GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS
PRACTICE CHAIR
Jacob S. Frenkel
Clients hire the attorneys in Shulman Rogers’ Government
Investigations practice because of our vigorous and creative
advocacy. Our diligence and insights have delivered outstanding
results. Our practice encompasses all investigative matters,
especially securities enforcement (SEC and FINRA), white-collar
(DOJ and state prosecutions), and government contracts. We also
have extensive experience in matters originating with the
Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Federal Trade
Commission, the Food & Drug Administration, the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau, the World Bank and debarring officials
of civilian agencies and military departments and other federal, state
and international regulators and enforcers.
The senior lawyers on our team – all of whom have extensive
national and international government investigations and
enforcement experience – chose to join forces at Shulman Rogers so
that we can focus on our clients and on obtaining the best possible
outcome. The Shulman Rogers culture (and rate structure) allows us
to defend investigations strategically and to litigate - when necessary
- aggressively and effectively. Regulators and prosecutors know that
we will litigate when the situation demands. And, corporate boards
of directors and officers trust our judgment and recommendations in
conducting internal corporate investigations.
ATTORNEYS
Russell Duncan
Paul Huey-Burns
Joel D. Schwartz
Jeffrey S. Gavenman
Renee Kramer
Mee Soon Langohr
Allison Baker Shealy
Nicole Stankewicz
Jeffrey S. Holik
Vincent Hsia
Alexander C. Vincent
This Shulman Rogers team has guided clients to successful
conclusions in hundreds of matters. We have represented
individuals and companies in government investigations and civil
and criminal litigation involving the SEC, FINRA, the DOJ, other
regulatory and criminal authorities, and the World Bank. We have
the skill, experience, and temperament to resolve serious issues,
often without recourse to expensive litigation. When intensive
litigation is the best approach, we custom-tailor the best defense -and sustain that defense to a final resolution.
12505 PARK POTOMAC AVENUE, 6TH FLOOR, POTOMAC, MD 20854
T 301.230.5200
F 301.230.2891
ShulmanRogers.com
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Our senior lawyers have experience as senior federal prosecutors, investigators and regulators. We
understand the politics, policies, strategies and tactics of the SEC, the DOJ, FINRA, DoD,
CFTC, World Bank and other authorities.
Our team takes challenging facts, advocates aggressively and secures favorable outcomes - cost
effectively. We consistently resolve matters involving allegations of insider trading, FCPAviolations,
financial and accounting fraud, FDA violations, bribery, extortion and government contract matters,
including investigations, export controls, False Claims Act defenses, Inspector General inquiries,
whistleblower protection, and suspension and debarment proceedings. We successfully defend parties
in white collar criminal investigations by federal and state authorities, and civil and regulatory
investigations by securities regulators, stock exchanges and capital markets self-regulatory
organizations.
Representative Matters
White-Collar Criminal Defense
Won acquittal for the president of a Midwestern company on charges of criminal fraud in a federal
district court trial.
Obtained acquittal for government official in a state court trial.
Presently representing a government contractor executive in combined DOJ Antitrust criminal and
civil investigation.
Secured no charges for Chairman, CEO and Controller of New York Stock Exchange-listed
healthcare industry company in a federal criminal investigation and a parallel SEC investigation.
Secured no charges for Chairman, CEO and CFO of New York Stock Exchange-listed textile
industries company in a federal criminal investigation and a parallel SEC investigation.
Obtained declination of prosecution following investigation of client by joint the Department of
Justice and the Department of Homeland Security National Security & Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Won full reinstatement for graduate student at major university by convincing Title IX investigators
that there was insufficient evidence of any violation.
Successfully negotiated no charges being filed against the CEO of an offshore company in the sale
of industry-specific electronic devices governed by the Export Administration Regulations (EAR).
Negotiated favorable resolution in the criminal prosecution for conflicts of interest and ethics
violations of a prominent US Government scientist.
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Internal Investigations: Domestic and International
Conducted shadow internal investigation for Board of Directors of New York Stock Exchange-listed
company in textiles industry and disproved all investigative findings of a Special Committee by
finding exculpatory and corroborating evidence that had been ignored by Special Committee's
forensic team.
Led internal investigation for Audit Committee of New York Stock Exchange-listed real estate
development company and discovered possible corruption of municipal official.
