Business Disputes

Bradley E. Abruzzi

University Attorney

A graduate of Princeton University (A.B. in English) and New York University (M.A. in English), Mr. Abruzzi received his J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School, where he served as Executive Editor on the Harvard Law Review. Following law school, Mr. Abruzzi joined Boston-based Bromberg & Sunstein LLP as a litigation associate. Mr. Abruzzi left Bromberg to clerk for the Honorable Nancy Gertner in the United States District Court, District of Massachusetts, thereafter resuming private practice in the litigation department of Foley Hoag LLP in Boston. From Foley he accepted an Associate Attorney appointment in the Office of the General Counsel. During this period Mr. Abruzzi completed a two-year fellowship at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society. In 2011 Mr. Abruzzi joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Office of the General Counsel, where he worked for four years before returning to Harvard as a University Attorney. At MIT Mr. Abruzzi’s practice centered on transactional matters, online learning initiatives, human subjects research compliance, data privacy and security, and contract and regulatory matters relating to funded research. At Harvard, Brad advises clients on a wide range of legal issues, including civil rights, intellectual property, free speech, publication torts, digital accessibility, copyright, privacy, commercial disputes, and immigration law and policy.

bradley_abruzzi@harvard.edu

p: Assistant: Linda Como 617-495-1499

Nadir S. Ahmed

University Attorney

Mr. Ahmed received his B.A. from the University of Virginia, his M.B.A. from the Northeastern University Graduate School of Business, and his J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law, where he was a founding member and the Managing Editor of the Northeastern University Law Journal. Following law school, Mr. Ahmed joined the Boston office of the law firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP, where he provided advice and counsel to a range of businesses on litigation and labor and employment matters and led the office's diversity and inclusion efforts. Most recently, Mr. Ahmed served as an Assistant General Counsel at Bose Corporation, where he supported and led a number of enterprise-wide initiatives, and provided legal guidance on employment, benefits, compliance, and litigation issues and matters to business and human resource leaders around the world. At Harvard, he advises on a variety of issues, with a focus on labor and employment, litigation, and faculty and student affairs.

nadir_ahmed@harvard.edu

p: Assistant: Loreta Rufo-Andrade 617-495-9246

Ellen Fels Berkman

University Attorney

Ms. Berkman received her B.A. magna cum laude with highest honors from Harvard College and attended Columbia Law School, where she was Notes Editor of the Law Review. Following law school, Ms. Berkman clerked for the Honorable Joyce Hens Green of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Prior to joining the Office of the General Counsel at Harvard University, Ms. Berkman was a partner with the law firms of Baker Botts L.L.P. and Miller, Cassidy, Larroca & Lewin, L.L.P., both firms located in Washington, DC. She concentrated her practice in the areas of complex civil litigation and criminal defense and represented Richard Nixon and his estate on matters relating to the seizure of the presidential papers and tapes and the opening of the presidential materials at the National Archives. At Harvard, Ms. Berkman handles investigations and litigation, faculty and student affairs, and research and regulatory issues. Ms. Berkman sits on the board of the Roxbury Latin School and chairs the Audit Committee.

ellen_berkman@harvard.edu

p: Assistant: Jean Murphy 617-496-4168

Ara Gershengorn

University Attorney

Ms. Gershengorn received her B.A. magna cum laude from Harvard College and her J.D. from Columbia Law School where she was a Notes Editor of the Columbia Law Review. Following law school, Ms. Gershengorn clerked for the Honorable Amalya L. Kearse of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Following her clerkship, Ms. Gershengorn joined the Department of Justice through the Honors Program as an Appellate Attorney in the Civil Division. Ms. Gershengorn then was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Philadelphia where she prosecuted criminal trials and appeals. Ms. Gershengorn has briefed dozens of appellate cases and has argued appeals in nearly every federal circuit court of appeals. Prior to joining the Office of the General Counsel, Ms. Gershengorn was a partner with the law firm of Foley Hoag, LLP in Boston, MA. She concentrated her practice in the areas of complex civil litigation, white collar criminal defense, and data security and privacy. At Harvard, Ms. Gershengorn advises on investigations, litigation, and law enforcement related matters.

ara_gershengorn@harvard.edu

p: Assistant: Jean Murphy 617-496-4168

Katie Kelsh

Associate Attorney

Ms. Kelsh received her B.A. summa cum laude from the University of Southern California and her J.D. from Stanford Law School, where she served as Executive Editor of the Stanford Law Review. Following law school, she clerked for the Honorable Sandra S. Ikuta of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Honorable Christopher R. Cooper of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Before joining the Office of the General Counsel, Ms. Kelsh practiced at the law firm of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, where she concentrated her practice in complex civil litigation and government investigations. At Harvard, she advises on a wide range of legal issues, including faculty and student affairs, litigation, and investigations.

katherine_kelsh@harvard.edu

p: Assistant: Patricia Morfin 617-495-1280

Heather M. Quay

University Attorney and Administrative Coordinator

A magna cum laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (Phi Beta Kappa), Ms. Quay also attended the London School of Economics and received her J.D. from Yale Law School, where she served as an editor of the Yale Journal of Law and Feminism. Following graduation, she practiced for four years with the Boston law firm of Hill & Barlow and also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Reginald C. Lindsay of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. At Harvard, she advises on a wide range of issues, with a focus on: litigation and investigations; student and faculty affairs; research compliance and management, including research misconduct and the use of human subjects and animals in research; digital accessibility; and healthcare.

heather_quay@harvard.edu

p: Assistant: Catherine Hammock 617-495-4778

Office of the General Counsel

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