White-Collar Criminal Defense & Corporate Investigations Lawyers

More than ever, experience counts in white-collar criminal defense and corporate investigations.

Today, the lines between criminal, civil and regulatory enforcement are more blurred than ever. Tools formerly devoted to organized crime — wiretaps and body wires, search warrants and informants — are now a regular feature of enforcement actions involving securities fraud, healthcare abuse and public corruption. Not to mention the ever-shifting regulatory landscape that criminalizes previously innocent, customary business conduct when lawmakers feel pressure to “do something.”

Litigators with Lightfoot’s White-Collar Criminal Defense & Corporate Investigations practice group serve as trusted, experienced allies to individuals and businesses targeted by prosecutors and enforcement agencies. We represent our clients in federal and state courts, before Congress and federal regulatory agencies, and in internal investigations. Our lawyers also conduct numerous internal investigations for a wide variety of firms and companies, advising senior management and boards of directors in a practical business manner.

We understand what’s at stake and bring a wealth of direct experience to bear on every case. Our group includes a former Special Counsel to Congress and to the Alabama House of Representatives; a former Assistant United States Attorney; and lawyers with accounting and Wall Street backgrounds. Having led the process from the inside, they know how government investigations and prosecutions work. In this video, practice leader Jack Sharman talks about how he applies lessons learned in criminal prosecutions to his work on civil cases.

We also share insights on Jack's blog, White Collar Wire, and news about enforcement activities and investigations on his Twitter feed.

Lightfoot lawyers provide responsive, hands-on service so that, in many instances, the indictment never happens, the subpoena never issues and the story never breaks. Therefore, it's understandable we cannot share many of our best moments. We are, however, happy to share the results of representations that are public.

Representative Matters

Guiding the former chief credit officer of a national bank through parallel grand jury, civil class-action and federal regulatory proceedings.

Counseling a county commission and commissioners subpoenaed as part of a nationwide SEC investigation into interest-rate “swaps” on government bonds.

Representing a national accounting firm responding to a grand jury subpoena in a criminal antitrust investigation.

Representing the president of a gasoline company in a Clean Air Act grand jury investigation. Client not indicted.

Representing an officer of a poultry company in a Clean Water Act case. Client not indicted.

Representing with regard to extradition issues a German national indicted for civil and criminal environmental offenses in Germany.

Representing the environmental engineer at a quarry in a joint federal/state investigation into the quarry’s environmental management practices and alleged false statements made to inspectors.

Representing owner of compounding pharmacy in qui tam litigation involving Tricare and the Anti-Kickback Statue. Client dismissed with prejudice.

Counseling the regional manager of a large food broker with respect to a federal fraud investigation.

Assisting institutional healthcare clients in responding to contacts by government investigators; advised clients on threatened qui tam lawsuits under the False Claims Act.

Assisting a healthcare provider with potential Medicare fraud issues.

Conducting an internal investigation for a major insurance company whose Birmingham office director was accused of accepting kickbacks.

Reviewing contracts with sales representatives abroad for compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Assisting multiple doctors with navigating investigations by the Justice Department and Alabama Board of Medical Examiners.

Representing (with local counsel) the CFO of a specialty pharmacy in a federal prosecution under the Anti-Kickback Statute. Case was tried and client acquitted.

Assisting a federal healthcare researcher in a criminal and civil investigation into the loss of computerized health information. Client not indicted or sued.

Representing a senior officer and director of an outpatient healthcare company in parallel civil, criminal, Congressional and administrative proceedings. Client was the only senior executive not charged.

Assisting a pharmaceutical company in a military criminal investigation. Client and employee not charged.

Representing a developer as a witness in a state investigation.

Representing (with co-counsel) a lobbyist in a large public-corruption investigation brought by DOJ’s Public Integrity Section, which alleged vote-buying in a state legislature. Case was tried and client acquitted.

Conducting a corporate internal investigation for an American subsidiary targeted by OFAC regarding sales to Cuba.

Defending a Canadian national in a securities-fraud prosecution. Indictment dismissed.