In today’s world, businesses and individuals in the United States face increasingly aggressive government enforcement and prosecutions. Our attorneys are seasoned trial lawyers with extensive criminal law experience, as prosecutors and defense lawyers. We represent individuals and business organizations in connection with state and federal investigations, responding to grand jury subpoenas and inquiries from governmental and/or regulatory agencies, administrative enforcement/debarment proceedings, and criminal trials.

       Clearly, the best result for a client is always complete avoidance of prosecution. Operating under that premise, we help our clients to navigate the lengthy and difficult process of investigation. In many cases, we have successfully resolved the matters without the filing of formal charges.  However, if clients face criminal charges, we have the extensive trial experience to mount a tenacious defense and assess the risks of proceeding to trial or negotiating a resolution. Our clients regularly rely on us to try their serious and “high-stakes” criminal matters to verdict. While we understand that most cases do not proceed to trial, we treat every case as if it will proceed to trial and conduct an exhaustive and comprehensive investigation of the facts. As many government investigations are accompanied by regulatory and civil litigation, the firm's breadth of substantive experience permits us to offer a strategic and effective approach to addressing a client's needs. We are always sensitive to our clients’ need to manage litigation efficiently and our size allows us to provide superior yet cost-effective legal representation.

Criminal Defense

       Our experienced trial lawyers have defended many prominent companies and individuals against a wide variety of federal and state investigations and prosecutions brought by various state attorney generals’ and prosecutors’ offices, the United States Department of Justice, the Securities & Exchange Commission, and the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, Bureau of Securities. Representative matters include:

• International food manufacturing and distribution company in connection with regulatory violations brought by the New Jersey Attorney General.
• High-ranking government official in connection with a grand jury investigation relating to public finance.
• Former Governor of the State of New Jersey and Chief Counsel in connection with litigation resulting from a public appointment.
• Energy corporation and its president in connection with an investigation of large scale-financial fraud, tax fraud, and violations of the prevailing wage labor laws. The investigation ended with guilty pleas being entered only by the corporation for misdemeanor offenses. No felony charges were brought against the corporation or its president.
• Civil engineering firm and its principals as witnesses in a grand jury investigation of public corruption including campaign finance fraud.
• Acute health care facility in connection with a federal investigation of health care fraud including Medicare fraud and violations of the anti-kickback laws.
• Individuals and corporations in responding to grand jury and administrative subpoenas issued by the Securities & Exchange Commission, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, Bureau of Securities, various state attorney generals’ offices, and the United States Department of Justice relating to a wide a wide variety of investigations, both civil and criminal, including investigations of securities fraud, public corruption, kickbacks, health care fraud, money laundering, and campaign finance fraud.
• Individuals and business organizations in publicized white collar cases, in addition to successfully resolving numerous other sensitive matters without the filing of formal charges, publicity or scandal.
• Individual federally charged with the theft and trafficking of 175 firearms taken from an international shipping company.
• Individuals being federally investigated and/or charged with mortgage fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, computer crimes, identity theft, tax fraud, and/or conspiracy.
• Individuals federally charged with the trafficking of large of amounts of narcotics.

       In addition to those cases listed above, our experience allows us to successfully represent individuals charged with:

• Narcotics Offenses/Drug Crimes
  
• Robberies and Assaults
  
• Firearms Offenses
  
• Violent Crimes
  
• Homicide
  
• Burglary
  
• Theft Offenses 

• Traffic Offenses
  
• Driving While Intoxicated
  
• Disorderly Persons Offenses

Responding to Subpoenas or Requests for Information

       We have extensive experience representing clients who have been subpoenaed to testify before federal and state grand juries or have received subpoenas or other requests for documents. Our experience and credibility with law enforcement allows us to work with state or federal agencies to access whether the client is a potential target of an investigation or merely a witness. In either case, we help clients respond to document subpoenas and, if called to testify or meet with law enforcement, we assist them through the complex and often scary process. Our ability to quickly and effectively gather information and assess the client’s potential exposure, if any, helps ward off any disruption of the client’s business or, in the case of an individual, their daily lives.

Internal Investigations

       We have conducted many sensitive internal investigations of potential wrongdoing for businesses, board committees, special committees and general counsels to assess the risk of criminal or civil liability to the organization and its individuals. We have also conducted such investigations on behalf of non-profit and public-sector entities in a broad range of contexts.

       We quickly and discretely gather and analyze data and conduct interviews of key employees to evaluate potential claims of wrongdoing within the organization. We make independent assessments and recommendations to our clients, recognizing that early and aggressive crisis management can enhance credibility with law enforcement officials, regulators and/or investigators and can eliminate or mitigate the corporation's exposure to civil or criminal liability. A discreet, thorough, and effective internal investigation enables corporate decision makers to make informed judgments when confronted with issues raised by those both inside and outside of the company. Our experience allows us to quickly gather and analyze data and make recommendations whether or not to voluntarily disclose damaging information to governmental agencies. If disclosure is warranted, we work with the client on disclosing the information and maximizing the benefits of making the disclosure. These investigations are also regularly conducted in conjunction with civil litigation to develop the facts of a case and to effectively analyze an adverse party’s claims.