White Collar Defense and Investigations

Recent corporate scandals have made effective and honest corporate governance the chief priority for every company. Proactive and incisive defense counsel in this area is a must. Reacting swiftly to any serious or potential problems can be an important factor affecting the final outcome.

A Distinguished Team of Professionals

In addition to creating and implementing corporate compliance programs to help your company avoid problems before they occur, Holland & Knight is extremely well positioned to help you assess and cope with allegations of wrongdoing should those circumstances arise. Our White Collar Defense Team is comprised of seasoned professionals, including a former judge, as well as former federal prosecutors, and federal and state regulators.

Investigating Possible Misconduct

Corporations are under increasing pressure to self-report corporate wrongdoing. When your company becomes aware of possible misconduct, the matter must be investigated thoroughly and quickly. We understand the sensitivities involved in such matters and can advise you whether or not the situation needs to be disclosed to the authorities and at what point in time that needs to be done. In such instances, you can count on our extensive experience to guide you through the entire process. This includes conducting internal investigations using seasoned investigators and consultants, such as our Congressional Investigations Team, many of whom have had notable careers with federal law enforcement agencies.

SEC Enforcement

We have substantial experience representing public and privately held companies, broker-dealers, investment banks, accounting firms and other market participants – along with their officers, directors and managers – in the full range of civil and criminal enforcement investigations. This includes advising clients in civil enforcement investigations by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and state securities regulators, in self-regulatory proceedings by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), as well as in criminal investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). Our Securities Enforcement Defense Team works collaboratively with other Holland & Knight lawyers who focus on key issues involving capital formation, capital markets, securities offerings, investment management and regulatory compliance issues to deliver a fully informed defense strategy when our clients need it. Read more on our Securities Enforcement Defense capabilities.

Anti-Money Laundering Prevention and Defense

Dealing with the wide array of anti-money laundering issues is one of our strengths. If you are a bank, corporation, officer or employee under investigation for or charged with money laundering offenses – or if you face forfeiture actions related to such allegations – you can be assured that we are likely to have acted as defense counsel in similar situations.

Our other legal services in this area include the following:

• developing and implementing anti-money laundering compliance manuals and programs for financial institutions and other clients in connection with the Bank Secrecy Act and the USA PATRIOT Act
• advising in regard to cash-reporting obligations
• training your employees on pertinent anti-money laundering practices and principles
• reviewing suspicious transactions and, as appropriate, preparing and filing suspicious activity reports
• developing and implementing programs to comply with trade embargoes and various government terrorist and prohibited parties lists

Experience That Counts in White Collar Defense

In a climate in which prosecutors eagerly pursue corporations suspected of wrongdoing, the ultimate goal of our compliance and white collar defense attorneys is to help your company minimize the likelihood of any corporate misconduct and deal effectively with the consequences of alleged wrongdoing. We also understand how such sensitive matters can affect the reputation and value of your company.

You can count on our team’s commitment to your case if you require counsel in grand jury and civil fraud investigations and prosecutions of alleged business crimes in the United States or internationally. Our wide-ranging experience in this area includes matters involving bank fraud, bribery, conflicts of interest, mail and wire fraud, insider trading, tax fraud, antitrust issues, environmental offenses, False Claims Act defense, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and international trade violations.