Jay and Julie Stephens are vacationing in Northern Michigan and stopped in Leland (the unofficial home of NAFUSA) to have dinner with Rich and Patty Rossman. They also toured the Sleeping Dunes National Lakeshore and enjoyed a day on the Rossman pontoon. Jay is the counsel to the NAFUSA board of directors, and a past president. Rich is the executive director of NAFUSA.
P.J.Meitl
Each year, NAFUSA recognizes an Assistant U.S. Attorney for outstanding performance through the J. Michael Bradford Memorial Award. The award is named after J. Michael Bradford, who served as a U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Texas from 1994 to 2001. Bradford, who died in 2003, had a distinguished career in public service, including successfully defending the government against lawsuits stemming from the 1993 siege of the Branch Davidian’s compound in Waco, Texas. NAFUSA annually solicits nominations from current U.S. Attorneys for the Bradford Award. Typically, the recipient has handled a significant investigation and prosecution or a series of prosecutions which has had a significant impact and merits special recognition.
Once again, a number of exceptional nominations were made by U.S. Attorneys around the country. The J. Michael Bradford Award Committee was chaired by NAFUSA Vice President Paul Coggins. Its members included Donna Bucella, Paul Charlton, Barry Grissom, and Karen Hewitt. This year, the Board voted to give the award to AUSA P.J. Meitl of the Northern District of Texas, nominated by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox, who wrote:
In 2017, AUSA Meitl completed the case of United States v. Jacques Roy, et al, 3:12-CR-0054-L, the largest criminal investigation and prosecution of a single physician for health care fraud in the history of the Department of Justice. Before his arrest, Dr. Roy falsely certified more than 12,000 individual beneficiaries for more than 500 home health agencies in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, submitting more than $373 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid for payment. Dr. Roy caused the deaths of at least three patients, and harmed countless more through blatant medical malpractice. He was not just an unrepentant con man, but a dangerous one.
Due in large part to AUSA Meitl’s efforts, Dr. Roy was sentenced in August 2017 to 35 years’ imprisonment. This case had a significant impact not just because Dr. Roy’s enormous criminal fraud ring was destroyed, but was also a model of seamless cooperation in health care fraud prosecution efforts by law enforcement agents from HHS-OIG and the FBI.
In just five years with the Department of Justice, AUSA Meitl has prosecuted more than 500 defendants and participated in more than 15 jury trials. While the Dr. Roy prosecution was ongoing, AUSA Meitl still worked tirelessly to prosecute 89 members of North Texas white supremacist groups in Operation “Vanilla Ice”.
Other nominees were:
Emil J. Bove (Southern District of New York)
Daniel A. Chatham (Northern District of Iowa)
Zia M. Faruqui (District of Columbia)
Elizabeth Gabriel (District of Columbia)
Julie K. Hampton (Southern District of Texas)
Michael J. Hunter (Southern District of Ohio)
Nathaniel Kummerfeld (Eastern District of Texas)
Timothy M. O’Shea (Western District of Wisconsin)
Perry H. Piper (Eastern District of Tennessee)
Keith W. Reisenauer (District of North Dakota)
Matthew W. Shepherd (Northern District of Ohio)
Deborah Sines (District of Columbia)
Richard M. Tucker (Eastern District of New York)
Gordon A.D. Zubrod (Middle District of Pennsylvania)
Mary Jo WhiteNAFUSA member Mary Jo White (Southern District of New York, 1993-2002) was named by The Ohio State University to lead the investigation of what coach Urban Meyer knew and did about domestic abuse accusations against a former assistant. The university placed Meyer on a three game suspension after receiving White’s report.
Mary Jo White is a partner of Debevoise & Plimpton and a former chairperson of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Mike Dettmer
The State Bar of Michigan’s Negligence Section will present its Outstanding Achievement Award to NAFUSA member Mike Dettmer at the Negligent Section’s Annual Summer Meeting in Traverse City on August 9, 2018.
Currently of counsel to the firm of Olson, Bzdok & Howard in Traverse City, where he still maintains an active mediation/alternative dispute resolution practice, Mike has had as interesting and diverse a career as any. He has been a trial lawyer for more than 45 years, served for many years on the State Bar Board of Commissioners, helped the state bar address the lawyer malpractice insurance crisis in the late 1980s, and was one of the founders of Michigan Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company, where he eventually served as president and CEO. He also served the State Bar of Michigan as its 59th president. He was appointed by President Clinton to serve as the United States Attorney for the Western District of Michigan, where he served 1994-2001.
The State of Illinois and the City of Chicago have released a draft court-enforceable consent decree in the matter of State of Illinois v. City of Chicago, case no. 17-cv-6260, that addresses the findings issued by the U.S. Department of Justice in January 2017 and that form the basis of the lawsuit filed by the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Illinois. A copy of the draft consent decree can be found here: www.chicagopoliceconsentdecree.org.
As part of the consent decree, the parties have agreed to work to jointly identify an independent monitor to oversee compliance with the decree. On July 27, 2018. the parties are released the attached Request for Proposals. Responses to the Request for Proposal will be due on September 4, 2018. The Office of the Attorney General of Illinois has invited NAFUSA to notify its members of this opportunity, stating, “Given your organization’s stated mission, we believe you may have members who have an interest in serving as the independent monitor or participating as a team member.”
