2022 MCCA DIVERSITY GALA
MCCA would like to thank our Board, N-GEN Advisory Board, Host Committee, honorees, members, sponsors, and partners for your generous support and for helping us #InspireProgress and #AccelerateImpact at the 2022 MCCA Diversity Gala. We celebrated our 25th anniversary and honored leading corporate law departments and law firms who have demonstrated leadership in championing diversity, equity, and inclusion.
From all of us at MCCA, again, thank you so much for your commitment, engagement, passion, and support.
Please click here for instructions to add events@mcca.com to your Safe Sender List, Address Book or Contacts to receive future communications regarding the Diversity Gala.
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OCTOBER 19, 2022
American Museum of Natural History,
CENTRAL PARK WEST AT 79TH STREET NEW YORK CITY
2022 Diversity Gala Sponsors
Support for the MCCA Diversity Gala is an ideal opportunity for companies or firms to gain visibility and access to over one thousand attendees representing leading companies and firms from across industries at the largest awards program of its kind in the country.
2022 Employer of Choice Award National Winner
National Winner & West Regional Winner
Award Accepted by: Hossein Nowbar,
General Counsel & Legal Affairs
ABOUT MICROSOFT
Microsoft continually engages with diverse organizational partners – beyond just financial and event specific support, while its leadership shows up on boards, advisory boards, council and research working groups focused on D&I. As a leader in their industry, Microsoft has dedicated efforts to reaching all audiences to improve D&I outcomes, including diverse law students and corporate general counsels.
2022 EOC Award Regional Winners
Mid-Atlantic Regional Winner
The Employer of Choice regional winners will be honored at MCCA’s 25th Anniversary Diversity Gala on October 19, 2022.
Midwest Regional Winner
The Employer of Choice regional winners will be honored at MCCA’s 25th Anniversary Diversity Gala on October 19, 2022.
2022 Charlotte E. Ray Honoree
The 2022 Charlotte E. Ray Award was posthumously awarded to Rhonda Ferguson, Allstate Corporation’s General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer who passed away in April. Ferguson became Allstate’s General Counsel in November of 2020 after nearly two decades in-house and another ten years in private practice. The award was presented at the 2022 MCCA Diversity Gala on October 19.
The second 2022 Charlotte E. Ray Award was presented to honoree, Tamika Tremaglio, the Executive Director of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), the NBA players union at the 2022 MCCA Diversity Gala on October 19.
2022 Thomas L. Sager Award winners
MCCA recognized three separate Sager Award winners from three separate categories. The top ten firms for Category 5 firms (more than 501 lawyers), the top ten firms in Category 4 (250-500 lawyers), and the top labor and employment firms. The 2022 Sager finalists and winners were recognized on October 19, 2022 at our Diversity Gala.
Category 5 Winner
Category 4 Winner
Labor & Employment Winner
2022 Thomas L. Sager Award Finalists
TOP 10 FINALIST FIRMS IN CATEGORY 5:
Akerman
Cleary Gottlieb
Cooley
Davis Wright Tremaine
Greenberg Traurig
Mayer Brown
Morgan Lewis
Perkins Coie
Seyfarth Shaw
Troutman Pepper
TOP 10 FINALIST FIRMS IN CATEGORY 4:
Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney PC
Butler Snow LLP
Cravath Swaine and Moore LLP
Dykema Gossett PLLC
Fenwick and West LLP
Fredrikson and Byron PA
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
Knobbe Martens
Quarles and Brady LLP
Wachtell Lipton Rosen and Katz
TOP LABOR & EMPLOYMENT FIRMS:
Fisher & Phillips
Jackson Lewis
Jackson Walker
Littler Mendelson PC
Ogletree Deakins
Host Committee Members
WANJI WALCOTT (HONORARY CHAIR)
Former Executive Vice President,
Chief Legal Officer &
General Counsel,
Executive Committee,
Governance & Nominating Committee
Discover Financial Services
STUART ALDEROTY
General Counsel,
Executive Committee,
Ripple
CRAIG BEAZER
Executive Vice President
& General Counsel,
Lincoln Financial Group
LUCY FATO
Executive Vice President,
General Counsel & Global Head of
Communications and Government Affairs,
American International Group, Inc. (AIG)
Samantha Grant
Partner,
Sheppard, Mullin,
Richter & Hampton LLP
WILLIE HERNANDEZ
General Counsel, International
The Coca-Cola Company
DUANE HOLLOWAY
Senior Vice President,
General Counsel, and Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer,
Audit Committee Chair,
Executive Committee,
U.S. Steel
SETH KRAUSS
Chief Legal Officer,
Governance &
Nominating Committee,
Endeavor
SANDRA LEUNG
Executive Vice President &
General Counsel,
Finance & Investments
Committee Chair,
Bristol Myers Squibb Company
HANNAH LIM-JOHNSON
Former Senior Vice President,
Chief Legal Officer &
Corporate Secretary,
Governance & Nominating Committee,
Meritor, Inc.
