Financial, Securities, and Banking Enforcement

Representative Matters

• Representation of Silvergate Bank in connection with investigations by the Department of Justice, Securities and Exchange Commission, numerous state and federal regulators, and Congress in the wake of the collapse of FTX, and Silvergate’s decision to voluntarily liquidate and wind-down.
• Successfully defended Thomas Lund, the former Executive Vice President and head of Fannie Mae’s Single Family business, against securities fraud charges filed by the SEC in the Southern District of New York.  After three years of litigation, the SEC discontinued its case against Mr. Lund without obtaining any of the relief sought in its Complaint.
• Representation of a global, multibillion-dollar manufacturing company in investigations conducted by the DOJ, SEC, and foreign authorities into allegations of defrauding customers and end-users.
• Representation of the former CEO of a publicly-traded telecommunications company in an SEC investigation of alleged misrepresentations in financial reporting. The client was not charged.
• Representation of a C-suite executive of a Fortune 500 company in a prominent SEC investigation related to ESG and other disclosures.
• Representation of the former President and Chief Lending Officer of a bank in a grand jury investigation by the Department of Justice and an investigation by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency into alleged fraud in the bank’s mortgage originations and initial public offering.
• Representation of the former CFO of MF Global, Inc., in investigations by the DOJ, SEC, CFTC, and multiple congressional committees involving the alleged misuse of approximately $1.6 billion in customer segregated funds.

• Representation of key bankers and other professionals employed both in the US and abroad by a major US financial institution in separate government investigations into a multibillion-dollar derivatives trading loss in Europe and the alleged hiring of the children of foreign government officials in Asia.
• Representation of the senior executive in charge of government affairs for Toyota North America in criminal and civil investigations by the DOJ, SEC, and others into public disclosures about the unintended acceleration of Toyota vehicles.
• Representation of the financial arm of a Fortune 10 company, one of the industry’s largest institutional asset management companies, and current and former executives from a major Wall Street investment bank and another of the country’s largest financial institutions in investigations by the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission to determine “the causes, domestic and global, of the current financial and economic crisis in the United States.”
• Representation of numerous high-ranking Enron executives in connection with the multiple prosecutions and investigations related to that company.  Our work included representing clients in investigations conducted by the DOJ’s Enron Task Force, SEC, CFTC, FERC, IRS, and many others, involving issues ranging from broad allegations of accounting fraud and insider trading to technical allegations relating to commodities trading and ERISA.
• Representation of a major international financial services company in a federal grand jury investigation in the Eastern District of New York relating to mortgage fraud allegations.
• Representation of a US subsidiary of a major international investment bank in a federal grand jury investigation of alleged corruption in the stock lending industry.
• Representation of many Fannie Mae executives in connection with investigations of Fannie Mae’s FAS 91 and FAS 133 accounting conducted by the DOJ, SEC, OFHEO, and the Special Review Committee of Fannie Mae’s Board of Directors.
• Representation of the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of a Fortune 100 company in an internal investigation of a whistleblower complaint alleging improper accounting treatment.
• Representation of US and non-US executives and board members of multiple public companies being investigated by the DOJ, SEC, and foreign law enforcement agencies for alleged improper payments made to foreign officials in Asia, South America, Europe, and Africa in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
• Representation of the Chief Marketing Officer of a major internet, social media, and technology company in DOJ and SEC investigations of alleged fraudulent sales and accounting practices.
• Representation of the Chief Financial Officer of a publicly-traded company in an SEC investigation and related shareholder litigation relating to alleged channel-stuffing and other revenue recognition accounting issues.
• Representation of an in-house attorney at one of the country’s largest banks in a grand jury investigation by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and a parallel investigation by the Federal Reserve into alleged obstruction of a bank examination.
• Representation of the comptroller of one of the country’s largest commercial property and casualty insurers in parallel DOJ and SEC investigations in the Southern District of New York into alleged securities fraud related to accounting for reinsurance.
• Representation of a large industrial manufacturing company in an SEC investigation relating to its use of percentage of completion accounting in connection with a multibillion-dollar project in Asia.
• Representation of the former CEO of a publicly-traded telecommunications company in an SEC investigation of alleged accounting errors and misrepresentations in public filings.
• Representation of a major fintech company in a grand jury investigation by the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York of alleged anti-money laundering and Bank Secrecy Act offenses.  After a multi-year investigation, no charges were filed.
• Representation of a major global financial institution before the Department of Justice in connection with the use by US clients of offshore accounts in Switzerland to avoid taxes.  The client paid the lowest penalty per US assets under management of any large Swiss bank.
• Representation of Lehman Brothers in multi-year investigations by the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (Senate PSI) into allegedly abusive equity derivative and stock lending transactions with offshore counterparties designed to avoid U.S. dividend withholding taxes.  Lehman’s role in the development, marketing, and execution of these dividend arbitrage transactions was the focus of several front-page articles in the Wall Street Journal.
• Representation of a member of the Board of Directors of General Motors in connection with investigations and litigation related to GM’s ignition switch recall.
• Representation of a multibillion-dollar hedge fund in an investigation by the Senate PSI relating to the tax treatment of certain complex financial instruments.
• Representation of a partner in KPMG’s National Tax practice group in a grand jury investigation by the DOJ Tax Division into alleged tax fraud relating to sale-leaseback transactions for tenant leasehold improvements to accelerate depreciation deductions.  The client was acquitted of all charges.
• Representation of one of the country’s largest mortgage loan servicing companies in an investigation by the House Financial Services Committee into loan servicing practices during the coronavirus pandemic.
• Representation of one of the country’s largest investors in the Single Family Rental market in an investigation by the House Financial Services Committee into that aspect of the housing market.