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Lex Mundi Connect + Collaborate Annual Conference 2023

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Morrison Foerster and Lex Mundi are pleased to invite you to the 2023 Connect + Collaborate Annual Conference in San Francisco from May 3–May 5.

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Morrison Foerster and Lex Mundi are pleased to invite you to the 2023 Connect + Collaborate Annual Conference in San Francisco from May 3–May 5. This conference will explore cutting-edge technologies and practices reshaping not only the business of law, but the way we work and interact. Several MoFo attorneys are scheduled to speak at the conference:<ul><li>Wednesday, May 3, 2:00 p.m.–2:45 p.m. – Welcome Remarks. Speaker: Caitlin Sinclaire Blythe, Managing Partner, Morrison Foerster’s San Francisco office</li><li>Wednesday, May 3, 4:15 p.m.–5:15 p.m. ‒ How Are General Counsel Navigating AI Risk, Governance and Regulation? Moderator: Justin Haan, Partner, Morrison Foerster’s Technology Transactions Group</li><li>Thursday, May 4, 4:20 p.m.–5:20 p.m. ‒ Litigation, Arbitration and Dispute Resolution, Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Disputes Panel. Moderator: Ryan Keats, Partner, Morrison Foerster’s Securities Litigation, Enforcement, Investigations + White-Collar Defense Group. Speaker: Michael Burshteyn, Associate, Morrison Foerster’s Securities Litigation, Enforcement, Investigations + White-Collar Defense Group</li><li>Thursday, May 4, 4:20 p.m.–5:20 p.m. ‒ Cross-Border Transactions Panel. Moderator: Michael O’Bryan, Partner, Morrison Foerster’s Transactions Group</li></ul>If you would like to participate (with no fee required), please <a href="https://na.eventscloud.com/ereg/newreg.php?eventid=722690&categoryid=4695997#_blank" target="_blank">register</a>.<hr>

Lex Mundi Connect + Collaborate Annual Conference 2023

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Caitlin Sinclaire Blythe is the Managing Partner of the San Francisco office. Caitlin is a member of the firm’s Litigation, Trials + Appeals Department where her practice focuses on investigations, white-collar defense, and commercial and consumer litigation. She represents companies, audit committees, and individuals in SEC and DOJ enforcement matters as well as internal corporate investigations involving accounting and disclosure issues.Caitlin also represents corporations and individuals in class actions and other commercial and consumer litigation matters, and has experience litigating cases in federal and state courts, and before arbitration tribunals, throughout the country.Caitlin’s robust pro bono practice focuses on civil rights matters. Recent successes include obtaining:<ul><li>A verdict favoring a family in a federal jury trial involving an unlawful search of their home</li><li>A favorable ruling from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal on behalf of an inmate asserting a civil rights claim</li></ul>Before joining Morrison & Foerster, Caitlin served as a law clerk to the Honorable Richard Seeborg of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Caitlin received her J.D. from Harvard Law School and her B.A. in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Caitlin Sinclaire Blythe

Partner

Justin Haan is the chair of the firm's Technology Transactions Group, advising leading technology industry pioneers to help them navigate their most critical IP and technology needs.Justin’s practice focuses on transactions and counseling involving intellectual property and technology, including licensing arrangements, technology transfers, and joint development activities. Justin structures, drafts, and negotiates a wide range of commercial agreements, including software and content licenses, service agreements, reseller arrangements, and collaboration, manufacturing, supply and distribution agreements. He advises clients on the development, procurement and commercialization of cutting-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, augmented/virtual reality, semiconductors, data centers, cloud computing services, autonomous vehicles, and unmanned aircraft systems.  Justin also counsels clients on open source software, complex patent-related transactions, and the intellectual property aspects of M&A transactions. Justin’s experience includes advising OpenAI, Arm, Autodesk, Meta, Salesforce, SoftBank, Unity, and others on the IP aspects of complex projects involving cutting-edge technologies and fast-evolving areas of law. Justin serves on the firm’s AI industry committee, where he helps to lead and collaborate with attorneys across multiple practices on the rapid advances of generative AI. Justin is also a sought–after speaker and thought leader on artificial intelligence and has spoken at SXSW on the subject of multimodal AI.Before joining the firm, Justin was an intellectual property associate in the New York office of another global law firm.Justin received his J.D., with a certificate in law and technology, from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, where he won the Prosser Prize in intellectual property in the entertainment industries and was an articles editor for the Berkeley Technology Law Journal. He received his A.B. from Harvard University.

