White Collar Criminal Defense

The White Collar Criminal Defense Practice Group has represented clients in criminal matters involving antitrust, securities, environmental, health care, export, banking, FCPA, money laundering, government contract fraud, RICO, tax fraud, customs and other laws. This practice group is led by former federal prosecutor Bob Breakstone, who served as the Chief of the Criminal Division, United States Attorney’s Office in San Francisco and as a trial attorney with the Department of Justice, Organized Crime and Racketeering Section. The White Collar Criminal Defense Practice Group also includes a former prosecutor with the United States Department of Justice, Tax Division, where he prosecuted tax crimes.

Representative Cases and Issues

• Representation of Director of Special Committee of Marvell Semiconductor in SEC investigation of backdating stock options
• Representation of founder of internet search company under investigation by U.S. Attorney's Office (computer fraud)
• Representation of CEO of Samsung in the government's antitrust investigation/prosecution involving DRAM (price fixing)
• Representation of art gallery and its owner in federal investigation (by DOJ/Tax Division) involving tax fraud (employer tax returns)
• Representation of restaurateur in federal investigation of failure to collect and pay over employee payroll taxes
• Representation of Guidant/Endovascular Technologies in government's investigation/prosecution involving the Ancure device (medical device in the treatment of aortic aneurysm)
• Representation of City of Phoenix in investigation by Department of Justice and Army Corps of Engineers (wetlands investigation)
• Representation of M&A West, a start-up internet company and its founder, in a case initiated by the SEC and the U.S. Attorney’s Office
• Defense of individual private investors, directors and officers of companies under investigation by the SEC
• Defense of E-D Coat, Inc. and its founder in a pollution case initiated by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Justice
• Defense of Unocal in Clean Air Act prosecution by Contra Costa County District Attorney and Bay Air Quality Management District
• Defense of Intermedics, Inc., a medical device company, in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office
• Defense of Accenture in an investigation by the State of Ohio over the issue of the award of public contracts
• Representation of a number of employees of Pasha Group, a mover of household property for military personnel, in an antitrust grand jury investigation (price fixing)
• Representation of numerous employees of NEC America in an antitrust grand jury investigation (price fixing)
• Representation of the General Manager of Haarman & Reimer in citric acid grand jury investigation (price fixing)
• Defense of energy trader for Enron, prosecuted by the Department of Justice
• Defense of Takeda Chemical in class action lawsuits involving sale of Lupron
• Representation of employees of tanker companies in pollution investigations by Environmental Crimes Section, DOJ
• Representation of General Manager of Refinery in Clean Air Act Investigation by EPA and U.S. Attorney's Office
• Representation of individual investigated by Office of Foreign Asset Control (Dept. of Treasury) for trading with Iran