Business Law Section

Robert L.D. Colby, Esq.

FINRA

Washington, D.C.
As Chief Legal Officer of FINRA, Robert Colby oversees FINRA’s rulemaking, interpretive, and corporate legal functions, as well as FINRA’s Appellate Office, Office of Financial Innovation, and Departments of Advertising, Corporate Financing, and Dispute Resolution. Previously, Mr. Colby was a partner in the law firm of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, where he advised on regulatory and compliance matters for financial institutions and markets. Before joining Davis Polk, Mr. Colby served as Deputy Director in the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets. In that capacity, he was responsible for the regulation of broker-dealers, markets, and clearing organizations. Before serving as Deputy Director of the Division, Mr. Colby was Chief Counsel, and Chief of the Market Structure Branch. Mr. Colby received his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School and his undergraduate degree summa cum laude from Bowdoin College.

Gary Cywie, Esq.

Elvinger Hoss Prussen

Luxembourg
Gary Cywie specialises in Technology. His particular areas of expertise are the drafting and negotiating of IT outsourcing agreements in the financial services and insurance sectors, software licence and maintenance agreements and commercial contracts. In addition, he specialises in data protection and privacy, internet and e-commerce, electronic signature, electronic archiving, IT security and media and telecommunications. He also handles IP matters.

Gary is also involved in Fintech developments, more particularly in relation to digital ledger technologies (DLT) such as blockchains, smart contracts and virtual currencies.

Career and Memberships
-Member of the IT Committee of AMCHAM Luxembourg (American Chamber of Commerce in Luxembourg).
-Member of the APDL (Association pour la Protection des Données au Luxembourg).
-As a former member of ALCO (Association Luxembourgeoise des Compliance Officers), participated in the drafting of the discussion paper on Blockchain and CryptoAssets of the blockchain and crypto-assets working group.
-Member of the Luxembourg Bar since 2006.
-Member of the Brussels Bar from 2003 until 2014.

Education
-Licence en droit from the Université de Liège (Belgium).
-Postgraduate certificate in Internet Strategic Management from the Laboratory for New Information and Communication Technologies Studies in collaboration with the Université de Liège (Belgium).

Michael A. de Freitas, Esq.

William C. Moran & Associates, P.C.

Williamsville, NY
Mr. de Freitas is a member of the firm of William C. Moran & Associates, P.C. in Williamsville, New York. He primarily represents not-for-profit organizations in corporate, tax exemption, regulatory, and transactional matters. He graduated from College of the Holy Cross and Cornell Law School. He is a member of the Corporation Law and Not-for-Profit Corporation Law Committees of the Business Law Section, chairs the Section’s Legislative Affairs Committee, and has regularly co-chaired the NonProfit Law continuing-education seminars of the Association.

Andrew W. Grant

DLA Piper

Washington, D.C.
Andrew W. Grant is an associate in the Washington, DC, office of DLA Piper. Mr. Grant assists financial institutions and fintech companies in complex regulatory and compliance matters with a focus on eCommerce issues and an interest in digital currencies, blockchain technologies, and smart contracts. In particular, Mr. Grant’s practice includes analyzing electronic signature and record platforms to ensure delivery, presentation, management, and execution of electronic signatures and records comply with all applicable laws, regulations, and industry standards, including the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN), the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA), eNotary laws, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac eMortgage requirements.

Kenneth J. Haim

Assistant Attorney General, New York State Office of the Attorney General 

New York, NY
Kenneth Haim is the Registration Section Director and an Assistant Attorney General with the Investor Protection Bureau of the New York State Office of the Attorney General. The Investor Protection Bureau enforces the Martin Act, New York State’s securities law oversees the registration of securities personnel and franchise offerings in the state.  Mr. Haim manages the broker-dealer and investment adviser registration process including the Office’s recent initiative to modernize and streamline New York’s registration requirements.  Mr. Haim also handles a wide array of securities fraud enforcement matters.  Prior to joining the Office, Mr. Haim was counsel to the retail brokerage units of several broker-dealers primarily handling customer disputes and FINRA arbitrations.  Mr. Haim received his Juris Doctor degree from Brooklyn Law School.

Holly R. Holecek, Esq.

LaMonica Herbst & Maniscalco, LLP

Wantagh, NY
HOLLY R. HOLECEK, ESQ. is a partner in LaMonica Herbst & Maniscalco, LLP. Holly’s practice encompasses representation of parties in a variety of roles in Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 business and personal cases and appeals with a focus on representing bankruptcy fiduciaries. Among her notable cases, Holly has represented the Chapter 11 Trustee for Peninsula Hospital Center, the Chapter 7 Trustee for Crafts Retail Holding (Rag Shops), the Chapter 7 Trustee for Marc Drier, and the Liquidation Trustee for North General Hospital. Holly is a member of the Chapter 11 Lawyers’ Advisory Committee (Eastern District of New York) and a past Chair (2014-2016) and past Vice Chair (2012-2014) of the Bankruptcy Law Committee of the Nassau County Bar Association.

