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As deputy general counsel for litigation, labor relations, and employment law at Instacart, Steve develops and manages company strategies across a broad range of legal issues, policies, and programs. He worked as an associate and managing associate at Orrick in the Employment group from 2007 to 2013.
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Steve Chariyasatit, Instacart
ALUMNI NEWS
On the Move
Congratulations, friends!
ORRICK NEWS
Join Orrick lawyers, clients and friends as we discuss insights
on the latest trends and solutions in Tech & Innovation, Energy & Infrastructure and Finance law.
has joined Lincoln Financial in Radnor, PA, as executive vice president and general counsel. He was previously executive vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary at KeyBank.
(New York/Public Finance)
Craig Beazer
What do you like best about your current position?
In many ways, this is the job I have always wanted. In addition to every kind of litigation, my work includes general employment matters, labor relations, product counseling, regulatory compliance, public policy initiatives and legislation, and strategic business guidance. Each of these topics is fascinating to me.
READ MORE
Steve Chariyasatit
Walt Brown
has been promoted to supreme court director at Georgetown University Law Center’s Institute for Constitutional Advocacy & Protection. Kelsi was previously a senior fellow.
(Supreme Court and Appellate/Washington, D.C.)
Kelsi Corkran
has joined Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in San Francisco as a partner.
(San Francisco/White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation
& Compliance)
Kristen Jacoby
has joined Rent the Runway, Inc.
in New York City as vice president
of privacy and technology counsel.
(IP Licensing & Tech Transactions/New York)
Amy Lauren
has joined Aurora in
San Francisco as assistant general counsel of employment law. Kristen previously held this title at Genentech.
(Employment Law/San Francisco)
READ MORE
The pandemic changed the way we do business. How have Instacart and your role there evolved?
Business increased a lot, which makes sense given that we offer touchless grocery delivery on our platform.
We went from 200,000 shoppers to more than 500,000 in a very short time period. In addition, a lot of people depend on this service, from those who are immunocompromised or disabled to new parents, so we really
had to scramble to keep up. The legal team alone grew from 14 people to over 50.
Did that influence your career path?
Absolutely. This is the reason I entered into a joint law and policy program. I was hoping to acquire the tools to come back home and ensure equal access to 21st century living standards for my community. My initial interest was pursuing a career as an Indian law litigator fighting for justice for tribes in the courts. But by the time I graduated law school I worried that Indian law litigation would be a depressing and losing battle, and that every time I would seek to hold the line on tribal sovereignty in the courts, that line would fall back no matter what the law would ordinarily provide for. Instead I wanted to expand the boundaries of tribal sovereignty, and tribal finance offered a means to do that. I heard of an impressive tribe in the Midwest that had developed such an extraordinarily well-resourced and well-functioning justice system that the local county availed itself of that system. That seemed to be the answer to me: if tribes could build strong institutions coupled with strong capital infrastructure through tools such as public finance, others would willingly submit to tribal jurisdiction.
Name something you learned at Orrick that is helpful to you now.
I can’t say enough good things about my time at Orrick. Having great mentors like Lynne Hermle and Jess Perry, and colleagues like Julia Riechert, early in my career was transformative. The partners with whom I worked took the time to make sure associates knew what we were doing and why, then gave us the trust and confidence to handle high-level work on our own. Seeing them in action was just amazing. For example, I went to trial with Lynne on a case and it was such a learning experience.
You came to law through an interesting path—you were a biology major who worked as a zookeeper after college. How did this perspective help shape your law career?
I was always interested in law and even did mock trial during high school, so this wasn’t as big a jump as it might seem. That said, coming from a nontraditional background definitely gives you a broader perspective. It might be cultural, educational, or just having a unique life experience. I was trained as a scientist, which means I tackle problems with a certain kind of rigor and walk through them in a logical way. This approach informs my practice and how I problem-solve.
What advice do you have for early-career lawyers?
Two things changed my perspective completely as a junior lawyer. The first was when a mentor said, “Relax, everyone is just trying to figure it out as they go along.” As a young lawyer, I remember looking at senior associates and partners in awe and wondering how I would ever get to their level of knowledge and expertise. The realization that they don’t always have the answers and that everyone is struggling with the same issues helped me to feel better and understand that I too can handle any difficulty if I am able to think through it and continue to gain more experience.
Outside the office, what are your passions?
I’m really into fitness, so I do a variety of activities like swimming, running, boot camp classes, weight training, and other types of workouts. Several years ago, I taught myself to swim from watching online videos so I could do my first triathlon, and now I’ve completed over 10 of them. We have challenging jobs, so it’s important to find ways to blow off steam. Right now I’ve been set back because of the pandemic,
so I just want to get back up to speed and start racing again. At some point, I would like to work up to a marathon or complete a full Ironman.
