Jennifer Friedman
Senior Vice President, Blackstone
Jennifer Friedman is a Senior Vice President in the Global Public Affairs group at Blackstone. She serves as a media spokesperson for the firm and advises on communications issues. Ms. Friedman has more than 15 years of experience across corporate, political, government and consulting work. Before joining Blackstone, Ms. Friedman served as Senior Director for Corporate Reputation at General Electric, part of the communications leadership team working across GE businesses and regions. Before joining GE, Ms. Friedman held a variety of positions in the Obama Administration, including White House Deputy Press Secretary, Senior Strategic Communications Advisor for the National Economic Council, and senior communications roles at the Departments of Treasury, Health and Human Services, Commerce, and Homeland Security. Previously, Ms. Friedman was Vice President and Director of Communications for Albright Stonebridge Group, a global strategy firm, where she oversaw communications activities for the firm, its clients, and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. She also managed campaign and media strategy for state and local legislative battles at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and the Violence Policy Center. Ms. Friedman received her BA in political science, summa cum laude, from The George Washington University.
Karen Kessler
Founder and President
, Evergreen Partners
Karen J. Kessler is the CEO of Evergreen Partners, a leading crisis communications and reputation management company, with clients throughout the United States and Europe. Karen counsels clients on sensitive issues including regulatory inquiries, business practices and criminal and civil litigation. She has served on a variety of nonprofit and for profit boards.
Kessler is featured in the critically acclaimed documentary film “DIVIDE AND CONQUER: THE STORY OF ROGER AILES” profiling her work on the Roger Ailes/Fox legal case. She is a frequent speaker on corporate and Board best practices, corporate reputation, and women in leadership. Her commentary and interviews have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Star Ledger, CNN, MSNBC and Inside Edition.
Kathleen McGee
Counsel, Lowenstein Sandler LLP
Kathleen is a highly accomplished technology and regulatory lawyer and former prosecutor with more than 17 years’ experience in the public sector. Her practice has a dual focus on compliance and investigations.
As Bureau Chief of the Bureau of Internet & Technology for the New York State Attorney General’s Office, Kathleen was at the forefront of regulation, enforcement initiatives, and public policy involving privacy, data security, and consumer protection, among other issues. Earlier in her career, she served as Director of the Office of Special Enforcement in the New York City Mayor’s Office, where, as lead counsel, she directed litigation on a number of intellectual property and civil nuisance matters and was a policy leader on issues ranging from data analytics to human trafficking. While with the Mayor’s Office, Kathleen also developed the New Business Acceleration Team to streamline regulations and fast-track new business development. Kathleen started her legal career as an Assistant District Attorney for the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office in New York, where she prosecuted domestic violence, child abuse, and sex crimes.
Kathleen’s public sector experience gives her an edge in counseling emerging and mature companies on a broad spectrum of regulatory issues concerning technology, data security, and privacy. She has in-depth knowledge of matters involving unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts and practices (UDAAPs), as well as the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission. In addition, Kathleen’s experience in municipal government and her understanding of how the administrative code affects business has given her a unique perspective on the intersection of commerce and the law. Clients appreciate her insights into how to identify unanticipated problems and develop creative, business-focused solutions.
Kathleen also provides counsel to individuals and companies facing investigations. As outside counsel on internal investigations, she is an effective fact-finder on matters such as alleged employee malfeasance and intellectual property claims, among others. She also represents clients in government-facing investigations, including white collar criminal defense. Clients in this area benefit from both her sophisticated grasp of technology-related criminal matters and her on-the-ground experience as a lead prosecutor in both jury and bench trials.
Kathleen is admitted to appear before the U.S. District Court for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.
Eileen Overbaugh
Partner, Lowenstein Sandler LLP
Eileen advises hedge funds, private equity funds, venture funds, and other pooled investment vehicles in connection with structuring, formation, and ongoing operations. She is also a trusted advisor on regulatory and compliance issues.
Offering the benefit of extensive experience, Eileen negotiates seed and strategic investments as well as joint ventures, managed account arrangements, and other alternative investment relationships. Her practice is focused particularly on the business arrangements between principals of hedge funds and private equity funds, including governance of the
investment manager and general partners of such funds. Beyond her investment management and compliance experience, Eileen also drafts and negotiates complex shareholder agreements, limited liability agreements, and joint venture agreements for companies in numerous industries.
Eileen is known for building strong relationships with clients and understanding their business goals. She provides efficient, practical legal advice to a variety of clients, from family- owned enterprises to multinational investment advisors.
Principal areas of focus include:
● Fund formation
● Hedge funds
● Investment management
● Private equity
● Governance
Eileen graduated summa cum laude, Seton Hall University School of Law (J.D. 2009) and Drew University (B.A. 2006), summa cum laude.