Holly was selected to Super Lawyers (2020) and as a New York Metro “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers (2014-2019). In 2016, Holly was an honoree of the Outstanding Women in Law by the Center for Children, Families and the Law at Hofstra University’s Maurice A. Dean School of Law. Holly received her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law where she was the recipient of a full academic St. Thomas More Scholarship and was recognized for her exceptional moot court competition achievements. Holly received her B.A. magna cum laude from Wellesley College.

James D. Honaker, Esq.

Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell

Wilmington, DE
Jim advises public companies, boards of directors and committees on Delaware corporation law issues, including corporate governance and fiduciary duties. In his practice, he advises on corporate governance issues under Delaware law, including in the areas of proxy contests, oversight and compliance, director and officer indemnification and director compensation.

Drawing on his experience with private company financings and acquisitions, he also counsels boards and committees of independent directors on merger and acquisition transactions. His clients hail from a range of industries, including the energy, manufacturing, financial services, media, healthcare, and technology sectors.

Since 2015, Jim has served as a member of the Corporation Law Council of the Delaware State Bar Association, and in that role assists with drafting amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”). Since 2006, he has co-authored a series of articles to annually chronicle the amendments to the DGCL. Jim also served on a committee that drafted the Annotated Model Certificate of Designations for Preferred Stock of a Public Corporation, which is a publication of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association.

Since 2020, Jim has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, and designated “Lawyer of the Year” for mergers and acquisitions law in the 2021 edition. He has also been mentioned in The Legal 500 US for M&A work as Delaware counsel.

Lori Lapin Jones, Esq.

Lori Lapin Jones PLLC

Great Neck, NY
Lori Lapin Jones has practiced bankruptcy law for over thirty-five years. In 2005, Jones founded Lori Lapin Jones PLLC in Great Neck, New York where she focuses her practice on her roles as a bankruptcy trustee, fiduciary, mediator and attorney for parties in bankruptcy cases. Prior to the formation of her firm, Jones spent seventeen years in private practice at the New York City law firms of Dewey Ballantine and Luskin, Stern & Eisler LLP where she represented parties in out-of-court restructurings and bankruptcy cases around the country. Jones began her career as an attorney in the Manhattan District Counsel’s Office of the Internal Revenue Service following which she served as a law clerk to the Honorable Tina L. Brozman, United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of New York.

In 2005, Jones was appointed as a panel Chapter 7 Trustee in the Eastern District of New York. She has served as Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 trustee in numerous cases including, most notably, the bankruptcy cases of Peninsula Hospital Center and Peninsula General Nursing Home, Burritoville Restaurants, Rag Shops, and General Fiber Communications, Inc. She has also served as Liquidation Trustee, Plan Administrator, Receiver (federal court) and Independent Board Member. Jones is a member of the Chapter 11 Lawyers Advisory Committee for the Eastern District of New York (former Vice Chairwoman) and a member of the Second Circuit Judicial Council Committee on Civic Education & Public Engagement. Jones serves on the panel of mediators for the United States Bankruptcy Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and is frequently appointed to mediate bankruptcy and commercial disputes.

Jones is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy. She is a frequent presenter on bankruptcy topics for state, local and national bar groups. She co-authored a column on bankruptcy law for the New York Law Journal from 2005-2008 and co-authored the book Creditors’ Committee Manual. Jones received her LL.M. degree from New York University Law School in 1986 and her J.D. degree magna cum laude from Nova Southeastern School of Law in 1982 where she was Executive Editor of the Nova Law Review. Jones is admitted to practice law in the states of New York and Florida, and the district courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Jones serves as the Vice Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the Organization for Autism Research. She was recognized as one of the Top 25 Businesswomen of Excellence by the National Association of Women Business Owners (Long Island chapter) and for three years was named one of the Top 50 Most Influential Women in Business on Long Island by Long Island Business News. In 2019, Jones was the recipient of the Renaissance Award from the New York Institute of Credit.

Peter W. LaVigne, Esq.

Goodwin Procter LLP

New York, NY
Peter LaVigne is a partner in Goodwin’s Financial Industry and Fintech practices. He advises clients involved in the distribution of securities as issuer or intermediary at every level, public and private, and his expertise includes broker-dealer and securities regulation and the Municipal Advisor Rules. Mr. LaVigne advises banks, broker-dealers, investment advisers, private fund managers and crowdfunding and other financial technology platforms in navigating evolving regulatory and compliance matters. As the Chair of the Business Law Section of the New York State Bar Association and a member and former Chair of its Securities Regulation Committee, Mr. LaVigne keeps a close watch over changes to laws and rules affecting the financial services industry.

Experience

Mr. LaVigne’s experience includes the registration of new broker-dealers, as well as advice concerning exemptions from registration, mergers and acquisitions involving broker-dealers and the rules of FINRA concerning change in control filings. He represents underwriters and placement agents with respect to FINRA rules applicable to public and private offerings, including rules governing new issues, IPO allocations and research analysts, trade reporting, Regulation M, Rule NMS and the short sale rules. He has also counseled broker-dealer firms in responding to examinations, inquiries and Wells notices. He advises issuers on the use of securities exemptions and assists them in structuring agreements with placement agents and arrangements with third-party brokers permitting the registration of issuer employees on an independent contractor basis.

