry peers for his depth of regulatory knowledge, Scott Moss has counseled hundreds of investment management clients in the implementation of compliance programs, as well as in the development of plans to ensure ongoing adherence to emerging regulatory standards.

He possesses a thorough knowledge of the entire panoply of the overlapping securities and commodities laws, rules, and regulations affecting his clients. Scott is part of a team that “always understands the issues at hand, responds very quickly and is able to suggest creative solutions to issues that are often very complicated.” (The Legal 500)

Scott’s extensive experience includes representing offshore and U.S.-based funds, investment advisors, broker-dealers, commodity pool operators, and commodity trading advisors in formation and structuring, securities and commodities regulation, mergers and acquisitions, and other financial transactions.

Scott is also a prominent author and lecturer on corporate law, securities transactions, and investment management. His advisory roles include:

• Adjunct Professor at Rutgers Law School, “Hedge Funds and Investment Adviser Seminar” (2008-2017)
• Former Appointed Director of the Board of Directors for the Managed Funds Association (MFA), which represents the global alternative investment industry and its investors by advocating for regulatory, tax, and other public policies that foster efficient, transparent, and fair capital markets (2021-2023)
• Member of the Steering Committee of the Lawyers’ Advisory Forum and Conference Committee for the MFA
• IA Legal and Regulatory Subcommittee and Speaking Faculty of the National Society of Compliance Professionals

Erin Mullen is the Chief Compliance Officer for Woodline Partners, LP. Previously, Erin worked at Citadel supporting the Fundamental Equities businesses and Citadel’s alternative data initiative. Prior to joining Citadel, she worked at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in a number different of legal and compliance roles. Erin began her career working at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Chadbourne & Parke. Erin attended the Georgetown University Law Center and the University of Minnesota.

James C. Munsell is a partner at Sidley Austin LLP in the firm’s Investment Funds, Advisers and Derivatives practice group in the New York office. Mr. Munsell counsels investment advisers and investment funds in connection with a broad range of corporate, securities, derivatives and regulatory matters. His clients range from small, closely held start-up investment management businesses to the investment management divisions of global financial institutions.

Mr. Munsell was involved in the successful development and launch of the first commodity pool to be listed on a securities exchange in the United States and continues to work on innovative commodity ETFs.

Mr. Munsell is part of Sidley’s Investment Funds, Advisers and Derivatives practice team that has won numerous top awards as a provider of legal services to the private funds industry: two-time winner of Chambers and Partners’ “Investment Funds Team of the Year for the U.S.”; Institutional Investor’s Alpha magazine’s 2014 Alpha Awards top “onshore” (U.S.) law firm serving the hedge fund industry; four-time recipient of first-tier national rankings in the U.S. News – Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” rankings for Private Funds/Hedge Funds Law, and Derivatives and Futures Law; and ranked in the top band for Hedge Funds by Chambers USA every year since 2008.

Mr. Munsell holds a BA from Lawrence University and a J.D.from Fordham University School of Law.

Andrew Nathanson is the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Suvretta Capital Management, LLC.  Prior to joining Suvretta Capital, Mr. Nathanson served as Legal Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer for Mirae Asset Global Investments (USA).  Mr. Nathanson earned his BS in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a J.D. from Suffolk University Law School.

Leonard Ng (www.sidley.com/leonard-ng) is Co-head of the EU Financial Services Regulatory Group at Sidley Austin LLP in London, and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. He advises a wide range of financial institutions, including the Managed Funds Association, its members and other alternative investment managers, on the ongoing changes to the UK and EU regulatory landscape. He also works closely with Sidley’s global regulatory team in advising clients on cross-border regulatory reform, in particular clients affected by overlapping US and EU regulations. Leonard has particular experience in advising clients on operating under the UK/EU regulatory framework established after the last financial crisis (AIFMD, MiFID II, Short Selling Regulation, etc), and more recently on Brexit, sustainable finance/ESG, LIBOR transition and cryptoasset regulation. From September 2014 to September 2016 Leonard was a member of the Board of the Managed Funds Association. Leonard is a frequent speaker at industry conferences.

