White Collar

  • November 04, 2025

    Ex-Beneficient CEO Stole $150M From GWG, Feds Say

    The former CEO of Texas financial services firm Beneficient allegedly created a fraudulent scheme to loot more than $150 million from now defunct GWG Holdings, a publicly traded company for which he served as chairman, according to a New York federal grand jury indictment unsealed Tuesday.

  • November 04, 2025

    Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg Defeats 2 To Win Reelection

    Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg sailed to reelection Tuesday, defeating a Republican former public defender and an independent former prosecutor who had both accused him of being soft on crime.

  • November 04, 2025

    Hytera Faces $290.8M Restitution Award In Trade Secrets Case

    Federal prosecutors have asked a Chicago judge to order Hytera Communications Corp. to pay nearly $290.8 million in restitution to Motorola Solutions after it pled guilty to conspiracy to steal its trade secrets for mobile two-way radios, calling Hytera's crime "egregious and lasting."

  • November 04, 2025

    Clippers Owner, BakerHostetler Named In Fintech Fraud Suit

    Nearly a dozen investors have filed an amended lawsuit in California state court alleging Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and others, including BakerHostetler, helped financial technology company Aspiration Partners Inc. defraud them by propagating a false narrative that the business was financially solvent.

  • November 04, 2025

    DC Circ. Affirms Gun Conviction Despite Anxious Juror Note

    A D.C. Circuit panel affirmed a man's nearly five-year sentence for being a felon in possession of a gun, finding on Tuesday that although a juror told the court after the verdict that her anxiety may have deprived the defendant of justice, this couldn't be considered.

  • November 04, 2025

    Ex-County Staffer, Housing Leader Admit To Bribery Scheme

    A former program director for a Detroit housing nonprofit and former Wayne County taxpayer assistant pled guilty Tuesday to operating a scheme to remove homes from the county's foreclosure list to fraudulently transfer to new ownership and sell the properties.

  • November 04, 2025

    2nd Circ. Revives Habeas Petition Over Counsel's Mistake

    A divided Second Circuit panel ruled Tuesday that because a convicted sex trafficker's counsel during his first criminal appeal made an admittedly "inexcusable" mistake, the convict should be granted a second chance via a habeas petition to challenge his sentence.

  • November 04, 2025

    Ex-View CFO Must Face SEC Suit Over Negligence Claim

    A California federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has enough evidence to move forward with its negligence claim against a former chief financial officer of "smart" glassmaker View Inc. and that a jury should decide whether the related alleged misstatements were significant to investors.

  • November 04, 2025

    DOJ Ignores Court Discovery Order In Letitia James Case

    The U.S. Department of Justice has refused to provide New York Attorney General Letitia James access to documents related to her October indictment on mortgage fraud charges, arguing Tuesday that a Virginia federal judge was too early in making the discovery order.

  • November 04, 2025

    Conn. Firm Bookkeeper Asks To Delay Embezzlement Trial

    A former law firm bookkeeper accused of embezzling $835,000 from the legal practice and from its managing partner's rental business asked a Connecticut federal judge on Monday to delay a scheduled January jury trial because of a health issue that requires surgery.

  • November 04, 2025

    Baker Donelson Tries Again To Escape Miss. Timber Ponzi Suit

    Baker Donelson has moved for summary judgment against claims the firm allowed a timber company's nine-figure Ponzi scheme to unfold under its nose, with other defendants and the receiver also seeking rulings in their favor in the Mississippi federal suit.

  • November 04, 2025

    Marino Finley Adds Top DC Litigator From Barnes & Thornburg

    Marino Finley LLP has hired a Barnes & Thornburg LLP white collar group partner in Washington, D.C., who joins the firm as of counsel to represent clients in high-stakes litigation, the firm announced this week.

  • November 04, 2025

    StraightPath Founders Convicted Of Massive Stock-Sale Fraud

    A Manhattan federal jury found stock vendor StraightPath's three founders guilty Tuesday on charges of defrauding clients who purchased pre-initial public offering shares from them, capping a trial where prosecutors cited "overwhelming" evidence of a $400 million "web of lies."

