Our Leadership Team

The HLSA of Washington, D.C. is an alumni volunteer managed organization. We thank our Officers and Board Members for their dedication and support of HLS alumni activities.

For more information about our leadership team or to get involved, please email us at info@washingtondc.hlsa.org


Tony Chan  J.D. '03board-member-2

President

Tony Chan is a partner in the Mergers and Acquisitions and Private Equity group at Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe LLP, where he advises strategic buyers and sellers, as well as financial sponsors and their portfolio companies, in complex corporate transactions. With significant experience with international and cross-border matters, Tony focuses his practice on mergers and acquisitions, including private equity and growth equity transactions, as well as corporate finance, emerging company formation and financing, public company governance, and general corporate matters for clients with an emphasis in the life sciences, investment management, and technology sectors. In addition to his practice, he is an adjunct professor at Georgetown Law School, where he teaches Mergers and Acquisitions. He also serves on the board of the Museum of Contemporary Art - Arlington and the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of DC.


Johjohn-dey-2mp-headshotn Dey  J.D. '14

Vice President 

John T. Dey is Senior Counsel in the Office of Law and Policy in the Legal Division of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  Prior to joining the CFPB, John was an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Ropes & Gray LLP, where he was a member of the firm’s Litigation and Enforcement practice group.  While at Ropes, John maintained an active pro bono practice, in which he has worked on the landmark marriage equality case Obergefell v. Hodges and other constitutional and administrative law challenges to federal and state government actions, investigated conditions at a maximum security state prison facility, and represented low-income clients in family law and Social Security benefits matters.  At HLS, John was a member of BLSA and served as co-president of HLS Lambda, was an editor of the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review and Harvard International Law Journal, and served as a student attorney with Harvard Defenders. During his law school summers, John interned with the Access to Justice Initiative and the Federal Programs Branch of the Civil Division in the U.S. Department of Justice.  John holds an A.B. in Economics from Harvard College.


tim-mctaggart-photoOmeed Alerasool  J.D. '22 

Treasurer 

Omeed Alerasool is a litigation associate at Elias Law Group, where focuses on voting rights and election-related litigation. During law school, Omeed worked at the National Redistricting Foundation, Campaign Legal Center, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, Perkins Coie’s Political Law Group, and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. He also served as president and co-founder of the Equal Democracy Project and as two-term editor-in-chief of the Harvard Human Rights Journal. Before law school, Omeed lived in Washington, DC for four years, working as a consulting associate in the antitrust and competition practice of Charles River Associates, an economic and litigation consulting firm. Omeed received his undergraduate degree in economics and international studies from Boston College.


Matthew Kelly  J.D. '97 

Secretary 

Matthew Kelly is a Senior Attorney in the Office of the Solicitor, Department of the Interior where he advises policy and program officials  on implementation of the United States’ trust relationship with federally recognized Tribal Nations in areas including climate resilience,  trust land acquisitions, natural resource development, Indian gaming, and political and economic self-determination. Before joining Interior, Matthew was a partner in a Native-owned law firm, representing Tribal interests before Congress, the courts, and federal agencies. Matthew holds a B.A. Hons. in anthropology and linguistics from Columbia University, and an A.M. in anthropology from the University of Chicago, where he studied the historic development of federal Indian policies.


Ariel Giumarelli  J.D. '17

Programming Co-Chair

Ariel Giumarelli is a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP and member of the ESG & Impact Practice Group, which advises companies and private equity firms on complex and evolving issues related to environmental, social and governance (ESG), human rights and climate-related regulatory requirements, strategic opportunities and reporting frameworks. Her practice focuses on business and human rights, and she has supported clients across a broad range of human rights topics by providing legal analysis, regulatory tracking, risk assessments, due diligence and compliance building. Ariel holds a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School, an Executive Certificate on Leading Sustainable Corporations from the University of Oxford, and a B.S. from Florida State University’s Honors Program.


Louis Lopez  J.D. '96

Programming Co-Chair

Louis Lopez is the Chief of the Policy and Strategy Section in the Civil Rights Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. In this position, he oversees the development and execution of legislative, regulatory, and policy proposals, as well as strategic initiatives supporting civil rights laws. He previously served as the Deputy Chief in the Division’s Employment Litigation Section. Additionally, Louis held the positions of Associate Special Counsel at the Office of Special Counsel; Legal Advisor to the Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; and Counsel to the EEO Officer at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Louis also worked at law firms in Washington, DC, and Chicago, Illinois; as the Director of Human Resources, Security, and Facilities for Washington Post Digital; and as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown Law School. Louis is the Chair of the ABA’s Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights and Responsibilities and a fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. He received a B.S. in Journalism from the University of Kansas, a J.D. from Harvard Law School, and an LL.M. in Labor and Employment Law from Georgetown Law School. While in law school, Louis worked as a student-attorney with the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau, an editor on the inaugural issue of the Harvard Latino Law Review, and a reporter with the Harvard Law Record.


