During this briefing our panelists discuss how to prepare for and manage Congressional and other legislative branch investigations and where Congress and the Congressionally-created Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission are likely to focus their investigative and oversight resources in the coming year. Since the start of the 111th Congress, Congressional investigators have engaged in rigorous investigations and oversight of corporations across the country. In addition, the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission is up and running and beginning its investigation into the causes of the financial markets crisis.
Our panelists will review how investigations work; who the key players are; the 'do's and don'ts' for targets and witnesses; and the investigative agenda for the coming year. The panelists from Gibson Dunn will cover how you can mitigate your company's potential risks of an investigation and how to protect your organization in the event that a Congressional committee or the FCIC turns its attention to your firm.
Our Panelists:
Michael Bopp — Chairs the firm's Financial Services Crisis Team; member of the firm's White Collar Defense and Investigations and Crisis Management practices. Mr. Bopp is a former Staff Director and Chief Counsel of the Committee of Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, one of the Senate's largest committees and most expansive in terms of jurisdiction. He has led or played a key role in major investigations in both the Senate and House of Representatives. In these capacities, he developed the strategy and set the agenda for several investigations, conducted more than 100 depositions or witness interviews, managed dozens of subpoenas and massive document discovery efforts, and orchestrated more than 100 committee hearings.
Mel Levine — Co-Chair of the firm's Public Policy practice and a member of the firm's Crisis Management practice. Mr. Levine served as a Democratic member of the U.S. Congress for ten years, and, during those years, was a member of the House Committees on Foreign Affairs, Judiciary, Natural Resources, and Oversight and Government Reform as well as Co-Chair of the Military Reform Caucus and the Export Task Force. Mr. Levine participated, as a member of Congress, in Congressional investigations on a variety of subjects and, as a partner at Gibson Dunn, has counseled diverse clients who have been the subjects of Congressional investigations.
F. Joseph Warin — Chairs the firm's Washington, D.C. Litigation Department and serves as co-chair of the firm's White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice . Mr. Warin served as Assistant United States Attorney in Washington, D.C. for seven years. His areas of expertise includes white collar crime, securities enforcement – including Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigations, False Claims Act cases, special committee representations, compliance counseling and complex civil litigation. His representations have involved Congressional hearings, federal regulatory inquiries and criminal investigations.
John Williams — Chief Investigator of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation (Sen. Rockefeller, Chairman). Mr. Williams is responsible for all operations of the Committee's investigative staff. Specifically, he is the principal advisor to the Committee Chairman on investigative and oversight issues, manages the Committee's investigative staff, and directs investigations into a wide array of topics. Mr. Williams has led several investigations for the Commerce Committee's active investigative unit, which he stood up for Chairman Rockefeller at the beginning of this Congress. Prior to serving in his current role, Mr. Williams was Deputy Chief Investigative Counsel with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform under Chairman Waxman and helped lead several high profile investigations.
Receive Continuing Legal Education Credit:
This program has been approved for credit in accordance with the requirements of the New York State Continuing Legal Education Board for a maximum of 1.0 credit hour, of which 1.0 credit hour may be applied toward the areas of professional practice requirement. This course is NOT approved for transitional credit. Attorneys seeking New York credit must obtain an Affirmation Form prior to watching the archived version of this webcast. Please contact Jeanine McKeown at 213-229-7140 or jmckeown@gibsondunn.com to request the CLE form.
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP certifies that this activity has been approved for MCLE credit by the State Bar of California in the amount of 1.0 hour. California attorneys may claim "self-study" credit for viewing the archived version of this webcast. No certificate of attendance is required for "self-study" credit.
For other questions regarding this webcast presentation, please contact Jeanne Brown at pjbrown@gibsondunn.com.