Paul Weiss has recently launched an investigations practice to address the increasing demands from regulators and lawmakers for specialized legal expertise. This move comes as the firm’s clients navigate a landscape characterized by overlapping scrutiny from multiple federal, state, and international agencies, as well as government bodies and Congress. According to Jeannie Rhee, one of the practice’s three co-leaders and a former federal prosecutor, clients are seeking “holistic solutions and trusted counsel who can guide them through the most complex and multifaceted matters.”
Rhee is joined by Harris Fischman, a former prosecutor in the Manhattan US Attorney’s office, and John Carlin, who served in a top role at the Justice Department under Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. The team also includes prominent figures such as former US Attorney General Loretta Lynch, firm chairman Brad Karp, and noted litigator Ted Wells Jr., among others. Collectively, the team members have held over 80 roles in various government and regulatory agencies including the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the New York Attorney General’s office.
Fischman noted a significant evolution in the way government investigations are conducted, highlighting changes in areas of focus, evidence collection methods, and case types. An example of this shift is the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, which was launched in early 2023 through a collaborative effort among the Justice and Commerce departments, the FBI, and Homeland Security. This task force aims to protect advanced technologies from being acquired by foreign adversaries, employing an “all-tools” approach that has already led to more than a dozen cases, according to the Department of Justice’s report from February.
This new practice underscores Paul Weiss’s commitment to providing comprehensive legal services that address the increasingly complex regulatory environment. For more information, you can read the original report here.