As the former Chief of the Office of the Whistleblower at the Securities and Exchange Commission, Jane Norberg brings her extensive experience to help clients navigate regulatory, enforcement, governance, and compliance issues associated with whistleblowers. As a former Special Officer in the Division of Enforcement at the SEC and a former Special Agent with the United States Secret Service, Ms. Norberg also brings her unique background and insights to assist clients in bringing regulatory and governmental inquiries to a successful resolution.

Ms. Norberg represents public and private companies, financial institutions, individuals, and investment advisors on sensitive whistleblower and other complex matters, including internal and government investigations; response to and defense of specific whistleblower allegations; securities enforcement and white collar defense; whistleblower retaliation claims defense; proactive assessment and structuring of internal compliance mechanisms, policies and procedures; training boards of directors, management and workforces on internal reporting and retaliation; and crisis management counseling to mitigate reputational risk. Ms. Norberg also conducts sexual harassment and other sensitive investigations, and educates boards of directors and executives about emerging whistleblower programs such as the Anti-Money Laundering Act whistleblower program and NHTSA automotive whistleblower program.

During Ms. Norberg’s tenure at the SEC—she joined the SEC in 2012 as Deputy Chief of the Office and was appointed to Chief in 2016—she helped develop and lead the SEC’s whistleblower program since near its inception. Under her leadership, the Office’s staff expanded and achieved a record-breaking growth in both the number of whistleblower tips received and awards issued to whistleblowers under the program.

Ms. Norberg has extensive experience and knowledge regarding whistleblower retaliation and is the leading expert on agreements that impede reporting in violation of Exchange Act Rule 21F-17, having directly advised on all whistleblower protection cases brought by the SEC during her tenure. She advised senior SEC leadership on emerging whistleblower issues and policies, as well as reported to Congress regarding the program’s activities. Ms. Norberg also had a substantial advisory role related to the amendments to the SEC’s whistleblower rules and has advised other domestic and international regulators related to the development of new whistleblower programs. While at the SEC, Ms. Norberg also co-led a diversity and inclusion initiative across the Division of Enforcement.

Ms. Norberg is a thought leader and sought-after speaker with respect to whistleblower-related issues and also writes regularly on the topic.

Prior to joining the SEC, Ms. Norberg was in private practice, where she focused on executive compensation and employee benefits. She also previously served as a Special Agent in the United States Secret Service and as a legal intern to Judge Joseph M. McLaughlin, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Mark Peckman is the General Counsel of Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC, a registered investment adviser, and its affiliates. From 1999 to 2002, Mr. Peckman served as the General Counsel of Broadway Trading, LLC, a broker dealer. In 2002, Mr. Peckman was recruited to join Schonfeld when the organization purchased substantially all of the assets of Broadway Trading. At Schonfeld, Mr. Peckman has been instrumental in significant business and strategy conversions and restructurings over 17 years, as the business evolved from a proprietary trading firm, clearing firm, execution broker and family office, to investment adviser. He leads a 10-person legal and compliance staff which oversees 70+ portfolio management teams engaging in quantitative, fundamental equity and tactical investment strategies in the Americas, Europe and APAC. Mr. Peckman earned a BA from Emory University in 1989 and a law degree from Brooklyn Law School and a MBA from Baruch Business School in 1993.

Jack Pitts is a Senior Managing Director and General Counsel of BAAM. Mr. Pitts is a Co-Chair of the Blackstone Diverse Professionals Network Task Force and a member of the Blackstone Charitable Foundation Leadership Council. Since joining Blackstone, Mr. Pitts has been involved in the legal structuring of the group’s customized multi-manager portfolios as well as the review, analysis and negotiation of investments by the Hedge Fund Solutions Special Situations Investing Group and other direct trading platforms and investment opportunities.