Mr. LaVigne also advises banks, investment advisers and private fund managers, as well as broker-dealers, concerning the evolving municipal advisor registration requirements and helps fintech innovators to identify and navigate the financial regulations that apply to their businesses.

William O’Brien, Esq.

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

New York, NY
Mr. O’Brien has participated in commercial arbitrations before the AAA and regulatory proceedings before the SEC and FINRA.

Mr. O’Brien has represented clients, both as plaintiffs and defendants, in actions involving a variety of federal and state statutes, including the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Securities Act of 1933, the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), the Delaware General Corporation Law and New York’s Business Corporation Law. He also has litigated a wide range of common law claims, including alleged breaches of contract, breaches of fiduciary duties, fraud, negligence and tortious interference.

Among others, Mr. O’Brien has represented:
• BRF S.A., a Brazilian food company, in contesting federal securities fraud claims brought under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; • JPMorgan Securities LLC in responding to common law claims that arose from a bond offering involving OGX Petróleo e Gás Participações S.A., a Brazilian oil and gas company; • JPMorgan Securities LLC and other financial institutions in defending against Securities Act claims stemming from an alleged bribery and corruption scandal involving Petrobras, Brazil’s state-owned oil and gas company; • Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., Goldman, Sachs & Co. and other financial institutions in opposing Securities Act claims arising from certain bond and equity offerings by Cobalt International Energy, Inc.; • Compuware Corporation and its board of directors in defending against breach of fiduciary duty claims arising from the company’s acquisition by Thoma Bravo, LLC; • The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc and certain of its affiliates in defending against CDO-related lawsuits filed in both state and federal court; • Citigroup Inc., Discover Financial Services and Student Loan Corp. in defeating federal securities fraud claims arising from accounting-related disclosures;

• UBS in defending against RMBS-related claims brought under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Blue Sky Laws of Virginia and the District of Columbia; • UniCredit S.p.A. in its defense of Madoff-related litigation, which was named among the top matters in the Litigation & Dispute Resolution category in the Financial Times’ 2013 “US Innovative Lawyers” report; • former officers and directors of Fremont General Corporation, a subprime lender, in defeating federal securities fraud claims stemming from the decline of the company’s residential mortgage lending business; • Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Goldman Sachs Credit Partners L.P., Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. in a trial arising from a $2 billion financing facility for Solutia, Inc.; • an underwriting syndicate of financial institutions in multiple shareholder actions arising from the collapse of WorldCom, Inc., the global telecommunications provider; and • American Funds Distributors, Inc. in a seven-day enforcement hearing before the NASD (now FINRA).

Rachel Kaplan Reicher, Esq.

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Washington, D.C.

Rachel Kaplan Reicher is the Chief Counsel of the Division of Market Oversight (DMO) at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as well as the Deputy Director of the Chief Counsel Unit of DMO.  She leads the Chief Counsel Unit in advising DMO on all law and policy issues affecting DMO, including the division’s oversight of the health and market structure of the commodity futures, options and swaps markets. Rachel and her team support all DMO policy and staff action documents as well as develop complex rulemakings on a wide range of topics affecting DMO. The Chief Counsel Unit suggests enhancements to policy to account for changes in market structure, risk, innovation and other market developments.

Prior to joining the CFTC, for fourteen years, Rachel advised a wide variety of clients on federal regulatory policy related to derivatives as Counsel at Skadden and Associate at Kirkland & Ellis.  She represented clients before the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve Board and Congress on a broad range of issues arising under Titles II, VII and VIII of the Dodd-Frank Act and the Commodity Exchange Act.

Rachel earned her J.D. from the Boston University School of Law and graduated cum laude from Tufts University with Bachelor’s degrees in Environmental Science and Psychology. Rachel is a member of the board of directors of Kol Shalom in Rockville, Maryland.

Asher Rubinstein, Esq.

Gallet Dreyer & Berkey, LLP

New York, NY
Asher Rubinstein’s practice focuses on domestic and international asset protection, wealth preservation, estate planning, tax planning, tax controversy, offshore tax compliance, and related litigation. Mr. Rubinstein is a recognized expert on offshore entities, foreign banking and IRS compliance issues. Mr. Rubinstein also represents and advises wine, food and restaurant clients.

Mr. Rubinstein provides legal representation to clients on issues including the preservation and protection of assets and private wealth, domestically and offshore, income tax planning, estate planning and asset-protection-related litigation in state and federal courts on the trial and appellate levels. Mr. Rubinstein has represented clients in a range of transactions including cross-border business ventures and investments, banking and finance. He has established domestic and offshore investment funds, partnerships and joint ventures. He has provided advice and consultation regarding U.S. tax, regulatory and other governmental compliance, as well as drafted asset protection legislation for a foreign government.

Mr. Rubinstein has represented foreign and domestic clients including high net worth individuals, celebrities, art collectors, entrepreneurs, hedge fund owners, financial professionals, bankers, international investors, internet executives, designers, restaurateurs, wine importers, multinational corporations and family offices.

Mr. Rubinstein also represents and advises wine and spirits producers, importers, restaurant owners and others in the food, wine and hospitality industries.