Conducted internal investigation for Audit Committee of NASDAQ-listed infrastructure company
into allegations of embezzlement in overseas operations and possible corrupt payments in high-risk
jurisdictions.
Led internal investigation for high profile not-for-profit organization to address allegations of
misuse of corporate assets by senior corporate official.
Financial Services: Broker-Dealers
Obtained favorable results for several national broker-dealer firms in connection with SEC and
FINRA investigations concerning the firms' sales, trading, due diligence and supervisory practices,
including matters involving the offer and sale of complex investment products.
Persuaded the SEC and FINRA to take no action against one of the largest brokerage firms serving
independent advisers following the investigation of the failure of a multimillion dollar REIT.
Financial Services: Investment Advisors, Mutual Funds and Hedge Funds
Represented an independent credit ratings agency in an SEC Administrative Proceeding and its
CEO, filed a lawsuit against the SEC in United States District Court to move the case to federal
court, and successfully resolved the cases on behalf of the clients.
Convinced the SEC to dismiss its administrative proceeding against a multimillion dollar hedge
fund.
Convinced the SEC not to file charges against a CEO and his wife whom the SEC previously had
stated it intended to charge with insider trading. Entered the case after the SEC had sent clients a
Wells notice and persuaded SEC to reverse its decision.
Won summary judgment in federal district court for a national investment adviser and its officers in
a securities class action litigation resulting from a SEC investigation.
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Persuaded the SEC staff to end its investigation of a hedge fund without bringing any charges in the
investigation of mortgage-backed securities.
Achieved a very favorable resolution of an SEC investigation a major investment adviser in
connection with the adviser's procedures for valuing securities held in fund portfolios.
Represented advisers and fund complexes in "market timing" investigations, and several hedge
funds and associated persons in investigations of whether the funds traded on the basis of
non-public information.
Securities Enforcement: Public Companies
Persuaded the SEC not to bring an enforcement action against the CEO and CFO of a New York
Stock Exchange listed company with a billion dollar market cap in a financial fraud investigation.
Persuaded the SEC not to bring an enforcement action against the CEO of a digital media company
in an SEC investigation, beginning at the Wells submission.
Won summary judgment for a general counsel of a public company in a law suit filed by the SEC in
federal court.
Won summary judgment for the directors of a public company in derivative securities litigation
resulting from an SEC investigation.
Convinced the SEC staff to end its investigation without bringing any charges against a public
company or its officers in an investigation of alleged financial fraud.
Defended a major bank in connection with the bank's relationship with an independent brokerage
and advisory firm.
Persuaded SEC to bring no charges against a major food company and its CEO for disseminating
corporate information through anonymous postings to a public website.
Defended a company in an investigation concerning the dissemination of corporate information
through a publicly available web site.
Represented several companies and individuals in the government's investigations of corporate
options-granting practices and senior corporate officers in connection with internal and SEC
investigations relating to the establishment of "special purpose entities" and the conduct of
"round-trip" transactions.
International Anti-Corruption Matters
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Argued before the World Bank Sanctions Board on behalf of two non-US based international
high-tech companies accused of conflict of interest and corruption and achieved desired objective of
the companies, including an unprecedented letter of reprimand instead of debarment.
Advised the Indonesian Securities Commission (BAPEPAM) at request of World Bank on
Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism compliance and regulations,
and delivered comprehensive written analysis and recommendations.
Represented Middle Eastern public figure in a US DOJ investigation of corruption, enabled client to
avoid appearing at trial in the Middle East and secured no charges in the U.S.
Conducted an internal investigation on behalf of Government of Somalia and refuted damaging
report by United Nations Monitoring Group.
Advised the government of an African nation on the design and implementation of anti-corruption
regulations in the mining sector.
Expert Witness
Produced pivotal substantive report in federal civil litigation relating to a restatement of public
company financial statements and the conduct of SEC investigations.
Provided critical expert rebuttal testimony for a law firm and counsel in a state civil legal
malpractice lawsuit regarding claims of legal malpractice against prominent firm and attorney in a
securities investigation.
Produced compelling substantive expert report on applicability of Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in state civil whistleblower litigation relating to a company's conduct
in Asia.
Delivered persuasive expert report, prepared cross examination of opposing expert witness and
testified as an expert in trial before arbitral tribunal in international arbitration in the hedge fund
industry regarding the applicability of SEC pay-to-play regulations.