Click here to open RFP:
Request for Proposal – Monitor for Chicago Consent Decree
Flag flown over Main Justice on July 17 in honor of Stan Bardwell
Former U.S. Attorney Stanford O. Bardwell Jr. died at his Baton rouge home on June 9, 2018. He was 78 years of age. Bardwell served as the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Louisiana from 1981 to 1986. He also served as the deputy general counsel for the U.S. Energy Department 1986-1988. He is survived by his wife, Leslie Bardwell and his three children, Brian, Patrick and Erin.
As is our custom, at NAFUSA’s request, an American flag was flown over Main Justice on July 17, 2018, and will be presented on by NAFUSA member Ray Lamonica to Stan’s wife Leslie.
Bill Leone
Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has been awarded Investigations Team of the Year at the annual Transatlantic Legal Awards. The Awards, held on June 14, 1018, in London, were judged by a panel of senior editors and reporters from The American Lawyer and Legal Week and recognise firms for their excellence in advising on complex matters spanning the US and the UK. NAFUSA member Bill Leone lead the U.S. based criminal and civil securities defense effort for the Norton Rose Fulbright team.
The Investigations Team of the Year award recognises the firm’s successful defence of a senior banking executive in multi-jurisdictional criminal and civil proceedings arising out of the JP Morgan “London Whale” case, which included investigations and proceedings brought by the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), and extradition proceedings in Spain.
Following over five years of investigations and proceedings in the United States and Europe, in August 2017 the DOJ and the SEC dismissed all criminal charges and civil claims against the firm’s client, Javier Martin-Artajo, a former senior executive at JP Morgan. The allegations related to events in 2012 in connection with what has been referred to in the press as the “London Whale” trading losses.
The U.S. government’s decision, which came following four years of civil proceedings involving the disclosure of millions of pages of documents, depositions of over 35 fact witnesses in the U.S. and Europe, and the government carefully analysing the evidence, completely vindicated Mr Martin-Artajo’s position and reflects the strength of his defence which he has consistently maintained from the outset of this matter in 2012.
Click here to view the Nashville program.
The Westin Hotel in Nashville is completely sold out even after adding 20 rooms to each of the nights. They do have a wait list at this stage but since the hotel is sold out it is unlikely any rooms would become available.
Here is a list of nearby hotels the Westin gave as choices for our members to call:
If you have any questions please feel free to contact Lisa Rafferty.
The conference will open on Wednesday, October 24, with a welcome reception at the law offices of Butler Snow in The Pinnacle at Symphony Place. The firm, one of NAFUSA’s sponsors, has three NAFUSA members: Jim Letten, James Tucker, and Edward Stanton. Golf will be available on Wednesday morning at the Golf Club of Tennessee. If you want to play golf, make sure you plan to spend Tuesday night in Nashville.
On Thursday and Friday mornings, the CLE programs will feature:
The Thursday breakfast will be sponsored by Nardello & Co.
On Thursday afternoon, there will be a luncheon buffet and tour of The Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson (sponsored by Ernst & Young), with presentations by Director Howard J. Kitten and David Ewing. Thursday evening is reserved for class reunions at various off-site locations. Friday afternoon is free time, followed by a closing dinner and general membership meeting. Our keynote speaker on Friday night will be United States Senator Doug Jones, who would have been NAFUSA’s president this year if he hadn’t stepped down to run for AG Jeff Sessions seat in the Senate representing the State of Alabama.
click here to read the biographies of our 2018 conference speakers.
Larry Laurenzi
NAFUSA’s newest member, Lawrence “Larry” J. Laurenzi, has joined Baker Donelson’s Government Enforcement and Investigations Group in the Memphis office.
Laurenzi, who joins as of counsel, brings more than 35 years of experience with the U.S. Department of Justice for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Tennessee, including an appointment as U.S. Attorney from 2008 to 2010. After beginning his career serving as a trial attorney, Laurenzi went on to serve as criminal chief, before becoming First Assistant U.S. Attorney. In addition to the three years he served as U.S. Attorney, Laurenzi was also named Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District on three separate occasions: 2000 – 2001, 2006 – 2007, and 2017.
As a senior trial attorney, Laurenzi was responsible for managing the litigation and regulatory affairs of the United States in Western Tennessee. He actively engaged in both civil and criminal litigation, concentrating on a variety of cases that include white collar fraud, tax fraud, public corruption, civil rights, affirmative civil enforcement, and defensive torts. He has tried more than 100 jury trials and has been recognized on numerous occasions by local law enforcement and the Department of Justice for his work.
Joe D. Whitley, chair of Baker Donelson’s Government Enforcement and Investigations Group, said “Larry brings extensive experience and a stellar reputation as a career federal prosecutor who has held multiple national leadership positions within the Department of Justice. We’re very pleased to welcome him to our growing team of attorneys focused on the defense of businesses and executives in domestic and international investigations and prosecutions.”
Baker Donelson’s Government Enforcement and Investigations Group defends businesses and executives in a wide range of domestic and international investigations and prosecutions. Led by Joe Whitley, former U.S. Attorney in the Middle and Northern Federal Districts of Georgia and former General Counsel of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the group includes more than 30 lawyers, including a former acting associate attorney general, former U.S. attorneys in multiple districts, a former FBI agent, appointed special attorneys general for several states and many former state and federal prosecutors.
Recognized by FORTUNE magazine as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For,” Baker Donelson is among the 60 largest law firms in the country, with more than 750 attorneys and public policy advisors representing more than 30 practice areas to serve a wide range of legal needs across 22 offices in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
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