The ‘extraordinary’ privacy and cybersecurity team at Dechert LLP regularly handles high-profile, complex class actions in the sector, along with defending clients in regulatory investigations. A particular standout feature is the team’s experience in the healthcare sector, representative of its focus on data-rich sectors also including technology, and its ability to advise on the specific regulations applying to companies in these sectors. Team head Brenda Sharton, based in Boston, ‘is a phenomenal leader for the practice’: leading large scale data breach responses, defending consumer class action litigation, and noted for her specific AI and machine learning expertise. Also in Boston, Timothy Blank advises on the privacy and data security implications of corporate deals. Los Angeles-based Kevin Cahill is a go-to for clients in the financial services industry; Benjamin Sadun, also in Los Angeles, handles matters relating to the Biometric Information Privacy Act. Associate Hilary Bonaccorsi is skilled in the development of global privacy compliance programs for data-driven businesses, working out of Charlotte.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

‘The Dechert Cyber & Privacy practice is amazing. They regularly exceed expectations and are superior to other firms I've used for similar matters. The Dechert Cyber team is very easy to work with.’
‘Brenda Sharton is a phenomenal leader for the practice. She's super responsive, diplomatic when necessary while also being straightforward and clear. Her calm demeanor and extensive experience have helped us navigate multiple crises.'
‘The team's most valuable resource is, for sure, its people. They do stand out a lot with their expertise and vast experience. I admired a lot that the people we worked with provided not only strictly legal advice, but that such advice was also business-oriented and with a proper risk assessment in mind.’
‘I've worked with Brenda Sharton, Benjamin Sadun and Theodore Yale. All of them are excellent professionals and very pleasant to work with. Brenda is our primary point of contact, and I admire her both as a professional and as a person. She is a true expert, very transparent, always accessible and responsive. Also, always really quick in replies, and everything is always under control with her supervision.’
‘The data privacy services offered by Dechert are bespoke and performed the right way. By doing what is right to mitigate business impact and guide clients, clients leave the calls with a sense that things are moving in the right direction.’
‘Tim Blank and Bailey Dervishi are experts at what they do. They're available at a moment's notice and they make an excellent team. From the first call its apparent that they have experience of the latest ransomware and cybercrime trends. The team knows just the right things to say to keep a tense situation calm and they are committed to doing the job the right way.’
‘Dechert has been extraordinary in several respects: their responsiveness to client contact/questions/meeting requests, including at odd hours or on short notice, their level of preparedness for meetings, and the sophistication and practical effectiveness of the advice they give all set them apart. Where questions arise that an individual attorney cannot answer, they immediately bring in an appropriate colleague to assist. They have also been uniquely attuned to particular client needs and shown themselves able to absorb a tremendous amount of information about the business model(s) at issue, in a very short time, putting them in a position to give advice in areas where others have floundered.’

Key clients

Microsoft (Nuance division)
Prisma Labs, Inc.
Easy Healthcare Corp
Flo Health, Inc.
A globe-spanning large data broker
A major airline loyalty program
Easy Healthcare Corporation
Estancia Capital Partners
Cerberus Capital Management
Cerus Endovascular Limited
Court Square Capital Partners

Work highlights

Representing Microsoft in six class actions related to the high-profile MOVEit breach recently filed in D. Mass. Microsoft selected Dechert because of its extensive and successful experience in similar cases and in particular for its credibility in Boston where all these lawsuits are taking place.
Representing Prisma Labs in two AI privacy class action cases.
Representing Flo Health (developer of the world’s #1 female fertility health application with over 40 million active monthly users and 300 million downloads), and have succeeded with regulators, in the courtroom, and in the court of public opinion.