Government Contracts
Convinced the U. S. Attorney's Office not to intervene in a whistleblower suit, and subsequently
obtained dismissal of the private whistleblower action against a government contractor in a civil
billing fraud investigation.
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Convinced a civilian agency to terminate a suspension without proposing debarment for our client, a
“C-level” executive, despite a felony conviction.
Represented multiple senior executives proposed for debarment by a military department and either
received no debarments or “time served” exclusions (decisions that end all contracting restrictions
the day they issue) despite grounds to impose multi-year debarments.
Conducted numerous internal investigations and managed proactive mandatory disclosures to limit
parallel proceeding risk, where other similarly-situated entities faced substantial additional inquiries
from criminal and civil investigative authorities.
PCAOB
Our two former assistant directors of enforcement at the Public Company Accounting Oversight
Board (PCAOB) are well placed to provide insight into the PCAOB process, an assessment of the
PCAOB investigations, professionals and guidance in complying with the increasingly complex
PCAOB related issues.
PUBLICATIONS
Government Investigations Affect You
Khuzami Leaves Overhauled SEC Enforcement Unit
FCPA Compliance
NEWS
Jacob Frenkel comments in Law360: FIFA Election Could Stem The Tide Of Lost Trust, Attys Say
Jacob Frenkel Interviewed by CNBC's Squawk Box on Apple iPhone Battle with Justice Department
Jacob Frenkel provides commentation for National Public Radio Newscast on Former Drug CEO
Martin Shkreli Scandal
Jacob Frenkel interviewed by CNBC's Squawk Box on Martin Shkreli securities fraud charges
Jacob Frenkel comments in The Daily Record: Defense set to present its case in Porter trial
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law 360: SEC Admin Court Faces Huge Test In Steve Cohen Showdown
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law360: FIFA Probe Feeding On Itself As US Unveils New Charges
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Global Post: Wall Street awaits its next sheriff
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Jacob Frenkel quoted in The Washington Post: Dennis Hastert pleads guilty to lying to the FBI in
hush-money case
Jacob Frenkel comments in Yahoo News: Tough road ahead for Volkswagen in US
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law360: Broader Case Looms As FIFA Probe Persists
Jacob Frenkel interviewed by CNBC's Squawk Box on United Airlines replacing CEO
Jacob Frenkel quoted in The Daily Record: How will judge decide Freddie Gray venue question?
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law 360: SEC Administrative Court Has A Constitutionality Problem
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Bloomberg Business: For the SEC’s In-House Court, a Question of Justice for
All
Joel Schwartz appointed to serve on the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers White
Collar Committee
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law360: The Atlanta Judge Who Stuck A Thorn In The SEC's Side
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law360: Halted SEC Case To Spark More In-House Court Challenges
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Bloomberg Business on SEC Appointment of In-House Judges "Likely
Unconstitutional"
Jacob Frenkel quoted on Voice of America: FIFA Plea Deals Could Implicate Blatter
Jacob Frenkel quoted in The Jakarta Post: US agencies probe big banks on China nepotism
Jacob Frenkel quoted in International Business Times regarding anticipated historic guilty pleas from
banks
Jacob Frenkel quoted in Law360 - FLIR's $9.5M FCPA Settlement Reflects Cooperation With SEC
Attorneys Weigh In On SEC's $77M Settlement With S&P - Law360
Emily Gordy quoted in Investment News: Regulators bare their teeth on excessive fees
Emily Gordy quoted in Financial Post regarding Icahn and Twitter
Paul Huey-Burns quoted in Ignites regarding Pimco ETF Case
Jacob Frenkel in the Wall Street Journal: SEC probes whether congressional staff helped tip off Wall
Street to health-care policy
Jacob Frenkel interviewed by the Washington Post concerning the McDonnell corruption charges
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
CFTC Mimics SEC Polley Shift wtth JPMorgan 'Whale' Pact
Jacob Frenkel on McDonnell Investigation
Criminal indictment expected for SAC Capital
McDonnell apologizes, repays loans
A Towering Fine for Naught, as the S.E.C. Tracks Cohen
Wall Street surprised by Cohen charge
Case Reveals Cohen’s Links to Dubious Actions at SAC
SEC charges hedge-fund mogul Steve Cohen
SEC charges hedge-fund tycoon Steven Cohen with failure to supervise traders
SEC Is Seeking to Ban Cohen
SEC Is Seeking to Ban Cohen
Prosecutors Unleashed As $5B S&P Action Rolls On
New SEC Probe Scrutinizes 'Political Intelligence'
SEC Investigates Insider Trading Leaks
Markets Shocked by False AP Tweet
U.S. Launches Civil Action Against S&P
UBS targeted in interest-rate rigging scandal
Quick Defense in Insider Trading Trial of 2 Hedge Fund Managers
How an accounting spat could force all Chinese companies off US exchanges
OSC accuses Ernst & Young as firm settles Sino-Forest class action suit
HP Takes a 8.8B charge: From an accounting and legal perspective
Potential Legal Implications in Petraeus Case
Girl Dies as Pluristem Sells on Gains With Miracle Cells: Health
Stock Soars on Stem Cell Success Stories, Silence Follows Girl's Death
$1B BofA Mortgage Suit May Usher Broad Crackdown On Banks
Will Google's Filling Snafu Trigger Legal Action?
