Protecting Attorney-Client Privilege in Defense Investigations

Jennafer B. Watson is the Director of Compliance and Senior Counsel at Occidental Petroleum Corporation, a Houston-based oil and gas exploration and production company, with operations in the United States, the Middle East region and South America, and with chemical sales worldwide. As the Director of Compliance, she manages all aspects of the company’s global ethics and anti-corruption compliance program.

Prior to joining Occidental, Jennafer was the Chief Compliance Officer at Layne Christensen Company, a global water management, construction and drilling services company based in The Woodlands, Texas.

Jennafer joined Layne to develop the company’s anti-corruption compliance program and assisted in successfully resolving a government investigation with the U.S. Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission following a four-year investigation into potential violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”). From 2006 to 2011, Jennafer was a member of the Business Fraud and Complex Litigation Group at the law firm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP in Washington, DC.

Alice M. Eldridge is vice President and chief legal counsel at BAE Systems Platforms and Services. Formerly, Eldridge was vice president, Ethics & Business Conduct, for Lockheed Martin Corporation in Bethesda, MD. 

At Lockheed Martin, she was responsible for managing the Corporation's ethics program, which is internationally recognized as a model for promoting adherence to high standards of individual and business conduct. The ethics & business conduct program at Lockheed Martin includes awareness and compliance training, outreach activities, issues management, and performance tracking.

Prior to this, Eldridge was vice president and general counsel for Lockheed Martin Systems Integration in Owego, NY, where she provided advice and counsel on all major legal issues arising within Lockheed Martin Systems Integration – Owego (LMSI – Owego), including Lockheed Martin Canada and Lockheed Martin UK Integrated Systems.

She was also responsible for Business Practices and Export/Import Control. She had oversight of a wide range of legal issues, including matters related to pursuing, winning, and performing commercial, international, and U.S. Government contracts, and extracting value from intellectual property through acquisition, sale, spin-off, or formation of joint ventures. In addition, Eldridge provided direct legal support for the US101 Presidential Helicopter Program and has significant experience in managing employment-related matters. Eldridge also served as General Counsel for Lockheed Martin Tactical Systems in Eagan, Minnesota.

Mrs. Korzha is an in-house counsel for Sprint Corporation, one of the largest U.S. wireless voice and data telecommunications carriers. Mrs. Korzha is a strategic business advisor, litigator, and regulatory attorney. Her practice focuses on commercial defense litigation, regulatory, financial services, payments and collections. She manages large government investigations and a caseload of complex commercial defense litigation, including multi-district litigation and class actions. She also advises business clients on a wide range of regulatory, consumer protection and business issues related to financial products and services and payment products.

Prior to joining Sprint, Mrs. Korzha was in private practice at Kelley Drye and Warren, where she represented clients in complex commercial litigation and government investigations in federal and state courts in multiple jurisdictions as well as arbitrations.

Mrs. Korzha immigrated to the United States in 1996 from former Soviet Union, where she attended law school. Upon arriving in the United States, she continued with her goal of becoming an attorney.

She graduated with B.A from CUNY Queens College and J.D. from Rutgers University- Newark. She is deeply committed to children and diversity issues and is currently a Board member for INMED Partnerships for Children, Opportunity Center – an organization that rescues children from the immediate and irreversible harm of disease, hunger, abuse, neglect, violence or instability. She is also an active member of the Association of Corporate Counsel North Capital Region Chapter.