White Collar

  • August 26, 2025

    SEC Says Nikola's Ch. 11 Plan Mischaracterizes $80M Penalty

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission objected to the Chapter 11 plan of electric-truck maker Nikola Corp. on Tuesday, saying the plan improperly treats the agency's $80 million civil penalty claim as if it were a damages claim behind other unsecured creditors in the priority scheme.

  • August 26, 2025

    5th Circ. Says Fed. Law Explicitly Bars Ex-CEO's NCUA Suit

    The Fifth Circuit on Monday refused to revive a former Texas credit union CEO's constitutional challenge to an enforcement action the National Credit Union Administration had brought against him for alleged banking misconduct, saying in a published opinion that federal law explicitly stripped a district court's jurisdiction over the matter.

  • August 26, 2025

    Md. Pharmacy Owner Gets 1 Year For Filing False Tax Returns

    A Baltimore pharmacy owner was sentenced to just over one year in prison after filing fraudulent tax returns and underreporting his income to the Internal Revenue Service by more than $3.5 million, federal prosecutors announced Tuesday.

  • August 26, 2025

    CFTC's Last Dem Member Departing Agency

    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's sole remaining Democrat, Kristin Johnson, announced Tuesday that she will be departing the agency next week, leaving it in the hands of acting Chair Caroline Pham.

  • August 26, 2025

    No Immunity For Wis. Judge Charged With ICE Interference

    A Wisconsin federal judge on Tuesday rejected a motion to dismiss from a state judge accused of helping an unauthorized immigrant escape arrest by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, turning down her argument that she is protected by judicial immunity.

  • August 26, 2025

    Fed's Lisa Cook Preps Lawsuit Over Trump Firing

    Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook is preparing to file a lawsuit over President Donald Trump's announcement that she has been terminated from her position, allegedly for committing mortgage fraud, her lawyer said Tuesday.

  • August 26, 2025

    DOJ Terrorism Prosecutor Joins Stris & Maher As DC Partner

    California-headquartered Stris & Maher LLP said Tuesday it has hired a former national security attorney from the U.S. Department of Justice, who joined the firm after ending a trial in which the government proved a Michigan man experimented with bomb making in support of ISIS.

  • August 25, 2025

    LA Atty Used Client Trust Acct. To Hide $2.1M Bribe, Jury Told

    A California divorce attorney accepted a $2.1 million bribe from a Swiss oil company related to his work in Nigeria and laundered the money through his U.S. client trust account, a prosecutor told a federal jury in Los Angeles on Monday during opening statements in the attorney's criminal trial. 

  • August 25, 2025

    DOJ Antitrust Whistleblowers May Find Ally At The Post Office

    The U.S. Department of Justice's new whistleblower program brings the Antitrust Division in line with other programs across the DOJ and at other agencies, although it may have a particularly broad scope thanks to a unique partnership with the U.S. Postal Service.

  • August 25, 2025

    Trump Plans To Withdraw Federal Funding Over Cashless Bail

    President Donald Trump said Monday that he would suspend or terminate federal funds provided to any jurisdictions that have adopted cashless bail policies, calling the reforms a "failed experiment" that allow repeat criminals to "mock our justice system."

  • August 25, 2025

    SEC Nabs $1.1M Over Alleged Blue Apron Insider Trading

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced that an Arizona man will pay over $1.1 million to settle claims he traded shares of meal kit company Blue Apron Holdings Inc. on inside information he learned from a family member who was also a senior executive at the company.

  • August 25, 2025

    DOJ Wants $10.5M From Convicted Nursing Exec For Fraud

    U.S. Department of Justice prosecutors asked a Nevada federal judge Friday for a $10.5 million preliminary forfeiture order against a nurse staffing executive convicted of wage-fixing, an amount that matches what he was paid for his staffing company after deceiving the buyer into thinking there was no criminal antitrust investigation.

  • August 25, 2025

    Judge Orders Hearing Before ICE Can Deport Abrego Garcia

    A Maryland federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration Monday from immediately deporting Kilmar Abrego Garcia, after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement re-detained the Salvadoran at his first check-in since the U.S. Marshals released him from criminal custody last week.