LINDA LU
Senior Vice President,
Deputy General Counsel,
Audit Committee,
TransUnion
LAURENCE MIDLER
Executive Vice President,
General Counsel &
Chief Risk Officer,
CBRE
LANESHA MINNIX
Executive Vice President &
General Counsel,
Finance & Investments Committee,
Ecolab
JENNIFER NEWSTEAD
Chief Legal Officer
Meta Platforms, Inc.
AMY FLIEGELMAN OLLI
Executive Vice President &
General Counsel,
Governance & Nominating Committee,
VMware, Inc.
RODNEY PRATT
Senior Vice President
and Chief Legal Officer,
LVMH Moët Hennessy
Louis Vuitton Inc.
TOM ROBERTSON
Corporate Vice President &
Deputy General Counsel,
Finance & Investments Committee,
Microsoft Corporation
ANNE ROBINSON
Managing Director
& General Counsel
Governance & Nominating Committee,
The Vanguard Group, Inc.
MICHAEL TANG
Senior Vice President,
General Counsel & Secretary,
Agilent Technologies, Inc.
AMY TU
Chief Legal Officer & Secretary,
Global Governance
& Corporate Affairs,
Audit Committee,
Tyson Foods, Inc.
KRISHNA VEERARAGHAVAN
Partner,
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton
& Garrison LLP
NEIL WILCOX
Executive Vice President &
Head of Corporate Social Responsibility,
Finance & Investments Committee,
Fiserv, Inc.
MICHAEL WU
Chief Legal Officer &
Corporate Secretary
Bath & Body Works, Inc.
EVENT AGENDA
WEDNESDAY, October 19, 2022
*Please note the agenda times are in EDT.
06:00 PM – 07:00 PM
General Admission Cocktail Reception (open to any ticket holder)
06:00 PM – 07:00 PM
VIP Cocktail Reception (open to VIP ticket holders only)
07:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Seated Awards Ceremony Dinner
Registration & Fees
PAYMENT MESSAGE:
Visa, Mastercard, and American Express accepted.
MCCA Law Firm and Corporate Members: Please note as part of your company’s/firm membership benefits you may be entitled to a complimentary registration or a member discount rate for the conference registration.
For member complimentary registrations, members must obtain their complimentary codes from their “Company/Firm” and use them during registration. The complimentary codes should be entered in the discount code field at the Payment Page and members must click “Apply Now” to zero their balance.
For member discount rates to apply, members must select their “Company/Firm” from a drop down labeled “MCCA Law Firm/Corporate Members” during the registration process. The member discount rate will automatically be applied at the Payment page.
For any questions or inquires, please contact membership@mcca.com.
CANCELLATIONS & SUBSTITUTIONS:
Tickets are non-refundable. If you have paid tickets and are unable to attend the event we will provide a tax letter for your donation upon request. Please email sponsorship@mcca.com for tax letter request and/or questions.
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:
Please advise the Diversity Gala team if you have any special needs for facilities, visual aids or dietary requirements at events@mcca.com.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Click here to review the MCCA Conference Registration General Terms and Conditions.
PREVIOUS MCCA DIVERSITY GALAS
Wanji Walcott
Former Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel,
Discover Financial Services
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Wanji Walcott is the Former Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel at Discover Financial Services, and a member of the company’s Executive Committee. She is a high-impact global financial services executive with a proven track record of building and leading diverse teams and fostering a culture of collaboration as a trusted advisor. Ms. Walcott was responsible for Discover’s Legal Organization, Government Relations, the company’s Environmental, Social and Governance Program and the Patent & Innovation Program.
With a passion for helping others, Ms. Walcott is committed to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) and serves as executive sponsor of HOLA, Discover’s Latinx Employee Resource Group. She leads the company’s DE&I Task Force and is an active participant in the Legal Organization’s pro bono program, which provides free, high-quality legal services to those in need.
In 2021, the Pro Bono Institute honored Discover and Ms. Walcott with the Laurie D. Zelon Pro Bono Award. She was also recognized by Crain’s Chicago Business as a Notable General Counsel in 2021.
Prior to joining Discover in 2019, Ms. Walcott was Senior Vice President and General Counsel at PayPal Holdings, Inc., where she provided counsel to senior management and the board of directors, was accountable for all areas of the global legal department and provided legal support to corporate affiliates, including a bank. She has also held senior positions at American Express, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, DSET Corporation and Lockheed Martin.
Ms. Walcott serves on the Board of Directors of Foresight II (NASDAQ: FACQU) and has served on a number of non-profit boards, including her current role as Board Chair for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) and director roles at movement.org and The Gunnery School. She is a member of the Executive Leadership Council, the Chicago Network, and the Economic Club of Chicago and holds a B.A. and J.D. from Howard University. She is licensed to practice law in New York, New Jersey and has a Limited License as In-House Counsel in Illinois.