Before joining Blackstone in 2012, Mr. Pitts was an Associate at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP where he focused on advising sponsors of, and institutional investors in, private investment funds.

Mr. Pitts received a BS in Financial Management from Hillsdale College and a JD from Howard University School of Law, where he served as the Managing Editor of the Howard Law Journal.

Jonah Platt is U.S. Head of Government & Regulatory Policy for Citadel, helping to lead the firm’s engagement on legislative and regulatory initiatives across a wide range of asset classes, including fixed income, credit, commodities, and equities.

Prior to joining Citadel, Mr. Platt was an Executive Director for Sales and Trading Legal at UBS Investment Bank. Previously, he was a Derivatives and Capital Markets Associate at Allen & Overy LLP.

Mr. Platt received a bachelor’s degree with high distinction from the University of Michigan and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School.

Gil Raviv (joined in 2007) ■ Global General Counsel. Mr. Raviv is the Global General Counsel of Millennium Management LLC and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day legal affairs of Millennium. Mr. Raviv began his legal career at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP in 1996 and became a partner in 2004. At Fried Frank, Mr. Raviv specialized in corporate and securities law, focusing primarily on the structuring and offering of hedge funds, funds of funds, private equity funds and a variety of other alternative investment products. Mr. Raviv received his JD from the University of Michigan Law School and his AB, magna cum laude, from Cornell University.

Simon Raykher is general counsel and chief compliance officer of Kepos Capital LP. Kepos Capital LP is a globally focused asset management firm that employs systematic research and investment process.

Before joining Kepos in 2012, Mr. Raykher served as general counsel and chief compliance officer at Lombard Odier Asset Management (USA) Corp, the US asset management subsidiary of one of the oldest and largest private banks in Switzerland. For the previous seven years, he was general counsel, chief compliance officer, and principal of Satellite Asset Management, L.P., a hedge fund manager which managed in excess of $7 billion at its peak across multiple strategies in New York and London.

Prior to Satellite, Mr. Raykher was an attorney with the law firm of Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP. Earlier in his career, he was a prosecutor with the Investigation Division of the New York County District Attorney’s office where Mr. Raykher conducted tax fraud and money laundering investigations.

Mr. Raykher holds a B.B.A. and M.B.A. in Accounting from Pace University and a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law.

Adam J. Reback is a Partner at Optima Partners, a leading global regulatory compliance advisory firm. Adam focuses on supporting the regulatory and compliance needs of Hedge Funds, Private Equity Funds, Registered Investment Advisers, Broker-Dealers, Independent Research Providers, and other global financial institutions. Adam is based in New York City.  Adam has 25 years of investment management industry experience including 18 years as an in-house Chief Compliance Officer.

Prior to joining Optima, Adam was a Partner & CCO of J. Goldman & Co., L.P. (JGC), an SEC and NFA registered multi-strategy hedge fund manager with long/short equity and quant strategies comprising $1.6 billion AUM, where he served on the firm’s Operations Committee; led governance restructuring and jointly oversaw the HR, IR, Operations, and IT Departments. At JGC, Adam managed all legal and regulatory compliance matters globally, including the design, implementation and assessment of the firm’s compliance programs.  Previously, Adam was the CCO of John A. Levin & Co., a publicly traded global asset management firm comprised of long-only strategies, hedge funds, mutual funds and a broker-dealer subsidiary comprising $16B AUM. Adam has held management positions on the sell side at Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. and Gruntal & Co. He held FINRA Series 7, 9, 10, 24, 62, and 63 registrations.

Adam is a regular contributor to various investment industry periodicals and frequently speaks at numerous industry events and conferences on a wide variety of topics, including insider trading, trade desk oversight, data integrity/big data compliance, third party vendor due-diligence, CCO liability and managing regulatory examinations and investigations. In 2016, Adam was invited by the SEC to speak at their Annual National CCO Outreach program.

