https://www.linkedin.com/in/aileen-schwartz/

I am Senior Counsel and Director of Litigation at IDEMIA in charge of litigations, investigations, IP, data privacy, and trade compliance. I also cover contract review and negotiation as well as corporate law matters for the company. I reside in the Washington, DC area.

IDEMIA is a global technology company PE backed by Advent International, focusing on biometrics, cryptography, secure credentialing, secure transactions, and identity-related services. IDEMIA services both commercial as well as governmental entity clients.

I spent the first 7 years of my practice at two global defense firms followed by 6 years prosecuting securities class actions at Bernstein Litowitz. I then spent over 6 years managing a diverse international cross-border litigation docket, external governmental investigations and internal investigations, subpoenas, and other third-party requests at the New York branch of a global financial institution headquartered in France. I relocated to the Washington, DC area in 2023.

I like to think that I solve problems and that I get things done. Getting things done requires teamwork, lots of communication and coordination. It helps to surround yourself with the best talent you can get. I believe that people are motivated to work hard if you create an environment that supports their success. Problem resolution is maybe 10% creativity and 90% follow through. It can’t always be fun, but if you can make it fun and challenging, maybe it won’t seem like work.

That is what I try to do, and I do it with passion and energy.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

• Crisis management: managing litigation and insurance recoveries in response to Bayou Corne, Louisiana sinkhole incident. Approximately 25 lawsuits, managing legal team of four outside law firms in two states, in addition to managing the legal affairs of the ongoing businesses.

Representative transactions:
o Structured, drafted, negotiated and closed long term leases of largest natural gas storage caverns in U.S.
o Structured, drafted, negotiated and closed acquisition of brine wells and evaporator facility from Spectra Energy.

• At post-bankruptcy Enron, negotiated and closed asset sales and settlements, netting over $100 million to estate.

• At water services company, closed seven acquisitions in fifteen-month period totaling over $30 million in enterprise value.

• At DOE, negotiated and closed two loan guarantees totaling $3 billion for commercial scale synfuels projects.

• At FERC, advised on major rulemakings and policies; drafted decisions in electric utility and gas pipeline rate cases.

Rhonda D. Orin is the managing shareholder of Anderson Kill's Washington, D.C. office and co-chair of the firm’s Climate Change and Disaster Recovery group.

Rhonda represents policyholders in coverage cases nationwide.  She is distinguished by her extensive experience as lead counsel in multiple multi-million-dollar insurance trials, both bench and jury.  She has substantial appellate experience as well, having argued before the highest courts of several states, and appeared in two cases before U.S. Supreme Court.  Rhonda is distinguished further by the unusual breadth of her substantive knowledge.  In addition to expertise with first-party property damage and business interruption claims, third-party tort and environmental liability claims, directors & officers and errors & omissions claims, she also is knowledgeable about cyber liability, fidelity bonds, disability insurance policies and the myriad of health insurance and ERISA issues that arise in the context of modern healthcare.

Due to such achievements, Rhonda has been named a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, an honor reserved for less than 1% of attorneys. She has been ranked in Chambers USA, honored by The Legal 500, named a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, awarded “Star of the Bar” by the Women’s Bar Association of D.C. and selected by her peers for continuous inclusion in Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers.  She also is a prolific and influential author on insurance issues and is the author of a book entitled, "Making Them Pay: How to Get the Most from Health Insurance and Managed Care" which was honored by The Wall Street Journal in 2000. Rhonda is also the author of "Self-Administering, Insuring and Funding Benefit Plans".