Stuart Alderoty
General Counsel,
Ripple
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Stuart Alderoty is General Counsel at Ripple. Stuart brings more than 30 years of legal experience to the role with expertise in financial services and regulatory affairs. He’s been General Counsel and part of the executive leadership teams at CIT Group and HSBC North America Holdings. Stuart also was Managing Counsel at American Express where he served on the leadership team of the President and CEO of American Express’ Consumer Card Business. Stuart began his career in private practice and was a partner with the international law firm of LeBouef, Lamb, Greene and MacRae where he specialized in litigation.
Ricardo A. Anzaldua
Former Executive Vice President & General Counsel,
Freddie Mac
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Ricardo A. Anzaldua is Former Executive Vice President and General Counsel at the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”).
From December 2012 to December 2017, Anzaldua served as General Counsel and as Special Advisor to the CEO of MetLife. In that role he led the 1,000+ person team comprising the company’s global legal operations, corporate secretary’s office, corporate ethics and compliance group and government affairs operation. He designed and led the execution of the Company’s one-of-a-kind successful legal challenge of its too-big-to-fail designation under the Dodd-Frank Act.
Anzaldua joined MetLife from The Hartford Financial Services Group, where he was Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel. There, he led the Company’s efforts to qualify for TARP funding and to raise more than $10 billion of capital in the throes and the aftermath of the Great Recession. After the financial crisis, he led the legal teams advising the Company’s two largest operating divisions, Commercial and Consumer Markets. Prior to joining The Hartford, Anzaldua was a partner with Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton LLP in New York. He began his legal career with the firm upon graduation from Harvard Law School in 1990.
Before law school, Anzaldua was the publications director and senior editor at the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, a University of California think tank focusing on research relating to Mexico and U.S.-Mexican relations, as well as Latin America more generally.
Anzaldua currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction, an international nonprofit focused on economic and community development and empowerment in the developing world, as well as on the Boards of MCCA, the New York City Bar Fund, and LatinoJustice/PRLDEF. From 2007-2018, he served on the Board of the Greater Hartford Legal Aid foundation (and as its President from 2015-2018).
Craig Beazer
Executive Vice President & General Counsel,
Lincoln Financial Group
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Executive Vice President Craig T. Beazer is the general counsel for Lincoln Financial Group. He oversees all activities for the legal, compliance, government relations and corporate secretary functions of the company, and provides strategic counsel to the CEO, senior management team and board of directors. He reports to Dennis Glass, president and CEO, and sits on the company’s Senior Management committee, which drives the company’s long-term strategy.
Before joining Lincoln, Beazer worked for Cleveland-based KeyBank, where he served as executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary. Prior to that, he held leadership roles at major financial services companies, including The Bank of New York Mellon, Bank of America Corp., and General Electric Capital Corporation. He also held a number of private practice roles, beginning his career as an associate with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, where he served as a member of the Corporate and Capital Markets Group.
Beazer earned his J.D. from New York University and a B.A. from Iona College, where he graduated summa cum laude. He is a member of the Society of Corporate Secretaries & Governance Professionals, where he is also a member of the Securities and Corporate Practices Committees. He is a former member of both The Clearing House Committee on Bank Governance and The Bank Policy Institute, and regularly serves as an expert panelist at high-profile industry meetings and events.
LUCY FATO
Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Global Head of Communications and Government Affairs,
American International Group, Inc. (AIG)
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Lucy oversees AIG’s Global Legal, Compliance and Regulatory groups. She is also Global Head of Communications and Government Affairs.
Prior to joining AIG, Ms. Fato was Managing Director, Head of the Americas & General Counsel of Nardello & Co., a global private investigative firm, where she remains on the Advisory Board.
Previously, Ms. Fato was Executive Vice President & General Counsel of S&P Global. Prior to that, Ms. Fato was Deputy General Counsel & Corporate Secretary at Marsh & McLennan Companies. Ms. Fato began her legal career at the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell where she spent fourteen years, including five as a partner in the capital markets group.
Ms. Fato is a member of the Department of Financial Services (DFS) State Insurance Advisory Board and a member of the Life Insurance Council of NY (LICONY) Board of Directors.
Each year since 2018, Ms. Fato has been included in NACD Directorship magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the boardroom community. In 2015 and 2017, she was named by Ethisphere magazine as one of the “Attorneys Who Matter” for her dedication to furthering corporate ethics.
Ms. Fato serves on the Board of Directors of Advocates for Children of New York, a non-profit organization that works to ensure a high-quality education for children who are at risk for school-based discrimination or academic failure. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation, the Board of Trustees of the Randall’s Island Park Alliance and is a member of the Board of the Coalition for the Homeless, the nation’s oldest advocacy and direct service organization helping homeless men, women and children.
SAMANTHA C. GRANT
Partner,
Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP
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Samantha C. Grant is a partner in the Labor and Employment Practice Group in the firm’s Century City office.