Adam served on the Board of Directors of The National Society of Compliance Professionals (“NSCP”) from 2012-2018 where he created and chaired the NSCP Private Funds Committee. Adam attended New York University and completed the FBI Citizens Academy.

Jon is the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at MFN Partners.  Prior to joining MFN Partners, Jon was the Associate General Counsel at Bracebridge Capital (2014-2017).  Before Bracebridge, Jon was an Associate Attorney at Ropes & Gray LLP (2010-2014).  Jon received a J.D. from The Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. from Duke University.

Mr. Russo serves as General Counsel and a Managing Director at ZAIS Group, LLC. Mr. Russo was appointed General Counsel in April 2017. Before joining ZAIS in February of 2007, Mr. Russo was an attorney at Thacher Proffitt & Wood LLP in the Structured Finance Practice Group from 2004 to 2007. He received a B.S. with distinction from The Pennsylvania State University and a J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law.

2023-Present     General Counsel and COO of Madison International Realty

2020-2023            CCO of Varde Partners

2004-2020            CCO of York Capital Management

2004                       Director of Anti-Money Laundering for Schwab Capital Markets

2001-2004            Chief Compliance Officer for UST Securities (Broker Dealer arm of US Trust Company)

1997-2001            Senior Trial Counsel for the NYSE Enforcement Division

1991-1997            Assistant District Attorney Bronx DA’s Office (Prosecuted Organized Crime and Police Corruption)

JD from Vanderbilt University Law School

BA from Williams College

Mr. Schiera joined Element Capital in November 2016 as Associate General Counsel and Senior Compliance Officer.  In March 2021, Mr. Schiera was promoted to Chief Compliance Officer.

Prior to joining Element Capital, Mr. Schiera was Vice President and Associate General Counsel at Tudor Investment Corporation, which he joined in January 2014.  From October 2007 to December 2013, Mr. Schiera was an Associate at Bingham McCutchen LLP in an investment management practice group.

Mr. Schiera holds a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School and a B.A. in English and Philosophy from Boston College.  He was admitted to practice law in New York in 2008.

Adam M. Schloss is Deputy General Counsel of ExodusPoint Capital Management, LP, where he is responsible for a wide variety of legal and regulatory matters in the private funds space.  Before joining ExodusPoint in 2019, he was a Senior Vice President at Two Sigma Investments, LP and an Executive Director at Morgan Stanley.  He began his career as an Associate at Weil, Gotshal and Manges, LLP, specializing in securities litigation, enforcement, and regulatory matters.  He graduated from Cornell University (1999) and Columbia Law School (2002).

Owen Schmidt is the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of Kinetic. Prior to joining Kinetic, Owen was a Partner in the Investment Management group at Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, where his practice focused on private fund formation and regulatory compliance as well as growth equity and venture capital investment transactions. Before Schulte, Owen spent almost seven years as a partner, general counsel and chief compliance officer at two large investment fund managers, where he was responsible for all legal matters as well as the firms’ compliance programs. In addition to legal and compliance matters, he advised on all aspects of the firms’ operations and served on numerous firm committees, including valuation, conflicts, risk, and cybersecurity. Owen holds a Juris Doctor from the Fordham University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Arizona.

Mike Seery joined ACA in December 2017. As a Director, he leads the firm’s cryptocurrency advisory practice where he creates compliance programs and directs mock examinations of cryptocurrency and digital asset managers. Mike also advises clients on complex regulatory issues, including portfolio valuation, expense allocation, soft dollars, and expert networks.

Before joining ACA, Mike was a Director at Duff & Phelps, where he helped investment advisers register with the SEC and created compliance programs in accordance with SEC best practices. He advised clients throughout the SEC examination process, drafted responses to staff questions, prepared employees for interviews, and responded to examination findings.