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
Google blames contractor for early release of data
Google early earnings release stuns traders
American law: How non-US companies are affected
US jury rejects SEC charges over CDO sale
Netflix, the SEC, and a Problem Called FD
Twitter May Face Sisyphean Challenge in Protected Speech Battle
Bain's SEC Filings Don't Mean Rommney's A Crook
JPM's Whale of a Loss: Who Knew What & When?
Penn State Scandal Analysis
Intrigue Behind Ouster at Duke Energy
Insider trading: Rajat Gupta convicted, faces jail term of up to 25 yrs
Best Buy moves against Schulze
Edwards Verdict Shows Clemens Need Not Fear Taint Of Reputation
Confused About Facebook's IPO Flap? Here's What It Means To You
Feeding frenzy for lawyers in botched Facebook IPO
Regulators Tagging Morgan
Scrutiny of Facebook IPO builds
Best Buy founder Richard Schulze quits over Brian Dunn scandal
Best Buy investigation of ex-CEO widens
U.S. immigration officials to detain Conrad Black upon his release from prison
Wal-Mart Bribery Probe: Why the Stakes Are So High
Crowdfunding to Spur Small Businesses Greeted With Applause, Warnings
British Teens Ran "Stock-Picking Robot" scam, SEC says
SEC takes action against rater Egan-Jones
Ted Stevens Prosecutors Hid Evidence Before Trial, Report Says
Goldman, Wells Cite SEC Enforcement Threat
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
JPMorgan Joins Goldman in Disclosing Threat of SEC Enforcement
STOCK Act limps toward passage
Puda Coal Executives Stole Company Assets, SEC Alleges in Suit
Several Cleveland-area accountants, lawyers named in securities fraud lawsuit
Analysis: Obstacles high for more mortgage prosecutions
Former SEC Attorney: Can Drive A Truck Through the Openings in 'The Stock Act'
Whittier Trust manager among 4 arrested in insider trading probe
Nortel trial will test the system
Watchdogs Let Freddie and Fanny Execs Slide
Jacob Frenkel weighs in on the MF Global case
Corzine Testifies Before Former Senate Colleagues on Missing MF Global Funds
Judge orders Rajaratnam to pay penalty of $93 million
Whistle-blower law creates incentives and risks
Ex-SEC Lawyer Frenkel Discusses UBS Unauthorized Trading
Why Rogue Traders Get Jail But Bad Execs Get A Pension
The Return Of Toxie
S.E.C. Asks Court to Force a Release of Papers From China
SEC takes China-based Deloitte unit to Court
S&P Under Review for Possible Violations Over Credit Downgrade
Law from 2006 gives SEC scope to probe S&P
Auction-Rate Securities UPDATE: SEC Brief May Help ARS Investors
SEC Brief in Auction-Rate Case May Help Investors Suing Banks, Lawyer Says
Attorney Weighs In On Casey Anthony Verdict
Jacob Frenkel on CNBC's Squawck on the Street regarding Madoff
Jacob Frenkel quoted in the Gazette
Frenkel on SEC issues
GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS (Continued)
`Galleon' Case Defense Gets Trial Run in Unrelated Prosecution
Guest Column: Goldman Sachs Can Win, But At What Price
Goldman Sachs on Capitol Hill Hot Seat
EVENTS
2nd Annual Wall Street China Forum
China Entrepreneurs to Host 2nd Annual Edition of Wall Street China Forum May 15th in NYC
Fifth Annual National Institute on Securities Fraud