Areas of Practice
Samantha represents employers in administrative, arbitration and trial proceedings in labor and employment matters, including single-plaintiff, class and collective actions. She has extensive experience litigating discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, breach of contract, fraud, defamation, trade secret, covenants not to compete, and unfair competition cases, among others. She also advises clients on litigation avoidance strategies and local, state and federal compliance matters, as well as conducts management and workforce training. The insight and experience she gained while on a two-year secondment, as in-house employment counsel for a Fortune 50 company, was invaluable in her becoming a particularly pragmatic outside counsel.
Willie Hernandez
General Counsel, International
The Coca-Cola Company
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Willie Hernandez is an executive who leads large-scale, high-performing teams and global public companies through transformation, expansion, complex crises and opportunities worldwide. He currently serves as General Counsel, International of The Coca-Cola Company where he is responsible for legal support to the company’s operations in 200 countries and territories.
Known for growing, protecting, and restoring credibility with governments, investors, consumers, and the public in the U.S and worldwide, Willie has more than 20 years of experience navigating highly competitive, heavily regulated environments for leading public companies. He has served across all lines of business and supported a wide range of corporate functions, from global finance to government affairs and from communications to cybersecurity.
Previously, Willie served as Head of Legal for the Facebook and Messenger apps (Meta), Deputy General Counsel for Hewlett Packard Enterprises (HPE) and Senior Counsel at two top public companies (Amazon and IBM). His global expertise includes first-hand experience of doing business overseas, where he navigated government investigations, operational challenges and disputes, complex M&A and other global expansion strategies. He lived and worked for three years in Shanghai, China as General Counsel for IBM’s services unit across the Emerging Markets.
Willie began his legal career as a litigation associate at Jackson Walker LLP after earning his J.D. from UCLA School of Law and B.S. in Environmental Science from the UC Berkley.
Raised in the east side of San Jose, CA, Willie was the first member of his family to attend college. Drawing from personal experience, he is committed to educational and professional development for students from low-income backgrounds to attend college and achieve professional careers. Currently he serves as the Board Chair of Cristo Rey San José Jesuit High School, and he serves as a board member for the Ronald McDonald House Charities Bay Area. He is also a longstanding member of the Hispanic National Bar Association and an advisory committee member of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association.
DUANE HOLLOWAY
Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer,
U.S. Steel Corporation
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Duane D. Holloway joined U. S. Steel in April 2018 to serve as Senior Vice President, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Corporate Secretary. He was appointed the additional role of Chief Ethics Officer in September 2018. At U. S. Steel, Mr. Holloway holds executive responsibility for all legal, ethics and compliance matters across the company. He is also responsible for environmental affairs, corporate governance and managing relations with the company’s Board of Directors.
Before joining U.S. Steel, Mr. Holloway served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel at Ascena Retail Group Inc., then the largest women’s specialty retail and fashion company in the U.S. During his time at Ascena, Mr. Holloway served as Global Chief Legal, Compliance, Sustainability and Diversity officer. As a member of the company’s senior leadership team, Mr. Holloway played a key role in the development and execution of the company’s revised business strategy and transformation program. He also led the transformation of those departments under his purview, significantly improving processes, service levels, outcomes, expense controls and levels of engagement. Mr. Holloway also oversaw the development of Ascena’s first-ever enterprise diversity function and strategy, in addition to a comprehensive corporate social responsibility and philanthropic program.
Previously, Mr. Holloway served as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for Corelogic Inc., the leading global residential property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider. He oversaw members of the U.S. legal department advising on transactional, litigation, intellectual property, regulation, employment, antitrust, and governance matters. He also led the development of the department’s first-ever strategic plan.
Prior to joining CoreLogic, Mr. Holloway spent nine years at Caesars Entertainment Corp., the world’s largest gaming company at the time, where he progressed through increasingly responsible roles in the legal department before being named Senior Vice President and Chief Counsel, Operations and Litigation. In this role, he functioned as general counsel for the company’s global operations division, which included all casinos, resorts, hotels and other related holdings around the world, and helped lead the department’s continuous improvements to its operating model and strategy.
Mr. Holloway also practiced law at the firm now known as Hogan Lovells in Washington, D.C.
A native of Baltimore, Md., Mr. Holloway earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Virginia and received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
Seth Krauss
Chief Legal Officer,
Endeavor
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Seth Krauss has served as the Chief Legal Officer of Endeavor since June 2014. At Endeavor, Mr. Krauss oversees the global legal function, government relations, risk management and physical security, managing a department of professionals located around the globe. Mr. Krauss is also a member of the executive team responsible for managing the day to day affairs of the company.
Mr. Krauss currently serves as a Director on the Board for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA), a non-profit organization that promotes and supports diversity, inclusion and equity in the legal profession.
From 2007 until 2014, Mr. Krauss served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ TTWO).He joined Take-Two from Morgan Stanley, where he served as an Executive Director in the Legal and Compliance Division from 2004 until 2007. At Morgan Stanley, he was responsible for coordinating all significant regulatory and law enforcement matters in the U.S. and served as one of the firm’s senior liaisons to its regulators.