In D.C., my primary task was to help advance indigenous human rights for tribes in the U.S. It was great to put my knowledge into practice in the area of human rights, but I was too far from mountains and Indian country, and human rights, unfortunately, hasn’t provided a strong enough legal lever for tribes in the U.S. As I was contemplating change, I discovered a phenomenal Indian law litigation group out of Seattle (Kanji & Katzen P.L.L.C.) that was winning the cases I thought couldn’t be won, and that was enforcing 19th century treaty fishing and hunting rights to ensure the continuation of indigenous life ways well into the future. I simply had to learn from them, and once I met their team, I knew they would be a wonderful group of people to work with.
I started out with them as an associate, and after completing my service as the Navajo Nation Attorney General, I rejoined them as a member.
Best of all, I’ve been encouraged to grow the role in any way I see fit. One day I may focus on furthering public policy, such as partnering with peer companies to help draft legislation to define the future of work, such as California Proposition 22 (a ballot initiative that passed in 2020 that creates a new classification test and provides certain pay standards and benefits for app-based transportation and delivery drivers). Another day
I might be advising on product features or discussing litigation strategies. In fact, my work usually drastically varies from hour to hour. It can get overwhelming at times, but mostly it’s energizing. Everything I do and learn helps me professionally while it moves the company forward.
has joined the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom in Sacramento, CA, as deputy
legal affairs secretary.
(Supreme Court and Appellate/San Francisco)
Brian Goldman
has joined PricewaterhouseCoopers in Dusseldorf as an in-house lawyer.
(Cyber, Privacy &
Data Innovation/Dusseldorf)
Dennis Schmidt
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Absolutely. This is the reason I entered into a joint law and policy program. I was hoping to acquire the tools to come back home and ensure equal access to 21st century living standards for my community. My initial interest was pursuing a career as an Indian law litigator fighting for justice for tribes in the courts. But by the time I graduated law school I worried that Indian law litigation would be a depressing and losing battle, and that every time I would seek to hold the line on tribal sovereignty in the courts, that line would fall back no matter what the law would ordinarily provide for. Instead I wanted to expand the boundaries of tribal sovereignty, and tribal finance offered a means to do that. I heard of an impressive tribe in the Midwest that had developed such an extraordinarily well-resourced and well-functioning justice system that the local county availed itself of that system. That seemed to be the answer to me: if tribes could build strong institutions coupled with strong capital infrastructure through tools such as public finance, others would willingly submit to tribal jurisdiction.
In D.C., my primary task was to help advance indigenous human rights for tribes in the U.S. It was great to put my knowledge into practice in the area of human rights, but I was too far from mountains and Indian country, and human rights, unfortunately, hasn’t provided a strong enough legal lever for tribes in the U.S. As I was contemplating change, I discovered a phenomenal Indian law litigation group out of Seattle (Kanji & Katzen P.L.L.C.) that was winning the cases I thought couldn’t be won, and that was enforcing 19th century treaty fishing and hunting rights to ensure the continuation of indigenous life ways well into the future. I simply had to learn from them, and once I met their team, I knew they would be a wonderful group of people to work with. I started out with them as an associate, and after completing my service as the Navajo Nation Attorney General, I rejoined them as a member.
READ MORE
has founded Daher Avocats in Paris. Prior to forming the firm, Hélène worked at Vivant Chiss.
(Paris/Employment)
Hélène Daher
a partner at Hanson Bridgett LLP in Sacramento, has been reappointed to the California New Motor Vehicle Board by California Governor Gavin Newsom. Kathryn has served on the board since 2013
(San Francisco/Litigation),
Kathryn Ellen Doi
assistant general counsel for global labor and employment at Pinterest, was on a panel at Ark Group’s 15th Annual Women Legal Summit, entitled “Generational Perspectives and Navigating Career Opportunities: What has Changed? And What Remains the Same?” The panel was moderated by conference chairperson
author and JAMS arbitrator, who also gave opening remarks.
(San Francisco/Employment),
Amira Day Dallafior
(San Francisco/Employment),
Pat Gillette
has joined Morrison Cohen, LLP in New York City
as an associate.
(New York/Banking & Finance)
Kelsi Ann Cronkhite
has joined Georgetown University Law Center’s Institute for Constitutional Advocacy & Protection in Washington, D.C.,
as a senior fellow.
(Washington, D.C./Supreme Court
& Appellate)
Kelsi Corkran
has joined Holland & Knight LLP in Chicago as a partner.