Previously, Mike worked in financial restructuring, where he advised companies and creditors in bankruptcy proceedings and out-of-court reorganizations. Mike started his career in investment banking, where he worked in M&A advisory at Lehman Brothers and fixed-income trading at Merrill Lynch.

Mike earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Yale University and his MBA in Finance from UCLA.

Eva Shang is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Legalist, a technology-powered investment firm that specializes in alternative assets, including litigation finance, the company’s flagship strategy. Legalist manages over half a billion dollars in investments for endowments, foundations, hospitals, insurance companies, and family offices. Eva leads the company’s 40-person team of engineers, attorneys, and analysts and is a member of its valuation and investment committees and board of directors.

Before co-founding Legalist at 20, Eva studied economics at Harvard College. She has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New Yorker magazine and Forbes magazine, among other publications.

Matthew B. Siano, Esq. is Managing Director, General Counsel of Two Sigma Investments, LP and Two Sigma Advisers, LP, a pair of global investment managers specializing in quantitative investing across a broad range of asset classes. Two Sigma and its various affiliates currently manage numerous hedge funds, private investment pools, registered funds and managed accounts with over $32 billion in assets under management. As Two Sigma’s General Counsel, Mr. Siano is responsible for the firm’s legal, regulatory and compliance matters and is the head of both their legal and compliance departments. Mr. Siano joined Two Sigma in July 2004.

From September 1999 through June 30, 2004, Mr. Siano was an associate in the Investment Management Group of Seward & Kissel LLP, a New York City-headquartered law firm with an industry-leading hedge fund practice. At Seward, Mr. Siano specialized in the formation and structuring of private investment funds (including hedge funds and private equity funds), representing registered and unregistered investment advisers, listing private investment funds on non-U.S. exchanges, advising clients on SEC, CFTC and FINRA filings, and providing overall corporate, securities and tax advice.

Mr. Siano graduated cum laude from the College of William and Mary in 1996 with a B.A. in Government and History. While in Williamsburg, he also minored in Religion and published an honors thesis on the New York City public school system. In 1999, Mr. Siano earned a J.D. from Fordham Law School, where he was the Special Publications Editor for the Urban Law Journal and a member of the Fordham Moot Court Board.

Mr. Siano is also an adjunct professor in the undergraduate business school of the College of William and Mary, where he teaches a seminar course on the management of hedge funds. He has also been an active industry speaker at events hosted by the American Bar Association, Fordham Law School, the Corporate Lawyering Association and various U.S. and international law firms.

Mark Singer is Deputy General Counsel at APG Asset Management US, which together with its parent, APG Asset Management, manages assets in excess of €650 billion for Netherlands pension funds.  Mark advises APG’s alternative platform on principal transactions in the real estate, infrastructure and private equity co-investment and secondary areas as well as limited partner commitments to private equity and hedge funds. Mark joined APG in 2007 from Latham & Watkins LLP, where he was in the mergers and acquisitions group.  He is a graduate of Duke Law School, with a JD / LLM in International and Comparative Law, and Middlebury College.

Emily Slater is a Managing Director with responsibility for assessing and underwriting legal risk across a broad range of practice areas and for identifying high-value investments in the marketplace. Ms. Slater has nearly a decade of experience structuring and underwriting legal finance deals and has played a significant role in building Burford’s globally recognized, industry-leading investment and underwriting processes. She has assessed thousands of cases involving billions of dollars of legal finance investment.

Ms. Slater speaks frequently about legal finance in the media and at events, including those organized by AIRA, the American Bar Association, ICCA, NYSBA and The Knowledge Group.

Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Slater was a litigator at Debevoise & Plimpton, where she specialized in complex securities and other bet-the-company litigation and regulatory investigations involving billions in damages. Ms. Slater regularly represented financial institutions and public companies before the SEC and DOJ. She also represented the City of New York in the criminal investigation of the 2003 Staten Island Ferry crash and led a landmark pro bono class action litigation regarding mental health treatment in New York City jails, which prevailed in the New York State Court of Appeals. She is a founding member of the Pro Bono Advisory Council of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest and served as a trustee of Brooklyn Heights Montessori School.