tim-mctaggart-photoMilana Karayanidi  LL.M. '16

Programming Co-Chair

Milana Karayanidi is a Special Legal Consultant at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, LLP. She advises clients on screening of foreign investments by the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS), U.S. export controls, and U.S. economic sanctions, including in the context of complex corporate transactions and internal investigations. Milana’s practice focuses on renewable energy companies and companies driven by tech & innovation. She holds a PhD from Trinity College Dublin and an LL.M. from Harvard Law School.


board-member-8Viviana Ruiz  LL.M. '15

Communications and Technology Co-Chair

Viviana Ruiz is an Attorney* at Mayer Brown, LLP. Viviana has extensive experience in developing and managing global intellectual property portfolios for clients in the entertainment, media, pharma, food, beverage, chocolate, confectionery, spirits & wines industries. She holds an LL.B., magna cum laude, from Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico), and an LL.M. from Harvard Law School. Viviana is also an IP Law Specialist graduate of Universidad Panamericana (Mexico), where she graduated top of her class. In addition to her HLSA-DC Board service, Viviana serves as Co-President of the HLS Recent Graduate Network.  

  • Practice limited to matters and Proceedings before Federal Courts and Agencies. Admitted only in California and Mexico - Not admitted in DC

Daniel Vail  J.D. '96

Communications and Technology Co-Chair

Daniel Vail is a Senior Counsel in the Office of Civil Rights at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In this capacity he helps interpret and enforce federal anti-discrimination laws for CFPB applicants and employees. Recently, he served on a detail as Chief Counsel to EEOC Vice Chair Jocelyn Samuels. Before joining the Bureau in May 2015, Daniel spent almost 15 years at the EEOC. He worked in the Appellate Services Division of the EEOC’s Office of General Counsel, where he served as Acting Assistant General Counsel and as an Appellate Attorney, litigating on behalf of the Commission in the U.S. Courts of Appeals. Daniel graduated from Harvard Law School in 1996 and Hamilton College in 1993. He also has an LL.M. in Taxation from Georgetown University.


Leslie Callahan  J.D. '86

Community Co-Chair

Leslie Callahan is an Associate Professor in the Fundamentals of Lawyering Program at George Washington University Law School. Prior to joining GW’s program in 2022, she taught legal writing at Notre Dame Law School in South Bend, Indiana, where her family had relocated in connection with her spouse’s academic career. Before moving to the midwest, she was a commercial litigator with Morrison & Foerster in New York and had clerked for the U.S. district court in Atlanta. While in law school, she was a member of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau. Leslie is originally from Philadelphia, is a Bryn Mawr College alum, and has enjoyed reconnecting with HLS through her son’s experience as a ‘23 grad.


Joshua Lee  J.D. '18

Community Co-Chair

Joshua Lee is an associate in the D.C. Office of Baker Botts L.L.P., representing clients in all aspects of environmental law, including litigation, regulatory counseling and advocacy, and corporate transactions. Joshua also maintains an active pro bono practice, matters ranging anywhere from appellate advocacy in civil rights issues to corporate counseling for non-profit organizations. He returns to the Washington, D.C. community after clerking for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. While in law school, Joshua served as the Managing Editor for the Harvard Environmental Law Review and was a Chayes International Public Service Fellow. Prior to law school, Joshua served in the South Korean Army. He received his undergraduate degree in environmental studies and Spanish literature from Dartmouth College.


Titim-mctaggart-photomothy R. McTaggart  J.D. '85

Community Co-Chair

Tim McTaggart is the General Counsel for Forethought Advisors LLC, a start-up lobbying firm with a focus on housing finance, fintech and financial services legislative and regulatory issues. Tim also separately maintains a law practice with McTaggart law firm in Washington, D.C., where he addresses financial services issues, general corporate law issues for financial services companies as well as custody, and privacy issues.  Tim has served as an expert witness and previously led financial services groups in the D.C. offices of major law firms, including Pepper Hamilton, Willkie Farr, and Nixon Peabody as a partner for 20 years. In addition, Tim served as the Bank Commissioner for the state of Delaware and as Counsel to the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, as well as a lawyer for the Federal Reserve Board.  Tim has served as a mentor to HLS students, as a HLS class agent, as a HLS reunion committee member, and as a member of the board of directors of the Harvard Club of Washington, D.C. for two terms. An active volunteer, Tim has served as the General Counsel and Director of the Women in Housing & Finance group; as President, Vice President, and Director of the Chevy Chase Recreation Association (which included a national historic landmark structure); as Finance Committee member and Director of the Audubon Naturalist Society of Chevy Chase, MD; as Secretary and Director of CCBCCC, children's pre-school in Chevy Chase, D.C.; and in other nonprofit roles. McTaggart is a Harvard College economics graduate who taught introductory economics at Harvard College.


 
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