White Collar Criminal Defense

Aaron defends targets, subjects, and witnesses in white collar criminal investigations and prosecutions. He has experience defending and/or prosecuting securities fraud, wire fraud, accounting fraud, healthcare fraud, money laundering, Bank Secrecy Act violations, public corruption, FCPA violations, mortgage fraud, and government benefits and procurement fraud. By handling such a wide array of cases, Aaron has honed his skills in boiling complex issues down to forceful arguments on his clients’ behalf.   

Regulatory Matters

While regulatory inquiries can have severe consequences in their own right, they can also lead to criminal investigations. Deft handling of regulatory inquiries can therefore have a real and positive impact, including on downstream decision-making by prosecutors. Aaron understands this regulatory/criminal intersection from multiple perspectives: he referred investigative findings to criminal authorities as an SEC trial attorney; received referrals from the SEC, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, FinCEN, IRS and other regulatory and law enforcement agencies as a DOJ trial attorney and supervisor; and has defended individuals and entities facing simultaneous regulatory and criminal exposure.  

The SEC recently established a specialized unit to pursue cases involving accounting and financial reporting fraud. As a former CPA, having served at the SEC when it launched a previous accounting and audit fraud task force, and having second-chaired the successful trial defense of a Big 6 auditor facing criminal securities fraud charges, Aaron has in-depth knowledge of how these investigations work, and how to meet the challenges they pose.   

Complex Civil Litigation

Aaron’s experience extends far beyond criminal and regulatory matters. He has tried and arbitrated complex civil cases requiring a nuanced understanding of financial issues. He recently led a trial team that held Elon Musk responsible for misleading investors during Mr. Musk’s 2022 acquisition of Twitter, after a two-week federal jury trial in the Northern District of California. Aaron handles civil securities fraud, fiduciary duty, contractual, and other corporate disputes in court and ADR venues.

Trial Counsel

Aaron is available to join litigation teams as they move toward trial in matters involving white collar investigations and prosecutions, regulatory exposure, securities issues, accounting disputes, and other financially complex cases.