Ms. Slater graduated from New York University School of Law, where she was the Colloquium Editor of the Review of Law and Social Change.

Randy Stuzin is a Member and General Counsel of King Street Capital Management, where he is responsible for the firm’s global legal and compliance departments. Prior to joining King Street in March, 2014, Randy spent 14 years at Goldman, Sachs & Co. , where he was Managing Director and General Counsel of the Investment Banking Division, overseeing a team of securities, capital markets and M&A lawyers around the world, and also served as Global Head of Business Selection and Conflicts Clearance for the Equities and FICC Divisions. Randy was previously a Vice President in the Legal Department at Lehman Brothers and began his career as a corporate associate at Cravath, Swaine and Moore. Randy received a B.S. from Cornell University and a J.D. from New York University School of Law.

David Sweet is a managing director of D. E. Shaw & Co., L.P. and Co-General Counsel to the D. E. Shaw group. In that capacity, he jointly oversees the D. E. Shaw group’s Legal & Compliance department, with a particular focus on the firm’s investment products, its regulatory compliance effort, and public policy matters.
Mr. Sweet has been a member of the D. E. Shaw group’s Legal & Compliance department since 2012 and has served as Co-General Counsel since 2017. From 1997 to 2001, and again from 2006 to 2012, Mr. Sweet worked for the D. E. Shaw group in a range of commercial roles, contributing to various investor relations, business development, and strategic planning efforts. Prior to rejoining the D. E. Shaw group in 2006, he was a law clerk to the Hon. Wm. Matthew Byrne, Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and an associate at the Los Angeles law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP. Mr. Sweet graduated summa cum laude from Yale College, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and received the award for the outstanding student in English in the senior class. He received his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was a senior editor of The Yale Law Journal and a Coker Teaching Fellow in constitutional law

Daniel Taub is the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Junto Capital Management LP. Previously, Mr. Taub spent nearly 10 years at Viking Global Investors LP as an Associate General Counsel responsible for legal, regulatory and compliance matters. Prior to joining Viking, Mr. Taub was an Associate in the Investment Management department of Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP and an Associate in the Corporate department of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP. Mr. Taub earned his JD from New York University School of Law and his BA from Emory University where he graduated with High Honors and Phi Beta Kappa.

Serge Todorovich is Principal, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Shenkman Capital Management, Inc., a traditional and alternative credit manager based in New York with offices in Stamford, Boca Raton and London. Previously, he was General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer of Prosiris Capital Management LP and Associate General Counsel at Eton Park Capital Management, L.P. Prior to joining Eton Park, Mr. Todorovich was Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he provided legal counsel to the sales and trading desks in the Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Division. He joined Goldman Sachs from Shearman & Sterling LLP, where he was an Associate in the Asset Management Group in New York. He has been an active member of industry associations and working groups focused on investment management, credit investing, derivatives, and financial regulation. Mr. Todorovich received his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law, a Master of Arts in Law & Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy and a Bachelor of Arts from Tufts University.

Brent is currently a Chief Trial Attorney with the Division of Enforcement at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in the New York office.   Brent supervises a team of trial attorneys and investigators and represents the Division in enforcement actions that are filed in the United States District Court.  He has successfully prosecuted and negotiated settlements relating to a wide variety of actions, including matters sounding in supervision, manipulation, fraud, and trade practices.  Brent regularly represents the Commission in actions and investigations related to digital assets and is the advisor of the Division of Enforcement’s Digital Assets Task Force.   Brent is a graduate of Washington & Lee University School of Law.