From 1995 to 2004, Mr. Krauss served as an Assistant District Attorney and Senior Investigative Counsel in the New York County District Attorneys’ Office. At the DA’s Office, Mr. Krauss was responsible for leading complex, long-term investigations into violations of securities, banking, accounting, and taxation laws and regulations, working closely with US Federal and State regulators and law enforcement agencies as well as numerous international regulators and agencies. Among other matters, he co-led the Office’s investigation of the role of financial institutions in Enron’s collapse.
From 1992 to 1995, Mr. Krauss served as a Trustee on the Board of Duke University. He has also served as a Director on the Board for the legal services organization, the Center for Family Representation, as well as on the Board of Advisors for the Asian American Bar Association of NY and the MacDella Cooper Foundation. Mr. Krauss received his undergraduate degree from Duke University in 1992 and his law degree in 1995 from the School of Law at Washington University in St. Louis.
Sandra Leung
Executive Vice President & General Counsel,
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
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Sandy Leung is the Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. She leads the worldwide Law Department and is responsible for a wide range of legal areas including intellectual property, commercial and regulatory law, litigation, corporate governance, securities and transactions including licensing, acquisitions and divestitures. She also has responsibility for Environment, Health & Safety, Compliance & Ethics Corporate Security and Corporate Philanthropy.
Sandy joined Bristol-Myers Squibb in 1992 as a staff attorney in the litigation department. She was promoted to positions of increasing responsibility and was elected Corporate Secretary in 1999. In September 2006, she was appointed Interim General Counsel. In February 2007, she was named General Counsel.
Sandy began her legal career as Assistant District Attorney at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in New York City where she was an original member of the Child Abuse Bureau. She ended her prosecutorial career, after trying more than 40 jury trials to verdict, as a member of the prestigious Homicide Investigations Unit where she conducted investigations of unsolved homicides linked with drug gang activity.
Sandy is on the board of directors of the Asian-American Legal Defense and Education Fund and the board of directors of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association.
Sandy is a graduate of Tufts University and Boston College Law School.
Additional Awards
- 2009 Recipient of the Justice in Action Award from the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
- 2013 Recipient of the Excellence in Corporate Practice Award from the Association of Corporate Counsel
- Named one of America’s 2014 and 2016 Top 50 General Counsel by the National Law Journal
Hannah Lim-Johnson
Former Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary,
Meritor, Inc.
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Hannah Lim-Johnson was senior vice president, chief legal officer and corporate secretary for Meritor, Inc. She joined Meritor in August 2020.
In this position, Lim-Johnson had responsibility for Meritor’s legal affairs, which included oversight of legal activities related to corporate governance, acquisitions and divestitures, litigation, business standards compliance, regulatory compliance and intellectual property. She also managed the global corporate legal and compliance department.
Lim-Johnson was most recently a senior vice president and chief legal officer at Kelly Services, where she was responsible for leading the strategic direction of the Law Department and Global Security functions. She also held senior-level roles at PSEG, the ADT Corporation and TYCO International, and served as deputy attorney general for the Attorney General’s Office in Trenton, New Jersey.
Lim-Johnson holds a Juris Doctorate degree from Rutgers University School of Law, where she served as the Managing Editor of the Rutgers Law Review, and a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from the University of Illinois. She also serves as a board member for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association and the Leadership Institute of Women of Color Attorneys.
Linda Lu
Senior Vice President & Deputy General Counsel – Litigation, Enforcement & Strategy,
TransUnion
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Linda Lu is Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of Trans Union. She and her team are responsible for global litigation, government enforcement, strategy, legal counseling for HR, IP, real estate, and insurance risk management. Prior to Trans Union, Linda was the Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Nationwide Insurance Personal Lines, and previously, it’s Chief Litigation Officer.
Linda is currently a Board Member of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, and the Association of Corporate Counsel Foundation. Linda is past Vice President of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, past President of the Asian American Bar Association of Chicago, and an Alumni Fellow of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity. She is also past Vice President of The University of Chicago Board of Governors. Linda is the recipient of NAPABA’s Best Lawyers Under 40 Award, and recognized as a R3-100 by Inside Counsel Magazine. Linda was recognized by the National Diversity Council as one of the Most Powerful and Influential Women of Ohio, received the Transformative Leadership Award from Inside Counsel, awarded the Diversity Leadership Award by NAPABA, and received the Ohio Asian Award.
Linda graduated from the Georgetown Law Center and The University of Chicago, where she was captain and MVP of the tennis team.
LAURENCE MIDLER
Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Chief Risk Officer,
CBRE
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Laurence H. Midler is Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Risk Officer for CBRE. Larry is a member of CBRE’s Executive Committee and oversees its Legal, Compliance and Risk Management functions. He joined the company in April 2004 and helped lead the firm through its IPO, several transformational acquisitions and a period of global expansion and robust growth to number 122 in the Fortune list of the largest U.S.-based companies.
Prior to joining CBRE, Mr. Midler served as General Counsel to Micro Warehouse, Inc. from 2000 to 2003 and as its Assistant General Counsel from 1998 to 2000. Earlier, Mr. Midler was General Counsel of Serviscope Corporation. Mr. Midler began his legal career with Latham & Watkins, a global law firm.