Justin Haan

Chair of Technology Transactions Practice

Chair of the firm’s Securities Litigation Group, Ryan Keats represents companies and their officers and directors in securities class actions, SEC investigations, shareholder derivative lawsuits, and other high-stakes litigation.Ryan represents issuers facing disputes with their shareholders in state and federal courts across the country. His representations routinely include securities class actions, derivative lawsuits, securities fraud allegations, insider trading claims, and shareholder books and records demands. Ryan’s practice is complemented by his representation of issuers and executives in connection with internal investigations and government inquiries, as well as in litigation brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other government regulators. Ryan is sought after for his ability to prevail on motions to dismiss, at summary judgment, on the merits, and on appeal.Ryan draws on his litigation experience to advise companies and their executives regarding anticipated adverse disclosures so that they can mitigate the risks before disputes arise. His clients come from a broad range of industries, including artificial intelligence, computer software, consumer products, energy, financial services, life sciences, and manufacturing.Ryan is the current chair of the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Litigation Section and a fellow of the American Bar Foundation. He is also a Lecturer in Law at Stanford Law School, teaching “Complex Litigation Through a Securities Lens” in Spring 2026. Ryan is a Trustee of the Bay Area Discovery Museum. He also maintains an active pro bono docket, representing individuals in connection with life-changing legal issues.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><h5>Securities Class Actions</h5><ul><li>Cloudera and certain of its officers and directors in securities class actions in California federal and state court. Won motion to dismiss in federal court, which was upheld on appeal. Won motion for summary judgment as to all claims in state court.</li><li>Former CFO in a securities class action and SEC lawsuit arising out of accounting restatement.</li><li>LeapFrog in a securities class action relating to a product launch and accounting disclosures.</li><li>RH and certain of its executives in a securities class action relating to the launch of a new product line and its inventory levels.</li></ul><h5>Shareholder Derivative Actions</h5><ul><li>Fitbit and certain of its directors and officers in connection with a shareholder derivative suit in the Delaware Court of Chancery. Following a successful bifurcation motion prioritizing discovery into plaintiffs’ standing, negotiated a settlement on favorable terms.</li><li>Hortonworks and certain of its directors and officers in connection with a shareholder derivative suit in the Delaware Court of Chancery. Won motion to dismiss with prejudice.</li><li>Zynga and certain of its directors and officers in connection with a shareholder derivative suit on appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court.</li></ul><h5>Deal Litigation</h5><ul><li>SoftBank Group Corp. in lawsuits brought by WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann and a special committee of WeWork’s board of directors seeking $3 billion in damages. Plaintiffs alleged that SoftBank improperly failed to close a tender offer for WeWork shares and alleged that SoftBank breached fiduciary duties owed to other WeWork stockholders. The novel, high-profile case was litigated on a compressed schedule, with trial set less than a year after the complaint was filed. The parties settled two weeks before trial, and the settlement helped pave the way for WeWork’s go-public transaction through a SPAC merger.</li><li>Leading financial institution in successfully defending against breach of contract claims arising from a spinout transaction. Secured a complete defense victory following a two-week arbitration hearing.</li></ul><h5>Government Investigations</h5><ul><li>Chief Financial Officer in connection with SEC investigation concerning IPO projections. The SEC did not charge our client.</li><li>Telecommunications company in anti-bribery investigations involving the company’s activities in Europe and the Middle East. The SEC and Department of Justice (DOJ) did not charge the client.</li></ul>

Ryan Keats

Mike advises on U.S. and international mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and other strategic transactions, including “going private” and other related-party transactions. He has advised companies, boards, and special committees, as well as investment banks, in both negotiated and contested transactions. He works with clients across a variety of industries, including in the technology, software, telecommunications, agtech, consumer, and healthcare/life sciences sectors.Mike has been ranked in numerous publications including Chambers USA, The Legal 500, and Best Lawyers in America. Clients in The Legal 500 describe Mike as “a very seasoned M&A lawyer with a depth of technical expertise.” He has been recognized for M&A by Best Lawyers in America every year since 2013, and in 2021 the publication named him a “Lawyer of the Year” for M&A. He has also been recognized in Who’s Who Legal – The International Who’s Who of Mergers & Acquisitions Lawyers.Before moving to San Francisco, he worked in the firm’s Tokyo office for four years. Prior to joining Morrison & Foerster, he worked at a Japanese law firm for two years, concentrating on cross–border transactions. He serves on the board of directors of the Japan Society of Northern California.Mike is the immediate past chair of the American Bar Association’s M&A Committee, where he also served as co-editor of the Model Tender Offer Agreement, on the editorial board for the Model Public Company Merger Agreement, as senior reviewer of the forthcoming Revised Model Asset Purchase Agreement, and as the editor of the Annual Survey of M&A Cases. While chair, he co-founded the Committee’s national law student M&A negotiating competition.He also has served on M&A advisory boards, such as the Law360 M&A editorial board and the Thomson Reuters Accelus Business Law Partner advisory board. He is also a member of our global Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) steering committee. He is the author or co-author of numerous articles and speaks regularly on M&A and related topics. He leads efforts around the firm’s annual Key M&A Trends report, recognized as a “Top Read Article” by JD Supra Readers’ Choice Awards.

Michael G. O'Bryan

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Lex Mundi Connect + Collaborate Annual Conference 2023

03 May 2023 - 05 May 2023