White Collar Crime/Criminal Defense

Our lawyers have represented corporations and individuals in connection with investigations of federal and state tax fraud and tax evasion. Such representations include allegations of failure to report income received in bribery and kickback schemes, failure to withhold income taxes by paying employees off the books, failure to collect and pay over state sales taxes, and causing the preparation and filing of false tax returns through the use of fraudulent tax shelters.

Our government enforcement lawyers assist government contractors in a variety of matters involving allegations of criminal or civil procurement fraud. We represent contractors in grand jury investigations, agency inspector general investigations, criminal and civil procurement fraud cases, qui tam or whistleblower proceedings, and voluntary disclosures of potential wrongdoing to responsible officials of agencies such as the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA).

Our lawyers have represented a number of different institutions, entities, and individuals in the United States and abroad who have been investigated for and/or charged with making false claims against the United States. We have also represented health care providers and companies in federal investigations of alleged health care fraud or who are charged with False Claims Act or anti-kickback violations related to traditional Medicare claims, as well as to claims related to the use of experimental surgical devices. Our government enforcement team has also represented pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers, as well as individual officers and employees of such companies, in connection with investigations by the DOJ and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of criminal violations of the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. In addition to the defense of our clients charged with violations of the False Claims Act, we provide advice concerning internal investigations and audits and the development of compliance plans in this area to avoid costly civil and criminal investigations and prosecutions.

Our government enforcement team has invaluable experience in the prosecution of trade secret misappropriation, employee theft, unfair competition, and other forms of economic espionage. We have helped our clients to protect and preserve confidential, proprietary business information from unlawful use and disclosure. For example, K&L Gates represented an international mining technology firm, averting disaster when a former executive attempted to steal highly sensitive confidential drawings and sell them to a competitor. Upon learning of the client’s suspicions, K&L Gates immediately enlisted the help of the FBI, who set up a covert sting operation and caught the double-dealing executive, arrested him on the spot, and charged him under the federal Economic Espionage Act (EEA). As a result of K&L Gates’ resourceful involvement of the FBI and invocation of the EEA, the company’s secrets were preserved, and the company avoided a breach of confidentiality that could have cost it a significant amount in wasted research, development time, and lost profits.

K&L Gates clients benefit from our lawyers’ understanding and resourceful application of the growing body of federal law designed to help businesses protect valuable and critical technological infrastructures. As technology capabilities expand at exponential rates, our clients’ exposure to computer hacking and other, more damaging network intrusions grows as well. In addition, the firm’s relationship with the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), a federal computer system protection network based at Carnegie Mellon University, provides another invaluable resource to protect our clients against cyber-crimes and the pervasive risks of technology-based intrusions and interruptions.

The firm’s government enforcement team boasts experienced, highly skilled litigators who engage in civil and criminal IP infringement matters at the state and federal levels, particularly in the area of trademark infringement and counterfeit goods. K&L Gates lawyers have obtained nationwide preliminary injunctions and seizure orders to confiscate counterfeit goods in the marketplace for a worldwide sports entertainment company and for a professional sports league.

Our lawyers represent corporations and individuals investigated in connection with antitrust crimes or who have been charged with such crimes. To provide the most effective representation for such clients, K&L Gates combines an in-depth understanding of the nature of antitrust offenses and the objective economic criteria for identifying collusive behavior with a comprehensive knowledge of criminal procedure and effective litigation skills. K&L Gates also understands that civil damage proceedings collateral to the criminal case can cause defendants almost as much, or even more, damage as the criminal case itself. In response, our lawyers develop and implement defense strategies which balance all of the client’s objectives.

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 created broad new obligations for manufacturers, importers, distributors, and retailers of consumer, household, school, pools, and recreational products. It also provided the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) with a broader range of enforcement tools, and enhanced CPSC’s criminal and civil penalties and recall authority. Our experience with consumer product enforcement and recalls has positioned us to educate firms and trade groups on the new obligations and help businesses devise strategies for avoiding or reducing legal liability. Our experience in the product reporting, enforcement, and recall scheme allows us to assist clients in minimizing their liability for penalties or other enforcement sanctions and ensuring that any necessary recalls are done in as cost-effective a manner as possible

Our lawyers represent corporations and individuals examined in connection with a wide variety of environmental, safety, and related crimes in business settings that include chemical manufacturing, steel, maritime, transportation, energy, pharmaceutical, recycling, food processing, and photo processing, among others. These cases can involve false statement and related charges for failure to fulfill reporting requirements, to sudden and potentially catastrophic events such as explosions, spills, and vessel accidents. Environmental criminal cases more often than not simultaneously bring to bear multiple agencies and jurisdictions, as well as legislative investigatory activities. K&L Gates has the criminal and civil as well as federal, state, and local experience to develop strategies that address the numerous parallel tracks followed by these types of investigations. While K&L Gates lawyers have tried major environmental cases and appeals in federal and state courts, they have also conducted proactive investigations, and given their clients the opportunity to take advantage of voluntary disclosure policies at the federal and state levels.

K&L Gates’ industry-leading e-Discovery Analysis and Technology (e-DAT) group often pairs with our government enforcement team to assist clients in developing response plans for litigation or regulatory investigations that are tailored to their business records and litigation profile. Discovery of electronic records has often become the single most costly piece of responding to litigation or regulatory investigations. Our e-DAT strength allows us to provide cost-effective planning and oversight of this aspect of the litigation or investigation.

Health and safety issues have become increasingly important for employers over the last few years, with the introduction of new legislation and ever-growing sanctions and fines imposed where organizations have failed to meet their (often onerous) obligations under health and safety regulations. Our lawyers have extensive experience advising clients across a number of sectors (including construction, engineering, manufacturing, real estate, transport, and leisure) in relation to every kind of accident, from minor incidents to multiple fatalities. When the worst occurs, we can help guide clients through the process, providing practical advice and assistance from the immediate aftermath through to the accident investigation. Post-investigation, we can also provide support in relation to any proceedings or next steps. The team has significant experience dealing with prosecutions, corporate manslaughter claims, inquests, and fatalities.

We also have worked with a large and varied number of clients in a non-contentious context, helping them to understand and comply with their responsibilities under health and safety legislation, and advising on the implementation of systems which remove or reduce the possibility of an accident. We also provide in-house training for directors and managers on their obligations.