  • August 25, 2025

    Supervised Release Violators Can Be Jailed, 2nd Circ. Says

    The Second Circuit on Monday ruled that federal judges have the authority to detain criminal defendants who are awaiting a hearing to determine whether they violated the terms of their supervised release.

  • August 25, 2025

    CFPB Plans To Limit Nonbank Supervision With Rule Proposal

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to propose a rule that would rein in the use of the agency's power to designate individual nonbanks for supervision, according to a notice of rulemaking scheduled to publish in the Federal Register on Tuesday.

  • August 25, 2025

    Epic's 9th Circ. Case Against Apple Draws Amicus Support

    Epic Games has received backing from state enforcers, Microsoft, Spotify and others as the Fortnite developer opposes Apple's Ninth Circuit appeal challenging an order blocking commissions on purchases made outside of Apple's own app payment system.

  • August 25, 2025

    Battle Over NJ US Atty Appointment Lands In 3rd Circ.

    The U.S. Department of Justice said Monday it will appeal a Pennsylvania federal judge's ruling that interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba is not lawfully serving as New Jersey's top federal prosecutor.

  • August 25, 2025

    NC Man Gets Nearly 20 Years For Tax Fraud, Ponzi Scheme

    A North Carolina man was sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison after willfully failing to report nearly $9 million in income to the Internal Revenue Service and evading more than $3 million in taxes in connection with a $20 million Ponzi scheme, federal prosecutors said.

  • August 25, 2025

    Alleged Crypto Thieves Fight Use Of Google Search History

    A New York federal judge should exclude evidence showing two Massachusetts Institute of Technology-educated brothers accused of stealing $25 million in cryptocurrency searched terms including "top crypto lawyers" and "wire fraud statute / wire fraud statue of limitations," the brothers said in a motion, arguing their explanations for the searches are privileged.

  • August 25, 2025

    Long Island Tax Pro Gets 18 Months For $12M Pandemic Scam

    A Manhattan federal judge sentenced a wealthy Long Island tax preparer to 18 months in prison Monday, after he admitted filing over 100 fraudulent applications for nearly $12 million of loans earmarked to help businesses hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • August 25, 2025

    Wyden Urges Independent Review Of Courts' Cybersecurity

    U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a cybersecurity hawk, urged Chief Justice John Roberts on Monday to commission an independent study of the federal judiciary's cybersecurity practices in light of two significant hacks in the last five years.

  • August 25, 2025

    MusclePharm Ex-CEO Pays $175K To End SEC Fraud Claims

    A former CEO of supplements company MusclePharm Corp. will pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission $75,000 and reimburse his former company $100,000 as part of an agreement ending the regulator's claims he failed to properly oversee the company's accounting and financial reporting, including by not reporting $231,000 worth of perks he received.

  • August 25, 2025

    Ex-Ohio Lawyer Gets Probation For Making False Statements

    A former Ohio lawyer was sentenced to two years of probation and fined $15,000 after pleading guilty earlier this year to making false statements to the FBI regarding a cooperating witness he represented in a drug and sex trafficking probe the bureau was pursuing.

  • August 22, 2025

    Nadine Menendez Presses Court For 1-Year Prison Sentence

    The wife of former U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez on Friday urged a New York federal judge to sentence her to just one year and one day behind bars, a request backed up by her husband, who said he regretted what his own lawyers said about her during his trial.

  • August 22, 2025

    Coder Gets 4 Years For 'Kill Switch' On Ex-Employer's System

    A Texas-based software developer has been sentenced in Ohio federal court to four years in prison after an unsuccessful attempt at getting a new trial following his conviction for deploying a "kill switch" on his former employer's network.

Expert Analysis

  • New FCPA Guidance Creates 5 Compliance Imperatives

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    In light of new Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guidelines that mark a fundamental shift in enforcement priorities, companies should consider several specific steps to ensure compliance, from enhanced due diligence to robust whistleblower protections, says Andrew Wirmani at Reese Marketos.

