White Collar, Investigations, and Compliance

Today’s heightened regulatory scrutiny and complex enforcement landscapes means organizations face unprecedented challenges when navigating government inquiries and internal misconduct allegations. DeCotiis, FitzPatrick, Cole & Giblin, LLP brings decades of strategic insight to these high-stakes matters, combining rigorous fact-finding protocols with a deep understanding of regulatory and compliance priorities to protect clients’ operational continuity and reputational integrity. Our approach prioritizes rapid response mechanisms tailored to mitigate risks across parallel civil, criminal, and regulatory proceedings, ensuring clients confront investigations with confidence and certainty.

Understanding that a proactive approach to institutional integrity is often the most effective business practice, we work with clients to design compliance programs that adopt regulatory and industry best practices while also aligning with evolving US Department of Justice guidelines and SEC expectations. These programs significantly reduce exposure to whistleblower claims and enforcement actions by demonstrating a commitment to legal compliance, ethical standards, and institutional accountability.

When investigations become necessary, our team – comprising former federal prosecutors and attorneys with senior government agency and corporate experience – leverages its dual perspective as both defenders and former investigators to anticipate regulatory tactics, formulate effective defense strategies, and negotiate favorable resolutions. This dual capability proves critical in matters involving anti-trust investigations, mortgage and wire fraud, insider trading investigations, healthcare fraud, environmental violations, RICO allegations, and cross-jurisdictional financial crimes, where early intervention and proactive engagement often determines whether cases conclude with deferred prosecution agreements or escalate to indictment.

Our Team of Experts

Through decades as federal, state, and local prosecutors, state enforcement leaders, and private-sector advocates, our team delivers unmatched insight into resolving high-stakes investigations. Their comptroller-led reforms provide clients with strategic advantages in navigating parallel government probes and mitigating reputational fallout. Below are representative matters demonstrating our capability to manage complex, multijurisdictional challenges:

Scott J. MacDougall, Partner
Former Director of Investigations (NJ Office of the State Comptroller) | Architect of Public Sector Reforms

Email: smacdougall@decotiislaw.com
Phone: 201-347-2125

• Led a statewide fiscal investigation of public universities, prompting legislative reforms and strengthening higher education oversight.
• Directed annual review of law enforcement agency compliance with anti-profiling mandates, resulting in revised training protocols and independent monitoring systems.
• Uncovered criminal conspiracies involving county-level officials through forensic audits, leading to prosecutions and recovery of misappropriated public funds.
• Reformed New Jersey’s public records dispute process by identifying systemic delays, spurring statutory changes to ensure timely resolution of transparency requests.
• Resolved $50M+ insurance coverage disputes arising from Superstorm Sandy, establishing precedent for interpreting flood damage exclusions in commercial policies.

Richard F. X. Regan, Partner
New Jersey Super Lawyer | AV Preeminent Rated Attorney

Email: rregan@decotiislaw.com
201-907-5276

• Defended high-profile clients including professional athletes, law enforcement leaders, and corporate executives in federal RICO prosecutions across New Jersey, New York, and Florida district courts.
• Secured dismissals for municipal entities in civil rights lawsuits alleging wrongful termination and employment discrimination through precedent-setting appellate arguments.
• Conducted internal investigations for labor unions facing DOJ probes into financial mismanagement, implementing governance reforms that prevented federal indictments.

Jeffrey D. Smith, Equity Partner
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney (District of New Jersey) | Recipient of Two DOJ Director’s Awards

Email: jsmith@decotiislaw.com
Phone: 201-907-5228

• Defended pharmaceutical executives in U.S. Department of Justice antitrust investigations involving alleged market allocation schemes and off-label marketing practices.
• Secured favorable outcomes for C-suite mortgage industry leaders in federal wire fraud prosecutions stemming from the 2008 financial crisis.
• Guided a telecommunications company through an internal investigation into accounting irregularities, implementing corrective measures that preempted SEC enforcement action.
• Represented medical device manufacturers in False Claims Act litigation, negotiating settlements that avoided corporate integrity agreements.
• Advised labor unions on federal grand jury investigations involving embezzlement allegations, coupled with internal reforms to strengthen financial controls.

The group works in close coordination with the firm’s Litigation, Labor and Employment, and Business Law practice groups, as needed. This integrated approach provides clients with a comprehensive, multidisciplinary defense and compliance strategy—one that not only addresses the immediate investigative or enforcement challenges, but also anticipates related contractual, regulatory, and personnel implications across the enterprise.

Key Strengths

• Cross-Industry Insight: Financial services, healthcare, real estate, and public sector matters
• Enforcement Familiarity: DOJ, SEC, CFTC, state AGs, inspectors general, and comptroller agencies
• Precedent-Setting Outcomes: From deferred prosecutions to systemic policy reforms

Services

Our practice provides end-to-end solutions for organizations and individuals navigating complex regulatory landscapes, enforcement actions, and internal governance challenges. Leveraging decades of prosecutorial insight and cross-sector expertise, we deliver strategic guidance tailored to mitigate legal exposure and operational disruption.

• Internal Investigations: Conducting impartial audits into allegations of accounting fraud, embezzlement, whistleblower complaints, internal policy violations, and regulatory non-compliance, with protocols designed to satisfy DOJ/SEC expectations.
• Government Enforcement Defense: Representing clients in DOJ, SEC, CFTC, and state Attorney General investigations involving antitrust violations, False Claims Act allegations, and financial fraud.
• Compliance Program Design: Architecting risk-based policies aligned with DOJ Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs guidance to prevent FCPA violations, healthcare kickbacks, and export control breaches.
• White-Collar Litigation: Defending executives in federal criminal trials and parallel civil proceedings related to wire fraud, RICO violations, and public corruption charges.
• Deferred Prosecution Negotiations: Securing non-prosecution agreements for corporations by demonstrating voluntary self-disclosure and remediation of misconduct.
• Anti-Profiling Compliance: Implementing Law Enforcement Professional Standards Act (LEPSA) training programs and independent monitoring systems for police departments.
• Monitorships and Oversight Compliance: Serving as independent monitors in connection with federal and state consent decrees, settlement agreements, and civil judgments.

Partner With Reliable, Practiced Attorneys

To discuss your legal needs, contact:

Scott J. MacDougall
Telephone: (201) 347-2125
Email: smacdougall@decotiislaw.com         

Jeffrey D. Smith
Telephone: (201) 907-5228
Email: jsmith@decotiislaw.com