Government Investigations & Regulatory Matters

Our lawyers have substantial expertise in regulatory enforcement actions and government investigations domestically and abroad. With our reputation for trial expertise and deep knowledge of the investigatory and regulatory process, we provide expert guidance to companies and individuals under investigation or charged in enforcement actions. We have frequently persuaded regulators not to pursue charges against our clients, and when charges are brought, we often are able to obtain favorable results in court or negotiate advantageous settlements. In addition, the firm frequently is engaged to counsel officers and directors of public corporations concerning their legal obligations, including their duties under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

We regularly represent clients in investigations, administrative proceedings and enforcement actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Federal Reserve Bank, self-regulatory organizations, including the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and international authorities. The issues in these proceedings range from insider trading to options backdating, stock manipulation, improper sales practices, and FCPA violations, and from complex accounting questions to misrepresentations and omissions in sales materials. We have successfully represented clients at trial in federal and state courts, administrative courts, and before SRO tribunals. We also are called upon by financial institutions and their affiliates; securities brokerage firms, investment managers, and traders; hedge funds and hedge fund managers; and public corporations and their officers and directors to provide advice in advance of, or at the early stages of, probes.

Areas of Focus

We are well versed in the complex and ever-evolving laws and regulations concerning anti-money laundering (AML) and economic sanctions.  The current regulatory environment, combined with the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, and several recent high-profile enforcement actions, seem to indicate that that AML and economic sanctions will continue to be a top priority for law enforcement and regulators both domestically and abroad for some time.  Our lawyers have a long track record of assisting clients in enhancing their financial crimes compliance programs, conducting internal investigations, formulating and tracking remediation actions, suspicious activity reporting, and communicating with regulators to minimize and manage risks relating to financial crimes compliance, including potential enforcement actions and hefty fines,.  We have represented a wide range of individual and corporate clients in AML and U.S. sanctions-related enforcement actions and investigations before the NY DFS, the Fed, FDIC, OCC, OFAC.

We also advise clients on export and re-export controls, customs, and government contracts matters in multiple regulatory jurisdictions.  We routinely handle cases involving all aspects of U.S. export controls, including programs intended to monitor and regulate the transfer of goods, technology, software, services, and information to foreign nationals and foreign destinations administered under the Commerce Department, the State Department, the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and other economic sanctions regimes, as well as cases involving commercial firms and defense contractors under International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).

We defend private companies, federal contractors, and individuals involved in government and defense fraud investigations and lawsuits alleging fraud on the federal government. We have handled internal investigations and litigation arising out of the pricing and/or performance of government contracts, bid-rigging, and misrepresentation of qualifications, and have the ability to take “whistleblower” or other claims under the False Claims Act (FCA) to trial. Our experience spans a wide variety of industries, including defense, healthcare, pharmaceutical, information technology, energy, accounting firms, and educational institutions.

We have successfully handled a wide range of cases involving allegations of business or securities fraud, including insider trading, stock market manipulation, “pump and dump” schemes, fraudulent or negligent misrepresentations, and ponzi schemes. In particular, we have substantial experience in cases and investigations involving sophisticated financial products or market-related behavior, including claims involving equities, fixed income products, mortgage-backed securities, and CDOs. We also have the trial experience needed to defend a business fraud lawsuit.

We represent institutional and individual clients in all aspects of commodities fraud investigations by federal and state regulators, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. 

We provide assistance to clients in export and re-export controls, customs, economic sanctions law, and government contracts matters in multiple regulatory jurisdictions. We routinely handle cases involving all aspects of U.S. export controls, including programs intended to monitor and regulate the transfer of goods, technology, software, services, and information to foreign nationals and foreign destinations administered under the Commerce Department, the State Department, the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and other economic sanctions regimes, as well as cases involving commercial firms and defense contractors under International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).

Our firm’s lawyers have served in government-appointed positions at the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security managing many of the Agency's largest export control settlements and indictments, including criminal investigations related to Chinese exports and the freight-forwarding industry, and as federal prosecutors working on cases involving terrorism, wire and mail fraud, economic espionage, and export control violations, among many other matters.

We represent clients facing allegations of defective pricing, false statements, or overbilling involving government contracts that have led the government to initiate either civil or criminal fraud proceedings. We have advised clients involved in bribery allegations, Federal False Claims Act lawsuits, and violations of export control laws. We have provided fraud defense services for government contractors in administrative hearings and suspension or debarment hearings.

We represent companies, directors, officers, employees, physicians, and others in the health care industry who find themselves involved in criminal investigations, False Claims Act investigations, regulatory and enforcement proceedings, and civil litigation. Our lawyers understand the complex issues that exist within this ever-changing industry, and have defended clients against allegations of billing fraud, kickbacks, off-label promotion, misbranding, False Claims Act violations, and other claims involving health care fraud. We also have conducted significant internal investigations for health care providers, and have undertaken voluntary self-disclosures on behalf of health care professionals. We have the ability and experience to take all of these health care related matters to trial, if necessary.

We often represent clients in investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), state attorneys general, and local prosecutors concerning allegations of insider trading.