Gary G. Grindler
is a partner with King & Spalding’s Special Matters/Government Investigations Practice Group. He focuses on white collar criminal defense; internal investigations; money laundering, financial fraud, congressional and state attorney general investigations; Foreign Corrupt Practices Act; False Claims Act and other complex civil litigation.
Prior to joining the firm in 2013, Mr. Grindler served as acting Deputy Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice, the second highest-ranking official in the Department, and Chief of Staff to the Attorney General. As acting Deputy Attorney General, he supervised 934 United States Attorney’s offices, all department law enforcement agencies (Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and U.S. Marshals Service) and the civil, criminal, tax, antitrust, environmental, civil rights and national security divisions. Prior to serving as acting Deputy Attorney General, Mr. Grindler served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Division where he supervised the fraud and appellate sections. At the conclusion of his tenure in December 2012, Mr. Grindler received the Edmund J. Randolph Award, the Department’s highest award for public service and leadership.
Mr. Grindler was a partner at King & Spalding from 2000 to 2009 when he left to join the Department. His practice included numerous internal investigations for corporations and audit or special board committees of public companies as well as defense of corporations and individuals in white-collar criminal, civil fraud and government agency investigations. The subject areas of such investigations included securities laws, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, tax laws, import/export laws, consumer laws, insurance, health care regulation, federal election laws, False Claims Act and other business crimes. Matters included compliance assessments and internal investigations concerning an internet marketing business, energy industry, telecommunications, pharmaceutical/medical device industries, water flow and valve manufacturing industry, food and beverage business, defense contracting and banking. He presented the results of internal investigations to the SEC, the Department of Justice and other federal and state governmental agencies.
Immediately prior to joining King & Spalding in 2000, Mr. Grindler served as Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General and Counselor to the Attorney General. In these capacities, he worked with both the Deputy Attorney General and the Attorney General on a wide variety of issues relating to white collar investigations and prosecutions, national security, money laundering and computer crimes. From April 1995 through May 1998, Mr. Grindler served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Division. In this capacity, he first supervised the Office of Immigration Litigation and then the Federal Programs Branch. He represented the Secret Service in the investigation conducted by Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr. He also represented the President of the United States in his official capacity when depositions were taken in two Independent Counsel prosecutions arising out of the Whitewater investigation. Mr. Grindler previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Offices in the Southern District of New York and the Northern District of Georgia.
Representative Experience
Represented an energy power company in Malaysia regarding alleged corruption violations.
Represented a major corporation in connection with an investigation by a consortium of 30 state attorneys general regarding alleged violations of the states’ consumer protection statutes.
Represented a Fortune 50 corporation in connection with an alleged violation of the False Claims Act.
Represented a major Korean manufacturing company in a False Claims Act investigation by a United States Attorney's Office, Congress and an inspector general.
Represented a Fortune 50 corporation regarding investigations by Congress and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.
Defended a major pharmaceutical company against claims of criminal conduct regarding alleged improper pricing of drugs.
Defended a major pharmaceutical company against allegations of improper financial and accounting treatment of pharmaceutical sales. Investigation was conducted by a United States Attorney's Office and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Defended a Fortune 100 corporation in United States Attorney's Office and SEC investigations into alleged accounting and financial improprieties.
Defended a Fortune 50 financial institution in parallel investigations of money laundering by Department of Justice and banking regulators.
Defended a Fortune 100 defense contractor in major False Claims Act litigation where we convinced the government not to intervene.
Defended a Fortune 50 company in a stock options back-dating investigation by a U.S. Attorney’s office.
Represented major medical device company in a criminal investigation of alleged failures of certain devices.
Defended a leading managed care services corporation in an investigation by an United States Attorney's Office and other federal and state agencies into claims of criminal conduct in its Medicaid health plan.
Represented the Audit Committee of a Spanish oil and gas company regarding the reporting of oil and gas reserves.
Represented major telecommunications company with respect to Department of Justice and SEC investigations into alleged FCPA violations related to business conducted in China.
Represented manufacturing company with respect to alleged FCPA violations relating to business conducted in China.
Represented major insurance adjusting corporation in nation-wide fraud investigation by U.S. Department of Justice.
Represented individual charged in the three felony counts – alleging conspiracy to violate to violate the FCPA, one substantive count to violate FCPA and one perjury count. All three counts were dismissed with misdemeanor/probation resolution.
Co-counsel in bank fraud prosecution and trial of an attorney developer. Client was acquitted after one week trial.
Represented senior executive vice-president of Fortune 100 corporation who was a target in a major tax fraud investigation. Government declined to prosecute.
Defended (co-counsel) manager of major defense contractor in government contract fraud prosecution. Client was indicted on 43 felony counts. Jury deadlocked 11-1 to acquit on all counts. Matter was resolved with nolo contendre plea to a misdemeanor with probation.