  • November 04, 2025

    Ex-Conn. Official Gets Sentencing Delayed Pending 2nd Trial

    A Connecticut federal judge on Tuesday indefinitely delayed sentencing for Konstantinos "Kosta" Diamantis, a former Connecticut budget official convicted of soliciting and accepting bribes connected to school construction projects, after defense counsel requested a pause until a second trial on unrelated corruption charges concludes.

  • November 04, 2025

    DC Circ. Skeptical Of IRS Data Leaker's Qualms About Judge

    The D.C. Circuit seemed unlikely Tuesday to grant a request for resentencing by an IRS contractor serving prison time for leaking the tax returns of President Donald Trump and others to the media, suggesting his judge did nothing wrong in giving him the maximum term.

  • November 04, 2025

    2nd Circ. Hints Bankman-Fried's $11B Forfeiture Is Overkill

    The Second Circuit suggested Tuesday that the government's $11 billion forfeiture order against Sam Bankman-Fried may be unconstitutionally large, noting that the staggering amount tops the raft of cases tasking the court with determining if such money judgments pass Eighth Amendment muster.

  • November 03, 2025

    MIT Bros Rest, Expert Says $25M Crypto Score Was Aboveboard

    Two MIT-educated brothers accused of using an unlawful crypto trading strategy to steal $25 million from other traders on Monday rested their case without taking the stand, after a defense expert witness said they didn't violate any rules of the Ethereum blockchain.

  • November 03, 2025

    Feds Defend Cases Against James Comey, Letitia James

    The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday took a swing at bids by former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James to get their indictments thrown out, telling a federal judge the appointment of interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was valid.

  • November 03, 2025

    Real Estate Exec Alleges $3.7M Misuse Of Company Funds

    The chief development officer of a Colorado real estate developer has claimed in state court that executives within the company improperly transferred $3.7 million to some of the business's affiliates without approval, treating the money as a "piggy bank" to pay obligations for the entities.

  • November 03, 2025

    Feds Seek 5 Years For Samourai Wallet Crypto Mixer Operators

    Federal prosecutors are seeking 60 months imprisonment for each of the operators of crypto mixer Samourai Wallet, while the men both argued that their initial intention to build a legitimate privacy service favors more lenient treatment.

  • November 03, 2025

    FTX Trust Fights To Claw Back $650K Charity Donation

    FTX Recovery Trust has urged a Delaware bankruptcy judge to reject an FTX angel investor's bid to block the trust from clawing back a $650,000 charitable donation, saying a related sanctions motion by the investor is a litigation tactic to deter the trust from pursuing its claims over the donation.

  • November 03, 2025

    Meat Giant JBS Inks $1.1M NY AG Deal Over Climate Claims

    New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Monday that JBS USA Food Co. and an affiliated holding company will pay $1.1 million to support climate-focused agriculture programs in the state as part of a settlement over allegations they misled the public about efforts to reduce their carbon footprint.

  • November 03, 2025

    Judge Reminds Gov't To Follow Media Rules In James Case

    A Virginia federal judge has reminded the parties in the government's alleged bank fraud case against New York Attorney General Letitia James not to publicly discuss grand jury proceedings after U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan texted with a reporter about the case in October.

  • November 03, 2025

    3rd Circ. Says FBI, US Attorneys Fumbled FOIA Requests

    The Third Circuit partially revived a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit lodged by a man convicted of mortgage fraud on Monday, agreeing that the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Executive Office for United States Attorneys lacked justification for failing to give him certain information he asked for.

  • November 03, 2025

    Court Orders Cannon To Act On Bid To Unseal Trump Report

    The Eleventh Circuit has given U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon 60 days to rule on media groups' requests to unseal the final report from special counsel Jack Smith's investigation into President Donald Trump's handling of classified documents, ruling Monday that the organizations had established "undue delay" in resolving their motions.

Expert Analysis

  • New DOJ Penalty Policy Could Spell Trouble For Cos.

    Author Photo

    In light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recently published guidance making victim relief a core condition of coordinated resolution crediting, companies facing parallel investigations must carefully calibrate their negotiation strategies to minimize the risk of duplicative penalties, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • A Look At Key 5th Circ. White Collar Rulings So Far This Year

    Author Photo

    In the first half of 2025, the Fifth Circuit has decided numerous cases of particular import to white collar practitioners, which collectively underscore the critical importance of meticulous recordbuilding, procedural compliance and strategic litigation choices at every stage of a case, says Joe Magliolo at Jackson Walker.

