Government, Regulatory & Internal Investigations

Related Professionals

Overview

Kirkland & Ellis are highly competent, knowledgeable and always look for creative ways to solve problems. [They] are effective advocates who know when to push, and when to pull back. - Chambers USA, 2023

Businesses and individuals today confront a challenging enforcement environment. With confidence, they turn to our Government, Regulatory and Internal Investigations Practice Group for sophisticated and effective representation. We are uniquely suited to handle the primary and collateral consequences of government investigations, whether pre-investigation prevention and mitigation, internal investigations, defense of a government investigation, or resolution through settlement or trial.

Day in and day out, in a proactive dialogue with clients, we are in the prevention business — we are well-versed in assessing legal and compliance risk in multiple programmatic areas. We learn our clients’ businesses, and we think about ways to reduce regulatory exposure in light of evolving government enforcement theories and priorities. In that regard, we help clients devise internal compliance and control programs that allocate limited compliance resources in a prudent and cost-effective manner to the organization's highest risks.

If allegations of misconduct are made — whether by the government, a whistleblower, or the media — we have the knowledge and experience to conduct a comprehensive internal investigation and defend the company if a more formal, adversarial government-led investigation is initiated. We are experienced in the many complex investigative issues that can arise, such as confidentiality and privilege, data protection, and parallel civil litigation or Congressional hearings.

Our internationally recognized team includes numerous former senior enforcement professionals from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). These individuals have extensive experience in both senior government positions and in leading the defenses of some of the world’s largest multinational corporations. These Kirkland partners also have, while in government service, authored policies and regulations that remain central to the evaluation and disposition of corporate and anti-corruption cases.