As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, co-authored brief on appeal challenging conviction of Sun Myung Moon. Conviction was upheld. United State v. Sun Myung Moon, 718 F.2nd 1210 (2nd Cir.).
Represented on appeal a bank president who had been convicted of filing a false statement to a federally insured bank. Wrote brief for review by the US Supreme Court and obtained reversal. William Archie Williams v. United States, 73 L. Ed. 767.
Wrote brief and successfully argued an appeal of action seeking sanctions against federal prosecutors for leaking grand jury information in significant bank fraud investigation. In re Grand Jury Investigation, T. Bertram Lance, 610 F.2nd 202( 5th Cir.). Was co-counsel in subsequent five month trial. Argued Rule 29 motion where court ordered acquittal on 10 counts. Client was acquitted of remaining 9 counts.
As a Deputy Assistant Attorney General, argued appeal of action involving the Golden Venture incident challenging deportation of illegal aliens who attempted to enter the United States from China. Prevailed on appeal. You Yi Maugans, 68 F. 3rd. 1540 (3rd Cir.).
Publications and Speeches
Panel member at conference held in Philadelphia. “Economic Crime in Digital Age: Latest Developments in Fraud, Anti-Corruption and Cyber Crime,” May 20, 2014.
Panel member – Conference in Atlanta on Economic Crime in Digital Age, March 25, 2014.
Panel member – ABA White Collar Institute, Resolving Parallel Enforcement Actions, March 6, 2014. Submitted a paper for this panel. “Brave New World: Navigating Multi-Jurisdictional Parallel Government Investigations” (co-authored by Stephen Saltarelli).
Speaker – Dean’s Colloquium Speaker Series, Southern Illinois University School of Law, October 24, 2013. “The Government’s Exercise of Discretion: DOJ Priorities and Policy Considerations.”
Panel member – 2013 International White Collar Crime Conference, London, October 8, 2013.
Investigations: Corporate and Governmental Perspectives, The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, May 2013, Volume 21, No. 5
Courts Diverge on the Reach of Personal Jurisdiction in FCPA Cases, Financial Fraud Law Report, April 2013. (co-authors Russell Ryan and Ehren Halse-Stumberg)
Panel member - ABA Criminal Justice Section Conference on International Internal Criminal Investigations, Frankfurt, Germany, December 2012
Speaker - White Collar Crime Conference, Atlanta, GA, January 28, 2011
Prosecutors Work Hard to Uphold Justice; USA Today, October 1, 2010
Speaker - Judicial Conference of the United States Supreme Court, Washington, D.C., September 14, 2010
Speaker - 8th Circuit Judicial Conference, Minneapolis, MN, August 13, 2010
Speaker - National Association of Attorneys General Annual Summer Meeting, Seattle, WA, June 14, 2010
Speaker - Compliance Week 2010: Fifth Annual Conference, Washington, D.C., May 25, 2010
Commencement Address - Southern Illinois University School of Law, Carbondale, IL, May 15, 2010
Speaker - 20th Annual National Institute of Health Care Fraud, Miami, FL, May 13, 2010
Speaker - 59th Annual Meeting of the 7th Circuit Bar Association & Judicial Conference of the 7th Circuit, Chicago, IL, May 3, 2010.
Speaker - Judicial Conference of the United States Supreme Court, Washington, D.C., March 16, 2010
Testimony - House Appropriations Committee Hearing, “Combating Health Care Fraud,” March 4, 2010
Panel speaker - Corporate Accountability, 2009 - “Enforcement: Crime & Punishment,” Amsterdam, December 2009
“Destruction, Alteration or Falsification of Records: The New World of Obstruction of Justice.” Executive Reports. Aspatore Books. October 2006
“Thompson Memo Setbacks Don’t Diminish Need for Strong Compliance Program.” The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel. October 2006 (co-author Russell Ryan)
“Preparing for the Next Hurricane Katrina: A Few Things Corporate Counsel Need to Know About Price Gouging Laws,” (co-author with Christopher C. Burris), Corporate Counsel Weekly, May 17, 2006
“White Collar Criminal Defense in the Post-Enron Era: A Multifaceted and Expensive Challenge to Corporate America,” The Executive’s Guide to Understanding the Laws Behind White Collar Crime, (Aspatore Books 2006)
“Please Step Away from the Shredder and the 'Delete' Key: Sections 802 and 1102 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act,” The American Criminal Law Review, 41 Am. Crim. L. Rev. 1 (2004) (co-author Jason A. Jones)
Memberships
American Bar Association
District of Columbia Bar Association
Georgia Bar Association
Interagency Commission on Crime and Security at U.S. Seaports, Commissioner (1999-2000)
American Law Institute, Advisor to the Federal Judicial Code Revision Project (1996 -2000)
Member of Board of Trustees, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (2009, 2013-2014)
Member of Board of Directors, Ethics Resource Center (2014)
Awards & Recognition
Selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America and Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers for white-collar criminal defense
Department of Justice Edmund J. Randolph Award
