White Collar & Investigations

At times, individuals and corporations may unwittingly run afoul of the law and government regulations. Ordinary commercial disputes can give rise to allegations of fraud and abuse. Grand jury subpoenas may be directed at innocent targets and present logistical record-gathering challenges for legitimate businesses.

Clients who find themselves accused of these and other business-related offenses, including Medicare/Medicaid fraud and abuse, environmental crimes, securities law violations, criminal tax fraud, fraud in government procurement, trade espionage and criminal antitrust and RICO violations, require a firm that understands their legal and professional ramifications, and has experience at both the federal and state levels to navigate them successfully.

Our White Collar Criminal Defense practice group represents individuals and corporations, both U.S. and international, in grand jury proceedings, quasi-criminal investigations, administrative enforcement proceedings, criminal trials and internal investigations.

Compliance and Prevention

Businesses and individuals in the U.S. and throughout the world face increasingly aggressive government enforcement. Matters formerly handled through civil or regulatory processes now result in criminal investigations, and can result in the real threat of prison for executives. Our goal is to assist our clients in avoiding prosecution and the glare of media attention that comes with a government investigation and indictment. To that end, we craft individualized compliance programs designed to prevent potential problems from developing. 

Litigation Experience

Our broad range of substantive litigation and regulatory experience enables us to offer an integrated approach to address our client’s problems, starting with the difficult and often frightening process of investigation. Criminal and government enforcement activity do not traditionally appear in isolation; they are accompanied by parallel proceedings, civil litigation and regulatory or legislative investigations. Our strong litigation team mounts an efficient and comprehensive defense on all fronts, utilizing attorneys from the firm’s other practice areas when necessary to counter government allegations and vigorously defend our clients' interest.

Typical Cases

Our White Collar practice extends to both state and federal crimes and includes all types of offenses, including:

• RICO offenses
• Securities fraud
• Corporate or sales bribery and extortion
• Official misconduct at board and executive levels
• Internal ethics investigations and executive conflict determinations
• Corporate theft and embezzlement
• Environmental prosecutions and investigations
• Grand jury investigations for business-related crimes such as fraud, bribery, mail and wire fraud

Representative Matters

• Represented an offshore financial company alleged to have participated in illegal payments to a foreign head of state to secure exclusive construction and telecommunications contracts.
• Represented a corporation and board of directors alleged to have defrauded and mislead the Department of Defense in the crucial sale of military related components.
• Represented the Russian-based executive of a large energy company alleged to have engaged in a pattern of money laundering and flight from prosecution.
• Represented a publicly held corporation in a federal investigation related to the alleged sale and delivery of unsafe and mislabeled military equipment leading directly to threats on U.S. military personnel.
• Represented a privately held board of directors in an internal investigation and report on the former CEO's personal expenses and travel costs, and whether the company improperly paid such costs as part of the CEO’s overall compensation.
• Represented a publicly held board of directors investigating allegations of an improper relationship between a senior executive and the COO.
• Represented a board of directors in an internal investigation regarding allegations of improper board member voting patterns in granting company contracts and compensation. 
• Represented a highly public scientific research center alleged to have intentionally destroyed and minimized federal research studies in an attempt to secure more congressional funding.
• Represented a franchisor in a multi-district breach of contract dispute with a franchisee over exclusivity of area of responsibility. Representation included multiple applications for and against temporary restraining orders, and emergent financial applications including allegations of corporate malfeasance.

• Michael Weinstein was quoted in an article titled, "Insider-Trading Mole Praised by Prosecutors," Wall Street Journal, January 11, 2011
• Michael Weinstein was quoted in "Analysis: On the Hotseat Corzine Stakes his Legal Ground," by Reuters and also appeared in: CNBC, Chicago Tribune, Yahoo Finance, Bloomberg, Time, Huffington Post, CBS Marketwatch, Dec. 8, 2011
• Michael Weinstein was quoted in an article titled, "Defense contractor in Clifton shuts door," The Clifton Journal, December 2, 2011
• Michael Weinstein was quoted in an article titled, "Contractor Sentenced For Sending Rifle Designs To China," Law 360, November 15, 2011

• State of the Art Approaches to the Resolution of "Futures" Claims, New Jersey Law Journal In-House Counsel CLE Seminar, June 15, 2010

• Ask A Lawyer: How Dodd-Frank Protects and Rewards Whistleblowers, The Record, November 9, 2011
• Prosecutor's Pistol: The Genesis and State of Honest-Services Fraud, BNA Criminal Law Report, August, 17, 2011
• High Cost of a Low Threshold: The Policies and Practicalities Underlying the Crime-Fraud Exception to the Attorney-Client Priviledge BNA's Criminal Law Reporter, May 25,2011
• The U.K. Bribery Act’s Hold on American Business, BNA's White Collar Crime Report, April 22, 2011