Mr. Midler is active in giving back to his community, both through work and in his personal time. Mr. Midler serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Goodwill of Southern California.
Lanesha Minnix
Former Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary,
Flowserve Corporation
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Lanesha Minnix served as Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary at Flowserve Corporation (NYSE: FLS), an S&P 500 manufacturer of engineered and industrial pumps, seals and valves operating in more than 50 countries. As Chief Legal Officer, Ms. Minnix was a member of the Executive Leadership Team and oversaw all legal, governance, compliance, and regulatory affairs globally for the company.
Prior to joining Flowserve, Ms. Minnix served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel for BMC Stock Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BMCH), a Fortune 700 provider of diversified residential building products. As General Counsel, she was responsible for all legal matters of the company as well as the risk management function.
Prior to joining BMC, Ms. Minnix was Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer for ABM Industries Incorporated (NYSE: ABM), a Fortune 500 facility solutions company with 100,000 employees worldwide. Before her tenure with ABM, Ms. Minnix held significant legal leadership roles at Royal Dutch Shell/Shell Oil Company including roles in the downstream business and an expat role based in Qatar. Ms. Minnix began her career as a corporate associate at the law firm of K&L Gates and then as Corporate Counsel for Sprint Corporation.
Ms. Minnix earned her Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration from the University of Tulsa and Bachler of Science from St. Louis University. She serves on the Board of Directors for Minority Corporate Counsel Association and previously served on the Board of Trustees and for the National Urban League and the Girls Scouts of San Jacinto Council in Houston. She is a member of the Texas and Pennsylvania Bars.
JENNIFER NEWSTEAD
Chief Legal Officer,
Meta Platforms, Inc.
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Jennifer G. Newstead is chief legal officer at Meta, formerly Facebook, overseeing all global legal and corporate governance matters on behalf of the company. Prior to joining Meta in 2019, Jennifer served in senior roles in government, most recently as the Senate-confirmed legal adviser of the US Department of State, advising on issues of domestic and international law affecting the conduct of US foreign relations. Previously, she served as general counsel of the White House Office of Management and Budget, and as a principal deputy assistant attorney general at the US Department of Justice. In the private sector, Jennifer spent twelve years as a partner in a global law firm, Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, advising technology, media, and financial services firms on litigation and regulatory matters. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1991 and from Yale Law School in 1994. Jennifer clerked for Justice Stephen Breyer of the United States Supreme Court and Judge Laurence Silberman of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. She previously served as an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center.
Amy Fliegelman Olli
Executive Vice President & General Counsel,
VMware, Inc.
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Amy Fliegelman Olli is the Executive Vice President & General Counsel for VMware. With more than 20 years of legal experience, Amy leads VMware’s Global Legal team, which includes VMware’s Ethics & Compliance and Global Government Relations organizations, and she champions the company’s commitment to integrity, ethics, compliance and risk management practices.
Prior to joining VMware, Amy served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Avaya. She led the Avaya Law and Global Contracting organization. Prior to Avaya, Amy held a similar position at CA Technologies and spent more than 18 years at IBM.
In 2010, Amy was the winner of Burton’s “Legends in Law” award and was named by the Diversity Journal as a “Woman Worth Watching” in 2011. She was a 2014 winner of the “Aiming High” Award from Legal Momentum, and in 2017, was included in Corporate Counsel’s list of Transformative Leaders in Technology, Media & Telecom and Collaborative Leadership. In 2021, Amy was named to Financial Times “Top 20 General Counsels,” and she was recognized with a “2021 Women, Influence & Power in Law, General Counsel of the Year—In House” award by Corporate Counsel.
Amy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the State University of New York at Oswego and a Juris Doctor degree from Western New England School of Law.
Rodney Pratt
Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer,
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc.
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Rodney C. Pratt has over 20 years of experience and success leading global retail organizations as a trusted and strategic business executive and legal advisor. Rodney currently serves as the Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc., the North America subsidiary of the French multinational conglomerate and world leader in luxury products and services. Rodney oversees the North American business, leads the LVMH North America legal team, and serves on the LVMH North America Executive Leadership Team. In his role, Rodney is responsible for strategic, tactical, and operational execution and oversight on the entire range of legal matters that typically confront a business unit within a major global consumer company. Rodney also supports LVMH Maisons, providing proactive and pragmatic legal counsel regarding worldwide regulatory, corporate, litigation and commercial matters.
Prior to joining LVMH, Rodney spent over 11 years at NIKE, Inc. While at NIKE, Rodney served for over six years as General Counsel of Converse Inc., a wholly owned NIKE subsidiary. In addition to his legal responsibilities, Rodney was a highly valued and respected enterprise leader and served as an inaugural member of NIKE’s externally focused Black Community Commitment Task Force and Co-Founder of the Converse Diversity Network.