  • How Cos. In China Can Tailor Compliance Amid FCPA Shifts

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Department of Justice’s recently updated Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement guidelines create a fluid business environment for companies operating in China that will require a customized compliance approach to navigate both countries’ corporate and legal systems, say attorneys at Dickinson Wright.

  • Series

    Playing Baseball Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Playing baseball in college, and now Wiffle ball in a local league, has taught me that teamwork, mental endurance and emotional intelligence are not only important to success in the sport, but also to success as a trial attorney, says Kevan Dorsey at Swift Currie.

  • APA Relief May Blunt Justices' Universal Injunction Ruling

    Author Photo

    The Administrative Procedure Act’s avenue for universal preliminary relief seems to hold the most promise for neutralizing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA to limit federal district courts' nationally applicable orders, say attorneys at Crowell.

  • Managing Risks As State AGs Seek To Fill Enforcement Gap

    Author Photo

    Given an unprecedented surge in state attorney general activity resulting from significant shifts in federal enforcement priorities, companies must consider tailored strategies for navigating the ever-evolving risk landscape, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Opinion

    Prosecutors' Duty To Justice Sometimes Demands Mea Culpa

    Author Photo

    Two recent cases — U.S. v. Lucas and U.S. v. Echavarria — demonstrate that prosecutors’ special ethical duty to seek justice can sometimes be in tension with other obligations and incentives, but it nonetheless requires them to concede their mistakes in the interests of justice, say Eastern District of Texas law clerk Ian Stephens and Texas A&M University law professor Jemila Lea.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Skillful Persuasion

    Author Photo

    In many ways, law school teaches us how to argue, but when the ultimate goal is to get your client what they want, being persuasive through preparation and humility is the more likely key to success, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

  • FCA Working Group Reboot Signals EHR Compliance Risk

    Author Photo

    The revival of the False Claims Act working group is an aggressive expansion of enforcement efforts by the Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services targeted toward technology-enabled fraud involving electronic health records and other data, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Lessons From Crackdown On Mexican Banks With Cartel Ties

    Author Photo

    Recent U.S. Treasury Department orders excluding three major Mexican financial institutions from the U.S. banking system for laundering drug cartel money and processing payments for fentanyl precursor chemicals offer guidance for companies in reviewing their procedures and controls to ensure they are not the next targets, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Litigation Inspiration: How To Respond After A Loss

    Author Photo

    Every litigator loses a case now and then, and the sting of that loss can become a medicine that strengthens or a poison that corrodes, depending on how the attorney responds, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • While On Firmer Ground, Uncertainty Remains For SEC's ALJs

    Author Photo

    The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia's recent opinion in Lemelson v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission affirmed the legitimacy of the SEC's administrative proceedings, but pointedly left unanswered the constitutional merits of tenure protection enjoyed by SEC administrative law judges — potentially the subject of future U.S. Supreme Court review, says Dean Conway at Carlton Fields.

  • New Interpol Silver Notice Could Be Tool For Justice Or Abuse

    Author Photo

    Interpol has issued dozens of Silver Notices to trace and recover assets linked to criminal activity since January, and though the tool may disrupt organized crime and terrorist financing, attorneys must protect against the potential for corrupt misuse, say attorneys at Clark Hill and Arktouros.

  • DOJ Crypto Enforcement Is Shifting To Target Willfulness

    Author Photo

    Three pending criminal prosecutions could be an indication of how the U.S. Department of Justice's recent digital assets memo is shaping enforcement of the area, and show a growing focus on executives who knowingly allow their platforms to be used for criminal conduct involving sanctions offenses, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • Why SEC Abandoned Microcap Convertible Debt Crackdown

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has recently dismissed several cases targeting microcap convertible debt lenders, a significant disavowal of what was a controversial enforcement initiative under the Biden administration and a message that the new administration will focus on clear fraud, say attorneys at O'Melveny.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the White Collar archive.