Elizabeth has been the Chief Compliance Officer of Centerbridge Partners, L.P. since joining the firm in 2011. Prior to Centerbridge, Elizabeth was the Chief Compliance Officer for Strategic Value Partners, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser managing distressed funds. Prior to that, she was Chief Compliance Officer at Sagamore Hill Capital Management, L.P., a multi-strategy investment adviser. Previously, Elizabeth was Vice President – Compliance at Hoenig & Co., Inc., a broker dealer. Prior to Hoenig, she was Compliance Director at Forum Capital Markets, LLC. She started her career working in corporate communications for a variety of industries. Elizabeth received her B.A. from Princeton University.

Karl Wachter is the General Counsel of Magnetar Capital LLC and a member of the firm’s Management Committee.  Prior to joining Magnetar in 2010, Mr. Wachter served as Managing Director and General Counsel of Diamond Lake Investment Group (2007-2008), General Counsel of Amaranth Advisors L.L.C. (2001-2007) and Vice President and Assistant General Counsel of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. (2000-2001).  Mr. Wachter began his legal career as an Associate in the derivatives and financial products practice group of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP.  He is active in industry trade associations, including having served as Chair of  the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) since 2020.  He holds a J.D., with honors, from the University of Chicago Law School, an M.A. from the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University and a B.F.A., with honors, from New York University.

Stephen N. Waldman is a managing director, general counsel and partner of Tudor Investment Corporation and its affiliates and is a member of the firm’s Management Committee and Operating Committee.
Prior to joining Tudor in 1995, Mr. Waldman was at the law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton in New York (1992 – 1995) where he specialized in securities, mergers and acquisitions and private investment funds. Previously, Mr. Waldman was an equity securities analyst at Kidder, Peabody & Co. Incorporated (1986-1989). Mr. Waldman holds a B.S. in Economics from The Wharton School of Finance of the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law. Mr. Waldman is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Mr. Walz joined Element Capital in October 2011.  His responsibilities include managing all legal, compliance and regulatory matters for Element Capital.  From October 2011 through February 2021, Mr. Walz was also Chief Compliance Officer of Element Capital.  Prior to joining Element Capital, Mr. Walz was General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Moon Capital Management LP, since May 2007.  Prior to May 2007, Mr. Walz practiced law at Bingham McCutchen LLP, Bryan Cave LLP and Emmet, Marvin and Martin LLP.   Mr. Walz holds a J.D. from Tulane Law School and a B.A. in Sociology from St. Joseph’s College.  He was admitted to practice law in New York in 1998 and Connecticut in 1997.

Jeffrey Wechselblatt is the General Counsel of Lone Pine Capital LLC, an investment adviser based in Greenwich, Connecticut.  Prior to joining Lone Pine in 2007, Jeff was an associate at law firms in New York.

Mr. Weldon has over 27 years of experience in legal and credit markets. Prior to joining CIFC in 2015, he spent over six years as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Garrison Investment Group. While at Garrison, Mr. Weldon worked on the firm’s investments (across corporate, real estate and other financial asset classes), strategic investor and operating partner relationships, financings and product development. Prior to Garrison, he was Senior Counsel in the Banking Department of Allen & Overy LLP in New York and London. Mr. Weldon holds a L.L.B. in Law from the University of East Anglia, England, is qualified as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England & Wales and is admitted to the New York Bar.

Dede is the General Counsel of PDT Partners, LLC, a quantitative investment firm. Before joining PDT in 2009, Dede was the head U.S equities proprietary trading lawyer for Morgan Stanley.  Prior to joining Morgan Stanley’s Legal and Compliance Division in 2002, Dede worked as an associate at Cravath, Swaine and Moore.  Dede received a JD from Stanford Law School in 1998 and a BA from Yale University in 1992.

Danny West serves as lead attorney for Two Sigma’s data and engineering teams and advises on how to appropriately acquire and leverage data and technology in the financial markets. He is involved in every aspect of the firm’s data onboarding process, including diligencing novel alternative datasets and developing scalable data and privacy-related policies and procedures.
Prior to joining Two Sigma, Danny was assistant general counsel at American International Group, Inc. (AIG), working with the firm’s big data and science teams to develop cutting-edge healthcare / financial tools and technologies, often utilizing strategically de-identified and/or aggregated data.