Rodney is Co-Chair of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association’s Advisory Board. Rodney serves on the Board of Directors of Massachusetts Eye & Ear (MEE), a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and home to the world’s largest hearing and vision research center. Rodney is a Co-Founder and Board member of the Boston-based New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund (NCF). Rodney is an Adjunct Professor at Howard University School of Law where he co-teaches a course on Sports & Social Justice.
Rodney is a graduate of the College of William & Mary and received his law degree from the George Washington University Law School. While in law school, Rodney served as a White House Intern in the Office of the Chief of Staff under the Clinton Administration.
Rodney proudly serves as a mentor and advisor to attorneys of all practice areas and backgrounds.
Tom Robertson
Corporate Vice President & Deputy General Counsel,
Microsoft Corporation
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Robertson leads the Corporate, External & Legal Affairs team that supports the Experiences and Devices Group, which is responsible for Office, Windows, Office 365, Microsoft Surface devices, Skype, Teams and many other products and services. He has led other teams in Seattle, Tokyo and Hong Kong since joining in 1997. Before Microsoft, Robertson was Associate General Counsel in the Office of the United States Trade Representative within the Executive Office of the President, where he was responsible for intellectual property issues and general trade issues with U.S. trading partners in the Asia Pacific region. Before that, Robertson practiced law at Covington and Burling in Washington, D.C., and London, England, and was a law clerk to the Honorable Albert Bryan, Jr., then Chief Judge in the U.S. Federal Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria, Virginia.
Robertson holds both Bachelor of Science and Law degrees from the University of Virginia. He is admitted to practice in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Washington State. He serves on the Boards of Greater Seattle Partners, the Coalition of Services Industries, the National Bureau of Asian Research and Town Hall Seattle. He is a Life Member of the Council of Foreign Relations and a Fellow of the U.S.-Japan Leadership Program.
ANNE ROBINSON
Managing Director & General Counsel,
The Vanguard Group, Inc.
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Anne E. Robinson is general counsel of The Vanguard Group, Inc., and secretary of the Vanguard funds. She is managing director of the Office of the General Counsel, which includes Legal, Compliance, Investment Stewardship, and Government Relations. She joined Vanguard in 2016, bringing over 20 years of legal experience in the financial services industry, where she has counseled senior executives on a wide range of legal, regulatory, and business issues.
Prior to joining Vanguard, Ms. Robinson was a managing director and general counsel in the Citigroup global legal department. Before that, she was a managing counsel at American Express; during more than 10 years at that company, she served in a wide range of senior legal positions. Prior to joining American Express, she was division counsel to Deloitte Consulting’s venture capital firm and its global outsourcing organization. She started her legal career in private practice with the law firm of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley and McCloy.
Ms. Robinson earned a B.S. from Hampton University and a J.D. from Columbia University Law School.
DAWN SMITH
President & Chief Operating Officer,
Cologix, Inc.
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Dawn is President and Chief Operating Officer of Cologix, where she leads the company’s strategic initiatives, real estate development, human resources, legal, all other administrative functions, and corporate strategy. She also serves as Corporate Secretary to the company’s Board of Directors.
Prior to Cologix, Dawn was most recently the executive vice president and chief legal officer of McAfee, where she led the legal and government relations organization globally. Prior to McAfee, Dawn was the senior vice president and chief legal officer at VMware.
After serving in the U.S. Navy, Dawn graduated from Stanford Law School. Dawn joined Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and then became partner at Morrison & Foerster with a focus on mergers and acquisitions, private equity and debt financings, board advisory, and corporate governance.
Dawn currently serves on the board of directors of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association. Her leadership has earned numerous recognitions in the field of law, including: Top 50 Women Lawyers in the U.S. by the National Diversity Council, Value Champion Award by the Association of Corporate Counsel, Most Innovative In-House Legal Team in North America, and Top 20 General Counsel by the Financial Times.
In addition to her JD from Stanford Law School, Dawn earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, where she also received the Vice Admiral Lawrence Award for most outstanding woman athlete. As a commissioned officer, Dawn was chosen for the highly competitive naval nuclear submarine program founded by Admiral Hyman Rickover, and while in the Navy she earned an MBA from Providence College.
MICHAEL TANG
Senior Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary,
Agilent Technologies, Inc.
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Michael Tang is Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of Agilent Technologies. He is responsible for leading Agilent’s global legal organization and advising the board of directors and management team on all aspects of the law, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and securities matters.
Tang has served in the Legal and Corporate Development departments of Agilent since joining the company in 2006. In 2013 he was named Agilent Vice President, Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Secretary. Tang was the lead attorney on Agilent’s spinoff of its electronic measurement business to form Keysight Technologies.
Prior to Agilent, Tang represented public and private technology companies in a broad range of corporate and securities matters at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a Palo Alto, California, law firm and Fenwick & West LLP, a Mountain View, California, law firm.
Tang is a graduate of Columbia Law School. He also holds a B.S. in economics from The Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania. He is an active member of the State Bar of California.
MICHAEL WU
Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary,
Bath & Body Works, Inc.