  • How Justices' Ruling Limits Options To Challenge DHS Orders

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    In Riley v. Bondi, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that a 30-day deadline for challenging deportation orders begins when the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issues a final administrative review order, opening the door for the government to effectively bar circuit court review in future similar cases, says Kevin Gregg at Kurzban Kurzban.

  • Series

    Playing The Violin Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Playing violin in a string quartet reminds me that flexibility, ambition, strong listening skills, thoughtful leadership and intentional collaboration are all keys to a successful legal practice, says Julie Park at MoFo.

  • DOJ Enforcement Trends To Watch In 2nd Half Of 2025

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    Recent investigations, settlements and a declination to prosecute suggest that controlling the flow of goods into and out of the country, and redressing what the administration sees as reverse discrimination, are likely to be at the forefront of the U.S. Department of Justice's enforcement agenda the rest of this year, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • Federal Regs Order May Spell Harsher FDCA Enforcement

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    A recent executive order aimed at reducing criminal prosecutions of those who unknowingly violate complex federal regulations may actually lead to more aggressive felony indictments under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, but companies and executives can mitigate risks by following several key principals, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

  • DOJ's 1st M&A Declination Shows Value Of Self-Disclosures

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's recent decision not to charge private equity firm White Deer Management — the first such declination under an M&A safe harbor policy announced last year — signals that even in high-priority national security matters, the DOJ looks highly upon voluntary self-disclosures, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practicing Self-Care

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    Law schools don’t teach the mental, physical and emotional health maintenance tools necessary to deal with the profession's many demands, but practicing self-care is an important key to success that can help to improve focus, manage stress and reduce burnout, says Rachel Leonard​​​​​​​ at MG+M.

  • ABA Opinion Makes It A Bit Easier To Drop A 'Hot Potato'

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    The American Bar Association's recent ethics opinion clarifies when attorneys may terminate clients without good cause, though courts may still disqualify a lawyer who drops a client like a hot potato, so sending a closeout letter is always a best practice, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • 3rd-Party Audit Tactics To Improve Export Control Compliance

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    Companies should take a strategic approach to third-party audits in response to the Trump administration's ramp-up of export control enforcement with steps that strengthen their ability to identify the control weaknesses of distributors, dealers and resellers, say Michael Huneke at Hughes Hubbard, and John Rademacher and Abby Williams at Secretariat Advisors.

  • Evading DOJ Crosshairs As Data Security Open Season Starts

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    As the U.S. Department of Justice begins enforcing its new data security program — aimed at preventing foreign adversaries from accessing government-related and personal sensitive data — U.S. companies will need to understand the program’s contours and potential pitfalls to avoid potential civil liability or criminal scrutiny, say attorneys at Cohen & Gresser.

  • How Trump Admin Treasury Policies Are Reaching Banks

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    The Treasury Department has emerged as an important facilitator of the Trump administration's financial policies affecting banks, which are now facing deregulation domestically and the use of international economic authorities in cross-border trade and investment, say attorneys at Davis Polk.

  • Series

    My Opera And Baseball Careers Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Though participating in opera and the world of professional baseball often pulls me away from the office, my avocations improve my legal career by helping me perform under scrutiny, prioritize team success, and maintain joy and perspective at work, says Adam Unger at Herrick Feinstein.

  • A Look At DOJ's Dropped Case Against Early Crypto Operator

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    The prosecution of an early crypto exchange operator over alleged unlicensed money transmission was recently dropped in Indiana federal court, showcasing that the U.S. Justice Department may be limiting the types of enforcement cases it will bring against digital asset firms, say attorneys at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Policy Shifts Bring New Anti-Money Laundering Challenges

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    In the second half of 2025, the U.S. anti-money laundering regulatory landscape is poised for decisive shifts in enforcement priorities, compliance expectations and legislative developments — so investment advisers and other financial institutions should take steps to prepare for potential new obligations and areas of risk, say attorneys at Linklaters.

  • 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

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    Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

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