Tracey joined Bridgewater in 2012 and is currently Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary. She is also a Partner, and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and Operating Committee. In her role, she oversees our Legal and Regulatory Department and is responsible for legal and corporate governance, managing legal risk across Bridgewater and its funds. Prior to joining Bridgewater, Tracey practiced with the international law firms, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, and Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, representing banks, issuers, private equity funds and mezzanine funds in a wide range of banking and securities transactions. Tracey also represented public and private companies on corporate law and corporate governance matters.

Tracey graduated from The Johns Hopkins University with honors, received a Master of Sciences degree from the University of Pennsylvania, and graduated from University of Southern California Gould School of Law. Tracey currently serves as Chair of Make-A-Wish Connecticut’s Board of Directors and on The Johns Hopkins Lacrosse Advisory Board. Tracey is a member of the California State Bar, New York State Bar, District of Columbia Bar, and is Authorized In-House Counsel in Connecticut.

Follow Tracey on LinkedIn

Richard B. Zabel is the General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer at Elliott Management Corporation.  He is formerly the Deputy United States Attorney at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.  From October 2009 until October 2011, he was the Chief of the Criminal Division.  From 1999 until 2009, prior to rejoining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Zabel was a partner at the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, where he was co-head of the firmwide litigation practice.  His practice focused on white collar criminal defense, SEC investigations, corporate internal investigations, complex civil litigation and appeals.

Before joining Akin Gump, Mr. Zabel served for eight years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.  During his tenure, he prosecuted a variety of cases involving securities fraud, obstruction of justice, racketeering, murder, firearms and narcotics charges, and argued numerous cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  Mr. Zabel served as Chief of the Narcotics Unit at the U.S. Attorney’s Office and has received numerous awards, including the Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service and the Department of Justice Director’s Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.

Mr. Zabel received his A.B. summa cum laude in 1983 from Princeton University, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.  He was a Fulbright Scholar to France.  He received his J.D. in 1987 from Harvard Law School where he was an Ames Moot Court winner and Best Oralist.  He teaches as an adjunct professor of National Security and Terrorism Investigations and Prosecutions at Columbia Law School.  He has also taught Criminal Law at the Fordham University School of Law.

Written Works

“In Pursuit of Justice, Prosecuting Terrorism Cases in the Federal Courts: 2009 Update and Recent Developments,” Human Rights First, July 2009
“In Pursuit of Justice, Prosecuting Terrorism Cases in the Federal Courts,” Human Rights First, May 2008
“Congress’ Role in Investigating Fraud: Are Legislators’ Aggressive Approaches in Hearings Helping or Hindering the Process?” New York Law Journal
“Reviewing Materiality in Accounting Fraud,” New York Law Journal
“Queen for a Day” or “Courtesan for a Day,” Andrews White Collar Reporter
“Recent Activity by the Sentencing Commission,” White Collar Crime Reporter
“Amending the Sentencing Guidelines,” New York Law Journal

David Zeiden is an Executive Managing Director, Global Chief Compliance Officer & Chief Regulatory Counsel at Sculptor Capital Management, a global alternative asset manager providing a range of products across Multi-Strategy, Credit and Real Estate. In this role since 2020, David oversees Sculptor Capital’s global compliance team and is responsible for managing Sculptor Capital’s global compliance program.

David has over 20 years’ experience as in-house counsel and in private practice advising on complex investments and other transactions as well as providing legal, compliance, regulatory, and operational leadership. Prior to his current role, David was General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer for Sculptor Capital’s Asia business. Before joining Sculptor Capital in 2007, David spent nearly a decade in private practice in the Corporate Departments at law firms Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP and Debevoise & Plimpton LLP.

David holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Juris Doctor from the UCLA School of Law.