Ladan Stewart, a renowned leader in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) crypto and cyber litigation unit, has departed from her role at the agency. Stewart is now set to be a part of prestigious global law firm, White & Case.
Stewart brings with her a strong background and extensive experience with the SEC’s enforcement division, having served there for eight years. Since September 2022, she took the lead of the SEC’s crypto and cyber litigation unit, the regulator’s debut specialized litigation department. Well-known actions under her stewardship include a lawsuit against Coinbase Global Inc. for allegedly functioning as an unregistered securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency.
Stewart also contributed to a drawn-out legal tussle with Ripple over whether its XRP token qualified as an unregistered security. Despite a ruling in favor of Ripple last year, the SEC, spearheaded by Chair Gary Gensler—who maintains that most digital tokens are securities—has submitted an appeal for the judgment.
Stewart’s future role at White & Case, where she will be a partner in the white-collar defense group, involves developing a crypto and cyber defense practice. Noting the inevitability of the crypto market, she plans to place emphasis on legal queries associated with cryptocurrency, given its turbulently complex enforcement environment.
White & Case, one of the largest US law firms, has more than 2,600 lawyers spread across 40-plus offices worldwide. The firm’s clientele includes big players like Microsoft and Abbvie Inc., earning $2.8 billion in gross revenue in 2022.
Joel Cohen, the leader of White & Case’s white-collar group, shows tremendous optimism about Stewart’s transition. He expressed that Stewart’s expertise would be a substantial addition, considering the intensified regulatory scrutiny the crypto industry faces.
In addition to Stewart, the law firm announced the hiring of John Cahill, a previous partner at Paul Hastings specializing in corporate real estate investment in the U.S and Asia markets. His infusion into the firm’s corporate practice follows the January hire of Taurie Zeitzer and Patrick Sarch, thus bolstering White & Case’s M&A team.
The original article detailing Stewart’s move can be read in its entirety, here.