The global law firm Jones Day has announced that Stephen Hibbard has joined the Firm as a partner in its Financial Institutions Litigation & Regulation (FILR) Practice and will be based in the Firm’s San Francisco Office. Mr. Hibbard was previously a partner in the San Francisco office of Shearman & Sterling LLP, where he was a member of the firm’s Litigation Practice.

Mr. Hibbard has nearly 30 years of experience litigating securities class actions, mergers and acquisitions, and complex commercial cases, as well as corporate governance disputes and antitrust matters. He has represented U.S. and foreign clients in federal and state trials and appeals, as well as in SEC and other regulatory proceedings. He also has extensive experience conducting internal investigations and litigating corporate finance and accounting issues, unfair competition claims, and matters involving California’s unfair business practices statute.

“Steve is a highly accomplished lawyer with a wide range of experience helping financial institutions respond to litigation, assess legal risks related to financial products and transactions, and navigate various regulatory inquiries,” said Jay Tambe, a partner in Jones Day’s New York Office and co-leader of the Firm’s FILR Practice. “Steve’s experience advising China-based companies will be immediately valuable to a number of our clients who are assessing challenges presented by the recent tumult in emerging markets,” Tambe noted.

Jones Day’s FILR Practice consists of a multidisciplinary global team of attorneys that advises leading financial institutions in the Americas, Europe, and Asia on legal issues arising from the myriad, ever-changing rules and regulations affecting banking institutions worldwide.

“We’re delighted that Steve has joined our team here at Jones Day and I know that his experience representing global corporate clients and financial institutions of all sizes will be of tremendous benefit to our clients in California and around the world,” said Chris Lovrien, Partner-in-Charge of Jones Day’s California Region.

Some of Mr. Hibbard’s recent matters have included the representation of Countrywide Financial Corporation in various securities lawsuits relating to the sale of Residential Mortgage Backed Securities, the representation of issuers and underwriters in securities class actions and derivative lawsuits, and the representation of more than a dozen U.S.-listed Chinese corporations, officers, directors, or Special Committees in various matters such as securities class actions, SEC or exchange investigations, and internal investigations. He also has extensive experience with shareholder litigation challenging mergers or going private transactions, including the recent acquisitions of Advent Software, Aruba Networks, Hutchinson Technology, Informatica, OpenTable, Orbitz, Planar Systems, Procera Networks, PMC-Sierra, Saba Software, Yodlee, and Xoom Corporation.

“Steve’s experience on a wide range of litigation and regulatory issues affecting financial institutions is a great complement to our global FILR Practice and also adds valuable depth to our litigation team here in the San Francisco Office,” said Aaron Agenbroad, Partner-in-Charge of Jones Day’s San Francisco Office.

Mr. Hibbard is a past President of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers, Northern California, and is a member of the advisory board of Lawyers Without Borders. He earned his law degree from Yale Law School and his undergraduate degree from the University of South Carolina. He has been singled out as a leading securities litigator in The Legal 500 and is the author or co-author of scholarly articles related to financial litigation.

Jones Day is a global law firm with 43 offices in major centers of business and finance throughout the world. Its unique governance system fosters an unparalleled level of integration and contributes to its perennial ranking as among the best in the world in client service. Jones Day provides significant legal representation for almost half of the Fortune 500, Fortune Global 500, and FT Global 500. In California, Jones Day has nearly 300 lawyers in five offices (San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Irvine, and San Diego).

www.jonesday.com