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Wu serves as chief legal officer and corporate secretary of Bath & Body Works having joined the business in May 2021. Wu oversees the legal, ethics and compliance, regulatory compliance and trade compliance teams.
Wu is a four-time public company general counsel and corporate secretary with nearly 30 years of experience in growth companies and retail. He has deep expertise in corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, compliance and risk management, as well as in securities, merger and acquisition and international expansion.
Prior to joining Bath & Body Works, Wu served as chief legal officer and corporate secretary for Madewell, a division of J. Crew, where he drove the company’s preparation for an initial public offering and spin-off. He previously served as general counsel at Carter’s, a leading children’s apparel brand; Rosetta Stone, an education technology software company; and Teleglobe, an international telecommunications company.
Wu earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University and his juris doctorate degree from the University of Virginia School of Law. Wu serves on the advisory boards of the Georgetown Law Corporate Counsel Institute and the Asian American Bar Association of New York. He is also a member of the Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association board of directors.
Amy Tu
Chief Legal Officer & Secretary, Global Governance and Corporate Affairs,
Tyson Foods, Inc.
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Amy Tu leads the team that manages Tyson Foods’ most significant risks and leverages its most significant opportunities. Her Global Governance and Corporate Affairs organization comprises nearly 5,000 team members across 10 functions and many areas of expertise. She oversees the legal, government affairs, corporate communications, ethics and compliance, audit services, health and safety, food safety and quality assurance, environment, corporate services and aviation functions. Since joining the enterprise leadership team in 2017, Amy’s role and responsibilities have continued to expand. She reports to President and CEO Donnie King.
Amy joined Tyson from The Boeing Company where she held progressive leadership positions in law and corporate development and strategy departments. She served as chief counsel for Boeing global law affairs, commercial airplanes and aviation services divisions, supporting multiple business and functional leaders worldwide. Amy was also instrumental in shaping the global law affairs practice as Boeing’s first regional counsel based in London, U.K., with responsibilities for commercial, military and defense matters in Europe, Russia, and Israel. Prior to joining Boeing in 2001, Amy led global transactions and international legal matters as an international corporate counsel at The Gap and Walmart.
Over the course of her career, Amy has developed deep expertise establishing and supporting global operations, executing complex cross-border, international and domestic transactions, and developing and integrating teams and new ventures into existing businesses.
Amy earned a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Arkansas School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Wellesley College, and in 2013 was selected as the Johnson Fellow for the University of Arkansas. Amy serves as a member of the NWA Council Executive Committee and as a board member for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA).
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Krishna Veeraraghavan
Partner,
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
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A partner in the Corporate Department, Krishna Veeraraghavan is a member of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group. Krishna focuses his practice on a range of corporate matters and has extensive experience advising public and private companies on domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts and other transactions. He also regularly advises boards of directors and special committees on activist defense, proxy contests and the full range of corporate governance matters.
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
Krishna has long been recognized as a leading advisor by numerous industry publications and directories, including Chambers USA and The Legal 500. He has been named a “Healthcare Trailblazer” by The National Law Journal (2019); a “Dealmaker of the Year” by The American Lawyer (2018, 2022); a “Retail & E-Commerce MVP” by Law360 (2017); a “Life Sciences MVP” by Law360 (2015, 2016); a “Transatlantic Rising Star” by The American Lawyer (2016); a “Dealmaker of the Week” by The American Lawyer (2014, 2015); a “Rising Star” by Law360 (2014, 2015) and New York Law Journal (2015); and a “Highly Regarded Lawyer” by IFLR1000. Krishna was listed as one of the “Best Lawyers Under 40” by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (2014), and was named one of four “Rising Stars” by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (2013).
Neil Wilcox
Executive Vice President & Head of Corporate Social Responsibility,
Fiserv, Inc.
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Neil H. Wilcox is Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Fiserv, Inc., leading the company’s focus on corporate citizenship and social responsibility, including strategies to build upon its success in community and non-profit engagement, diversity and inclusion, and global philanthropy and volunteerism. He oversees sustainability commitments for the organization and helps govern and measure the impact of these initiatives and their value to the business and key stakeholders.
Wilcox joined Fiserv in September 2020 as Chief of Staff for the Office of the CEO, gaining a deep understanding of day-to-day operations across the organization and working closely with the Fiserv leadership team on a wide range of operational effectiveness initiatives.
Prior to joining Fiserv, Wilcox served as interim General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer at USAA, providing strategic counsel and legal advice to the CEO, Board of Directors and Executive Council. Prior to that, he was Senior Vice President, Enterprise Shared Services Counsel at USAA. Previously, Wilcox was Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel at First Data. He has also held division general counsel and senior compliance roles with J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Marsh & McLennan.
Over the course of his career, Wilcox has developed significant expertise with bank and insurance regulatory matters, corporate real estate, intellectual property, procurement, litigation, and mergers and acquisitions. He serves on the boards of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association and New York’s Hale House Center, and is a member of the Executive Leadership Council.
Wilcox received his undergraduate degree from Duke University and his Juris Doctor degree from the Georgetown University Law Center.