International Asset Tracing and Recovery

International Disputes

• Successfully breached the Swiss bank accounts of Nelson Bunker Hunt, which produced evidence important to a $197 million jury verdict.
• Traced stolen funds to a Luxembourg bank account, which convinced a Luxembourg court to freeze the account.
• Represent Kyrgyzstan in tracing funds allegedly stolen by its former president to a Latvian bank account.
• Served as worldwide defense counsel to the Republic of Peru in 55 lawsuits brought in five countries seeking to recover $10 billion in defaulted sovereign commercial debt.
• Defended a luxury auto servicing and distribution company, headquartered in Hong Kong but publicly traded in the United States and operating out of Nevada, from claims that the assets were improperly transferred during a corporate spinoff.
• Advised Emirates NBD in matters arising from alleged breaches of commercial contracts entered into with counterparties from the United States during the real estate boom.
• Represent the Federative Republic of Brazil in an interpleader action in New York brought by the United States, arising from the forfeiture of funds by a Brazilian court.
• •Represented Trustees of a Liquidating Trust appointed by a US Federal Judge to investigate and recover proceeds of an international “pump and dump” securities fraud case on behalf of investors in a NASDAQ-listed software development company, leading to cooperation with law enforcement authorities and litigation in Isle of Man, Cyprus, England, Switzerland, Austria, and the United States, and resulting in recoveries in excess of $300 million.

Bankruptcy, Restructuring, and Creditors’ Rights

• Represent trustees and fiduciaries in various jurisdictions to recover funds, including the representation of Irving H. Picard, SIPA Trustee for the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC which involved in litigation, investigations, and other proceedings against approximately 400 defendants in more than 45 jurisdictions worldwide.
• Represent trustees and fiduciaries in various jurisdictions to recover funds.
• Act as counsel to government and private entities in bankruptcy proceedings and litigation, including avoidance and recovery of international transfers as well as discovery disputes with foreign liquidators.
• Selected by the U.S. government and appointed by the U.S. District Court in Connecticut to serve as court-appointed Receiver for Michael Kenwood Asset Management and affiliated entities, which (allegedly) engaged in a Ponzi scheme by using several Cayman Islands hedge funds whose investors consisted of high-net-worth individuals and entities located in Central and South America as well as the pension funds of the Venezuelan oil company, PDVSA.
• Investigated and prosecuted the Bank of Credit and Commerce International worldwide, leading to its liquidation and the conviction of numerous actors in countries around the world and the recovery of 90 cents on the dollar for legitimate depositors.
• Represented a Mexican creditor in litigation arising from the insolvency of Bethlehem Steel.

White Collar Defense and Corporate Investigations

• Led an extensive Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation on behalf of a multinational security systems corporation in its Bangalore, India, offices, informing client on the process and working on subsequent negotiations with the U.S. Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission.
• Represent entities and individuals in connection with foreign bank account reporting, as well as civil and criminal representation stemming from the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program initiatives.
• Represented the former Soviet Republic in an investigation to recover funds allegedly taken wrongfully by its former president.
• Handled defense of a non-U.S. financial institution in a grand jury investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice.
• Served as Independent Monitor appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice for Mellon Bank, N.A., Bank of New York, and Merrill Lynch to address compliance of policies and protocols with applicable law following non-prosecution agreements.
• Served as Ethical Practices Attorney for Local 14-14B of the International Union of Operating Engineers to eliminate corruption and ensure integrity of union practices.
• Served as Independent Reviewer of Siemens Medical Services’ procurement and government contract procedures.

E-Discovery Advocacy and Management

• Manage the discovery process from preservation to production to data retirement.
• Limit the scope, burden, and risk of discovery and internal investigations through advocacy and technology.
• Support information governance, including the defensible deletion of legacy data that has built up over time.
• Defend clients against claims that evidence has been intentionally or inadvertently lost.
• Address the discoverability and management of emerging discovery targets including the cloud and social media.

Tax

• Recognized internationally in civil offshore tax investigations as well as tax inquiries, controversies, and litigation on a host of cross-border tax issues such as transfer pricing and permanent establishment.
• Represent individuals and entities facing some of the U.S. government’s most complex criminal tax investigations and prosecutions.
• Defended financial institution located in secrecy jurisdiction in U.S. federal grand jury investigation of allegedly assisting customers in evading U.S. taxes.
• Advised financial and other multinational institutions with Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) implementation around the globe.
• Assisted financial institution located in secrecy jurisdiction in complying with TIEA request from U.S. criminal authorities.

Intellectual Property and Privacy and Data Protection

• Collect judgments and/or prejudgment provisional remedies such as writs of attachment and writs of possession in the context of intellectual property claims.

• Recognized as one of the top law firms for client service, we were named to the 2018 BTI Client Service 30 for the fourth consecutive year.