(New York/Technology Companies)
Glynna K. Christian
has joined Turnberry Associates in Aventura, FL. Julian was previously a partner at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP.
(New York/Banking & Finance)
Julian S. H. Chung
has joined Reitler Kailas & Rosenblatt LLC in
New York City as a partner.
(New York/Banking & Finance)
Joseph Choi
have formed Setty Chachkes PLLC,
a law firm with offices in Seattle and New York City.
(New York/Intellectual Property) and
Alex Chachkes
(Seattle/Intellectual Property)
Nick Setty
has been named chief privacy officer at Blackhawk Network in Pleasanton, CA. Prior to joining Blackhawk, Samuel was senior director of privacy and associate general counsel at Nordstrom.
(Seattle/Antitrust)
Samuel Castic
has joined Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in San Francisco as a partner.
(San Francisco/White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation
& Compliance)
Walt Brown
has joined the New York State Attorney General’s Office in
New York City as special assistant attorney general.
(New York/White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation
& Compliance)
Spencer Bruck
has joined Lincoln Financial in Radnor, PA, as executive vice president and general counsel. He was previously executive vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary at KeyBank.
(New York/Public Finance)
Craig Beazer
has joined Organon & Company in Washington, D.C., as director of legal — manufacturing.
(Washington, D.C./Energy
& Infrastructure)
Shani Alexander
has joined Greenberg Gross LLP
in Los Angeles as a counsel.
(Los Angeles/White Collar, Investigations, Securities Litigation
& Compliance)
Stephanie Albrecht
has joined Sidley Austin LLP in Menlo Park, CA, as an associate.
(Silicon Valley/Technology Companies)
Shaika Ahmed
has been named senior advisor to the White House deputy chief of staff by President Joseph Biden, becoming the first Bangladeshi-American to
be named to a senior position in the Biden administration. Prior, Zayn was the chief of staff for the Domestic and Economic Team of the Biden-Harris Transition and was also a member of then Vice President-elect Harris’s prep team for the 2020
vice-presidential debate.
(New York/Supreme Court & Appellate)
Zayn Siddique
has joined
Y Combinator in
San Francisco as
legal counsel.
(Silicon Valley/Technology Companies)
Brigid McCurdy
has joined
Y Combinator in
San Francisco as
legal counsel.
(Silicon Valley/Technology Companies)
Brigid McCurdy
has joined
Y Combinator in
San Francisco as
legal counsel.
(Silicon Valley/Technology Companies)
Brigid McCurdy
We also ended up repurposing a lot of roles in the company, including mine. My role became less “How do we minimize legal risk?” and more “How do we protect people?” How do we ensure processes are in place, not just to comply with all the laws and regulations, but to keep people safe? For example, we ordered and started distributing personal protective equipment (PPE) for all shoppers well before the CDC issued its guidelines. We sourced our own masks and went to a distillery to create hand sanitizers, so we didn’t take supply away from first responders and medical professionals. We became more proactive, thinking of new ways to help the shoppers and customers we were engaging. Even our communications addressed bigger picture issues: How can we show empathy? What can we do to help?
Also, standards at the firm are really high. I say this as a good thing. I got constructive feedback on my writing, my thinking, and my strategizing as a lawyer, and that has helped me tremendously in my career. I’m grateful that I came up in a place where every piece of work product was expected to be excellent, and where partners took the time to focus on professional development of associates.
I still keep in touch with a lot of partners and associates from Orrick, and as soon as I was in a position to engage Orrick, I did. It’s a group of people I trust and want to work with.
Second, I learned that you can and should take control of your schedule. It’s okay to ask if something can be done later or to say you have a prior engagement or even that you already have a lot on your plate. As a junior associate, I said yes because I thought everything was equally crucial, often at the expense of my personal plans. But now that I am more senior, I see that it’s usually okay to take more time if you need it as long as you clearly communicate the expectation. Sometimes it’s an emergency, but it’s not always an emergency.
Finally, I would encourage early-career lawyers to make sure to have a viewpoint on what they want and not be afraid to speak up about it. If you want more of a certain type of work, make it known. Even if you have good mentors, you have to be proactive and help shape your own career path. Ask for opportunities or to perform tasks that will further your professional development.
has joined the Supreme Court
of the United States in Washington, D.C., as a clerk
to Associate Justice
Sonia Sotomayor.
(Supreme Court and Appellate/New York)
Katherine Munyan
In many ways, this is the job I have always wanted. In addition to every kind of litigation, my work includes general employment matters, labor relations, product counseling, regulatory compliance, public policy initiatives and legislation, and strategic business guidance. Each of these topics is fascinating to me.
What do you like best about your current position?