Jake Barr joined Ropes & Gray’s data, privacy & cybersecurity practice group in 2023. He advises a range of clients, across many different industries, on cutting edge privacy, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and other technology issues including complex litigation, incident response, transactional, and counseling matters. He has significant experience helping companies navigate children’s online privacy and safety issues, and, while working for Congress, spearheaded leading federal legislation including COPPA 2.0 and the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) as well as the Kids PRIVACY Act, the first bill to incorporate age-appropriate design code principles in the U.S.
He also guides clients through the constantly changing privacy and cybersecurity regulatory landscape with experience on issues related to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the Student Online Personal Information Protection Act (SOPIPA), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and other international, federal, and state laws.
During law school, he worked as senior legislative assistant to U.S. Representative Kathy Castor, advising on technology, communications, cybersecurity, and consumer protection policy with a focus on children’s online privacy and safety. He also served as the president of the GW Tech Law Students Association.
Prior to law school, Jake worked for the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Experience
Privacy/Artificial Intelligence Counseling and Compliance
- Overhauled a leading ed-tech provider’s privacy policy to ensure compliance with COPPA and FERPA.
- Counseled a cutting edge ed-tech company on its obligations under COPPA, FERPA, SOPIPA and new artificial intelligence (AI) regulations to make sure its use of student data for AI products was compliant with applicable law.
- Conducted a privacy and cybersecurity compliance review for the portfolio companies of two large, international private equity firms.
- Advise academic medical center on its obligations under recently revised TCPA regulations.
- Assists managing and updating Ropes & Gray’s AI Court Order Tracker.
Cybersecurity and Incident Response
- Assisted ed-tech, asset management, information technology, transportation, and mining companies in responding to cybersecurity incidents and assessing their reporting obligations under international, federal, and state data reporting regulations.
- Drafted comments for leading financial trade association on the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to establish the first cross-sectoral federal cybersecurity incident and ransomware payment reporting system.
- Drafted comments for leading financial trade association on the Department of Justice’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding regulations that restrict or prohibit transactions involving certain bulk sensitive personal data or United States Government-related data and countries of concern or covered persons.
- Advised multinational pharmaceutical, clinical research, and biotech companies as well as educational institutions and non-profits on President Biden’s Executive Order restricting the transfer of certain bulk sensitive personal data, the BIOSECURE Act, and the Protecting Americans’ Data from Foreign Adversaries Act.
- Counseled innovative biotech company in a license agreement with leading Chinese pharmaceutical company.
- Counseled leading venture capital firm on privacy and cybersecurity issues related to transactions involving U.S. and Chinese entities.
Litigation, Arbitration, and Government Investigations
- Counsel to large ed-tech provider in multiple putative consumer class actions related to the company’s data privacy practices.
- Counsel to large financial institution in connection with a government investigation into its cybersecurity practices.
- Counsel to clinical research company in a putative consumer class action arising out of an alleged cybersecurity incident.
- Counsel to therapy provider in a putative consumer class action related to the company’s use of web tracking technologies on its digital platforms.
- Counsel to multiple healthcare and ecommerce companies in responding to arbitration demands related to allegations that certain pixel technologies deployed on the companies’ websites violate CIPA, common law privacy torts, and larceny statutes.
Transactions
- Advised Bain Capital in a transaction to acquire PowerSchool Holdings, Inc, a leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education. The transaction values PowerSchool at $5.6 billion.
- Advised Haveli Investments, a technology-focused private equity firm, in its acquisition of ZeroFox Holdings, Inc., a provider of external cybersecurity. The definitive agreement is an all-cash transaction with an enterprise value of approximately $350 million.
- Advised DIRECTV in its acquisition of EchoStar's video distribution business for $1 plus the assumption of DISH DBS net debt. DISH DBS and DIRECTV have commenced the Exchange Offer for five different series of DISH DBS notes with a total face value of approximately $9.75 billion.
- Advised Cardinal Health in an agreement to acquire Integrated Oncology Network (ION), an independent community oncology network, for $1.115 billion in cash.
- Advised Cadre Holdings in its $106.5 million acquisition of Alpha Safety Intermediate, a provider of specialized safety products and services focused on the nuclear industry.
- Advised Genstar Capital in its majority investment in Flourish Research, an NMS Capital portfolio company and leading multi-site clinical trial organization focused on cardiovascular, metabolic, neuroscience, and infectious disease therapeutic areas.
- Advised Genstar Capital in a significant investment in AffiniPay, a leading provider of practice management software, integrated payments and embedded fintech for the legal, accounting and professional services end markets.
- Advised Gauge Capital and its platform Soleil Collective in acquiring a majority stake in Coco & Eve, an Australian beauty brand selling hair and skincare products.
- Advised KARL STORZ Endoscopy-America, Inc., a wholly owned direct subsidiary of KARL STORZ SE & Co. KG, a global medical technology company, in its entry into a merger agreement with Asensus Surgical, Inc. that will create a leading surgical robotics division within KARL STORZ.
- Advised clinical access data solutions company Solarity and its majority owner, BV Investment Partners, in receiving a strategic growth investment from TA Associates as the new lead investor.
- Advised Planet Fitness, Inc. in an $800 million whole business securitization add-on and $280 million accelerated share repurchase agreement with Citibank.
Pro Bono
- Assisted in securing a preliminary injunction suspending enforcement of the employer provisions of Florida's HB 7, also known as the Stop WOKE Act.
- Counsel to the Virginia NAACP in its suit against the Governor of Virginia in a Virginia FOIA case regarding compliance with Virginia’s diversity, equity, and inclusion law.
- Drafted internal and external privacy policies and procedures for an international non-profit involved in making loans to rural businesses in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.
- Counsel to LGBTQ asylum seeker from Honduras on his application for asylum.