Lawyers

Ann-Elizabeth Ostrager is a partner in S&C’s Litigation Group, a member of the Firm’s Criminal Defense and Investigations Group and co-head of the Labor and Employment Law Group. Ms. Ostrager has a diverse practice, which includes regulatory and internal investigations, employment litigation, securities litigation, cryptocurrency investigations and litigation, and representations of a number of individuals in criminal matters.  Her clients include Allianz, Chubb Limited, FanDuel, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Standard Chartered Bank, Tokio Marine, UBS, Volkswagen, Wells Fargo, and WeWork, among others.

Ms. Ostrager clerked for the Honorable Dennis Jacobs and the Honorable Richard C. Wesley, both of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

SELECTED REPRESENTATIONS

Labor & Employment

• Goldman Sachs in a class action accusing the bank of discriminating against over 3,000 women in pay and promotions
• An international manufacturing company in employment discrimination litigation concerning the termination of a high-ranking senior executive
• An internal investigation of alleged gender pay discrimination and retaliation
• A financial and bank holding company in an arbitration involving executive pay
• Employment advice to clients from a wide range of industries, including the beverage, real estate and technology sectors

 Cryptocurrency

• DeFi Education Fund as amicus challenging an unprecedented CFTC enforcement action against a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO)
• A former cryptocurrency executive in their personal capacity related to their response to non-public DOJ and SEC investigations stemming from increased regulatory activity in the cryptocurrency industry
• A small decentralized finance company responding to a non-public SEC investigation
• Representations of high level executives and entities in multiple non public investigations stemming from increased regulatory activity in the cryptocurrency industry

 Investigations

• Allianz in the resolution of investigations by the SEC and DOJ in Structured Alpha hedge funds managed by Allianz and in settling a related series of individual and putative class actions filed in the Southern District of New York by investors
• An alternative investment firm in a non-public SEC investigation arising out of a SPAC transaction
• A media company in a non-public SEC investigation
• Kinross Gold in its favorable settlement with the SEC stemming from an FCPA investigation arising from the company’s activities in West Africa, as well as in a parallel investigation by the DOJ, which closed its investigation and declined to pursue charges
• A global bank in an ongoing criminal investigation conducted by the DOJ concerning compliance with U.S. anti‐money laundering and other applicable laws. The investigation is focused on the bank’s correspondent banking relationships with certain financial institutions headquartered in the Middle East.
• A major US bank in connection with a criminal investigation related to ESG-related practices
• A global financial institution in connection with a civil investigation led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts into the client’s arrangement and administration of a syndicated loan to a healthcare diagnostics company
• The former CEO of SBM Offshore in criminal investigations in the United States, Brazil, and the Netherlands related to alleged corruption in Brazil, Angola, Equatorial Guinea and other countries
• A private investment firm in SEC and DOJ insider trading investigations
• An individual in an insider trading prosecution
• The principal of a trading company, in a landmark case, the first-ever criminal prosecution alleging a violation of the “anti-spoofing” provision of the Commodity Exchange Act. In advance of trial, S&C advanced constitutional and other arguments in support of a motion to dismiss the indictment, and then litigated the case at trial.

Securities Litigation and Complex Commercial Disputes

• JPMorgan Chase in securities and bankruptcy litigation arising out of the bankruptcy of Millennium Health, a drug testing company
• New York Racing Association in obtaining the dismissal of a high-profile action filed by Thoroughbred horse trainer Bob Baffert stemming from Baffert’s suspension from racing after his horse, Medina Spirit, was disqualified for testing positive for controlled substances following the Kentucky Derby
• A U.S. bank and senior executives in a putative securities class action and stockholder derivative action filed in the Northern District of California regarding the Bank’s diversity hiring practices, as well as in a Section 220 demand for books and records regarding diverse slates allegations
• W2007 Grace Acquisition I, Inc., a Goldman Sachs-affiliated real estate investment vehicle, in successfully securing the dismissal, upheld on appeal, in a suit brought by its former preferred shareholders alleging breach of the stock purchase agreements, breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing and 10 separate fraud-based claims
• A major energy company in a securities fraud case
• Global financial institutions in separate fraudulent conveyance and Article 78 actions in New York State court against MBIA Inc. and its subsidiaries challenging their 2009 multi-billion dollar restructuring

​Recent Publications

• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Supreme Court Business Review: Viking River Cruises v. Moriana and Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon” (September 2022).
• ​Co-authored the article “Increased focus on corporate culture and implications for workplace investigations” for Financier Worldwide (May 2022).
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Lessons From the 2020 Proxy Season: Board Diversity” (October 2020).
• ​Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Updates to Anti-Fraternization Policies and Issues Raised by McDonald’s” (September 2020).
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Supreme Court Business Review: Labor & Employment in Bostock and Comcast” (August 2020).
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Anti-Fraternization Policies” (July 2020).
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Understanding Common Issues in Divestitures” (June 2020).
• Co-recorded the S&C webinar “Critical Labor and Employment Insights” (April 2020).
• Co-authored the article “Employers’ Guide to Return-to-Work Considerations During the COVID-19 Outbreak” for Reuters Westlaw (April 2020).
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “Return-To-Work Considerations For Employers Following COVID-19” (April 2020).
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “The Impact of COVID-19 on the Aviation Industry” (April 2020).
• Co-authored the article “Employers’ Guide to the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act During the Coronavirus Outbreak” for Reuters (March 2020). 
• Co-recorded the S&C Critical Insights podcast “COVID-19 Poses Critical Issues for Employers” (March 2020).
• Co-authored the article “Bias Case Gives Justices Chance to Rethink Title VII” for Law360 (January 2020).
• Co-authored the article “#MeToo and Separating Arbitration from Non-Disclosure Agreements” for the Labor and Employment Law Journal (December 2019).
• ​Authored the article “DOJ’s 2019 Enforcement Activities Demonstrates a Continued Commitment to FCPA Enforcement” for Anti-Corruption Report (August 2019).
• Co-authored the article “Whistleblowers Increasingly Shape SEC, CFTC Enforcement” for Law360 (July 2019).
• Authored the article “Will the SEC Take an Expansive Approach to the Extraterritorial Reach of Its Jurisdiction?” for the New York Law Journal (April 2019).
• Authored the practice note “Statutes of Limitations: Agreements to Shorten Limitations Periods on Employee Claims” for LexisNexis (January 2019).  
• Co-authored the article “The Limitations of NY’s Anti-Sexual Harassment Law” for Law360 (September 2018).

​Pro Bono Work
Ms. Ostrager has been named an Empire State Counsel Honoree by the New York State Bar Association for her commitment to pro bono. Her pro bono work has included a matter involving the Free Exercise and Establishment clauses of the First Amendment, litigation involving the foster and adoption practices of the State of Michigan, as well as a representation of multiple individuals pursuant to the Criminal Justice Act.

Professional Activities
She is a member of the Federal Bar Council Second Circuit Courts Committee, the New York City Bar Association’s Women in the Legal Profession: White Collar Crime Subcommittee, S&C’s Women’s Initiative Committee, Friends of Mount Sinai Hospital and also serves as a member of the Alumnae Board of The Spence School and on the Alumni Schools Committee for Princeton University.