WASHINGTON, D.C. — CFTC Commissioner Kristin N. Johnson announced today that Danielle Abada, Christopher Lamb and Nita Somasundaram have joined her staff.

“I am thrilled to welcome these talented members to my executive team,” Commissioner Johnson said. “I am confident that they will serve the Commission well and continue our important work promoting the integrity, resilience, and vibrancy of our derivatives markets.”

Danielle Abada, Senior Counsel

Danielle joins Commissioner Johnson’s office from Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, where she was a member of the firm’s general practice group, primarily focusing on financial services, commodities, futures and derivatives, and capital markets. At S&C, Danielle represented financial institutions, including banks, swap dealers, broker-dealers, exchanges, asset and investment managers, hedge funds, proprietary trading firms, and fintech clients in a broad range of regulatory, corporate, transactional, governance, disclosure and legislative matters.

Danielle has provided advice and counsel on emerging technologies and their impact on financial markets and regulation. She has advised clients, from startups to global financial institutions, on the use of distributed ledger technology, digital assets, artificial intelligence, and the development of payments, settlement, clearing and other financial technology businesses. 

Danielle received her JD from Yale Law School and MBA from the Yale School of Management. She also holds a B.S. with honors from Cornell University. Danielle is actively involved in a number of professional organizations including the American Bar Association, New York City Bar Association and Women in Financial Markets. She also participated in the International Swaps and Derivatives Association Future Leaders in Derivatives program and contributed to the ISDA paper on generative AI in the derivatives market. While in law school, Danielle was on the editorial boards of the Yale Law Journal and Yale Journal on Regulation and served as an intern at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. She also interned in the U.K. Parliament’s House of Commons during her time as an undergraduate.

Chris Lamb, Senior Counsel

Chris joins Commissioner Johnson’s office from BakerHostetler LLP, where he was a member of the firm’s Blockchain Technologies & Digital Assets Group and the firm’s Restructuring & Bankruptcy Group.

Chris has provided advice to a variety of startups, asset managers, and financial institutions on a broad range of regulatory, corporate and transactional matters, including compliance with applicable securities laws and anti-money laundering provisions under the Bank Secrecy Act. Chris also provided counsel to debtors and creditors across a wide array of industries. As part of his role in the Restructuring Group, Chris worked on a variety of matters in connection with BakerHostetler’s role as counsel to the court appointed Trustee under the Securities Investor Protection Act in the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC.

Prior to BakerHostetler, Chris served as a law clerk to the Honorable Meredith S. Grabill in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. While serving as a law clerk, Chris primarily worked on complex chapter 11 matters and adversary proceedings.

Chris received his JD from Emory University School of Law where he graduated with honors. While in law school, Chris served as a Managing Editor of the Emory Bankruptcy Developments Journal and served as an intern at the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission, U.S. Department of Justice Trustee Program, and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

Nita Somasundaram, Counsel and Senior Advisor

Nita joins Commissioner Johnson’s office from Senator Butler’s office, where she led the Senator’s work on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs and her economic policy portfolio.

Nita previously oversaw Senator Feinstein’s economic policy portfolio and collaborated on tax legislation focused on disaster relief. Nita previously worked at the Joint Economic Committee, where she co-led work on financial inclusion, the importance of sustainable energy sources to economic growth, and more macro-economic projects.

Prior to working on the Hill, Nita worked as a risk analyst at both Citi and Fannie Mae.

Nita graduated from the University of Glasgow School of Law where she received her LL.B.