Alumni Spotlight: Audrey Taranto
Name: Audrey Taranto
Title: General Counsel — Enstar Group
Firm Background: Summer Associate, 2004; Associate, 2004 - 2011; Corporate, Philadelphia
What have you been doing since departing the firm?
I moved to a firm client, Enstar Group Limited, in 2012, as securities counsel and corporate secretary. Gradually, I took on more responsibilities in transactions, financings and other areas, which resulted in my promotion to head of legal in 2017. In 2019, I became general counsel, and later joined the executive team. Today, I have the honor of leading our diverse team of corporate, litigation and compliance attorneys and professionals across six countries. Two of them are also Faegre Drinker alums.
At Enstar, we’ve done some of the insurance industry’s most noteworthy transactions in the legacy sector, where we are a market leader. It is an exciting and inspiring place to work, and I’m immensely thankful for the opportunity made possible by my experience at Faegre Drinker.
What made you decide to become an attorney?
I was in my junior year of college in 2001, around the time of the dot-com bubble burst. I could see that internship and job opportunities were scarce and uninspiring. It felt sudden and unexpected at the time, but I signed up for the LSAT and took it in the fall of my senior year. Of course, many others did the same, and it became a very competitive time to apply to law school. Luckily, by the time I finished law school in 2005, the economy had recovered, and it was a good time to be a corporate associate in a thriving deal economy.
What is your fondest memory/best experience/what do you miss about Faegre Drinker?
A memorable event was January 31, 2007, when our firm completed the recapitalization and merger that made Enstar a public company. This was the result of a year of intense work and my first major transaction, working for Bob Juelke, Dan Krane, Kimberly Rubel, and Joe Guerriero. Five years later, I would join Enstar as an in-house attorney.
Another memorable event was the parade when the Phillies won the World Series in 2008. The parade route started near our offices. I remember finishing a conference call and going down with colleagues to see the tickertape. It was such a great time to be a young attorney in Philadelphia.
I miss the friendship of my summer associate class (Class of 2004). We had an incredible summer associate experience, which coincided with the filming of MTV’s Real World in Philadelphia (very exciting at the time, since most of us were in our early 20s and fans of the show), but we also built a strong bond and network that lasts to this day.
I became particularly close with my colleagues in the corporate practice group, since we were all new attorneys learning the ropes and trying to cope and grow during a very busy time. Today is about 18 years from when we started. We don’t keep in touch as much as we’d like to, with families and careers, but I know that if I ever needed anything from any of them, I could call, and they’d be there without hesitation. And I would do the same for any of them.
Mostly, though, I miss the late Kimberly Rubel, a brilliant corporate and securities partner for the firm. Kim was a mentor, friend and role model; may she rest in peace.
How do you like to spend your time outside of work?
This time of year, mostly at the softball and baseball fields! I have a 13-year-old son and a daughter who will turn 11 soon, and I love to watch them play. My husband is a partner in a litigation firm, and so, like many of the Faegre Drinker alums reading this, figuring out the weekly schedule is one of the more daunting tasks we do. It feels like Mission Impossible.
We are all ultra-competitive, so we have some fun family moments, whether we are just swimming, tossing a ball around or playing video games. When we have time, we like to travel. Last summer we went to Iceland, which was incredible.
What’s next for you personally or professionally?
On a personal level, I appreciate the wisdom of the saying that time flies when you have children. It seems like just yesterday that we were getting the nursery ready, and now we have a teenager in the house. My husband and I like to say, “we don’t balance, we scramble,” and it’s true. I hope we inspire our children with our work ethic, but also show them how to prioritize and cherish the things that matter most in life.
On a professional level, I'm motivated to keep supporting our dynamic business and leadership team, and to ensure that our team contributes to Enstar's success. This means developing and empowering the talented attorneys and professionals in our Legal & Compliance Department. We take pride in being trusted business partners and are constantly investing in building a deep understanding of our business and operations, so that we can provide better advice and solutions.
