By Andrea Moseley Both scam political action committees and COVID-19 fundraising are currently rife with opportunities for fraud. These groups labeled “scam PACs” purportedly raise money for political causes but instead, direct the money they receive from donors...
By Sara Kropf There have been heartwarming stories of good deeds during the coronavirus pandemic, from the adorable (kids helping elderly neighbors) to the downright heroic (doctors and nurses risking their own lives). But one particularly viral (pun intended)...
By Sara Kropf The Department of Justice’s Justice Manual (formerly the U.S. Attorney’s Manual) includes a section that describes “Attorney Fee Forfeiture Guidelines." Although technically not binding on anyone, the guidelines offer a helpful understanding of when and...
A personal note: We hope everyone is safe and healthy right now. We aren’t going to spam your email with what our plans are for these strange and scary times. (If you want to know, we’re working hard for our clients, writing blog posts, and hugging our kids even...
By Sara Kropf Since I handle only white-collar criminal matters, I don’t deal with forensic science as often as other criminal defense lawyers do. I’ve never had a case turn on DNA samples or bitemark evidence or analysis of clothing fibers. This post is a bit of a...
By Dan Portnov As advice-givers, lawyers are prolific. Everyone seems to have their war stories, their career development tales, and their many lessons learned along the way. I am no different. And having made a few stops in my journey, one lesson I have been...
By Sara Kropf The Department of Justice’s “supplemental and amended” sentencing memorandum in the Roger Stone criminal case is nothing short of extraordinary. You can find a copy of the updated Stone memo here. Lots of commentators have hit the high points about this...
By Sara Kropf In most white-collar cases, intent is the key issue. The government generally has to prove that the defendant intentionally acted to break the law and it wasn’t simply a mistake or an oversight. Circumstantial evidence is enough to prove intent, and, at...
By Sara Kropf Taint teams are dubious at best. A taint team is a group of government agents or prosecutors selected to review material seized through a search warrant to determine whether any of the material is protected by the attorney-client privilege. If it is,...
By Dan Portnov 2019 ended with Congress trying to tackle insider trading but 2020 begins with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals once again commanding center stage in defining the elements of the offense. In United States v. Blaszczak (issued on December 30, but no...