Shannon Togawa Mercer advises clients on matters related to cybersecurity, privacy, and data protection laws. In addition to her work counseling on privacy and data protection compliance, she works closely with clients on incident preparedness and implementing regulatory requirements in the privacy and cybersecurity spaces. She has counseled clients of all sizes and across numerous sectors through a wide range of cybersecurity incidents, including complex cyber extortion and ransomware incidents. Ms. Mercer is also experienced in advising on data breach notification efforts across jurisdictions, law enforcement coordination and regulatory investigations. Ms. Mercer was a contributing editor to The Guide to Cyber Investigations – 3rd Edition published in 2023. 

She joined WilmerHale from the London location of a large global law firm and previously worked as a national security, technology and law associate for the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. She also served as the managing editor of the prominent US national security blog, Lawfare. 

During law school, Ms. Mercer completed legal internships for the US Department of Justice, Civil Division, Appellate Staff; the United States Trade Representative, Office of the General Counsel; and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Prior to attending law school, Ms. Mercer was an associate at a management consulting firm and a management associate in the research department and the department of corporate counsel at the world’s largest hedge fund.