Rasha Gerges Shields is a former federal prosecutor and an experienced first-chair trial and appellate lawyer. Rasha defends companies and executives in high-stakes civil cases and criminal investigations. She also assists companies in conducting internal investigations and developing effective compliance programs. She has been the lead trial counsel in federal court and has argued before the California Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit, the California Court of Appeal, and federal/state trial courts.
Rasha was an Assistant United States Attorney for more than seven years and served as Deputy Chief of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Section. As a federal prosecutor, she first-chaired trials and directed law enforcement in grand jury and wiretap investigations. Her investigations and prosecutions involved a variety of crimes, including money laundering, organized crime, high-level drug trafficking, and fraud.
Rasha received California Minority Counsel Program's Law Firm Diversity Leader Award in 2018. She serves as president of the Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California. She is a member of the board of directors of the UCLA Law Alumni Association (immediate past president) and the California ChangeLawyers, is secretary of the LA Chapter of the Women's White Collar Criminal Defense Association, co-chairs LACBA's Dialogues on Freedom Committee, is on the Steering Committee for Just the Beginning, and volunteers at El Rancho High School's Teen Court.
Rasha serves on Jones Day's Diversity, Inclusion and Advancement Committee. She immigrated to the United States from Egypt and was the first in her extended family to obtain a post-graduate degree.
Experience
Speaking Engagements
- July 28, 2020
Transforming the Minneapolis Police Department: Reviewing the Minneapolis Police Contract, Jones Day Webinar - July 16, 2020
Building Allyship Among Attorneys of Color, California Minority Counsel Program - June 2020
Trade Secrets Theft, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyer's West Coast White Collar Crime Conference - October 29, 2019
What You Need to Know About Trade Secrets and the Recent Rise in Trade Secret Litigation - April 27, 2018
Marijuana Prosecutions: California v. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Fidler Institute on Criminal Justice - April 18, 2018
Leaders Create More Leaders - Leading and Developing Diverse In-House and in Law Firms, California Minority Counsel Program - January 31, 2018
Effectively Responding to Government Investigations, Jones Day MCLE University - January 31, 2018
Navigating the Attorney-Client Privilege Around the Globe, Jones Day MCLE University - November 28, 2017
Women and Minorities on Boards, National Association of Women Business Owners - Los Angeles Chapter - May 24, 2017
Leadership Essentials, California Diversity Council's Annual Southern California Diversity & Leadership Conference - April 21, 2017
Interview with the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court, Tani Cantil-Sakauye, Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California's Annual Banquet - January 25, 2017
How to Deal with Ethical Lapses (Real or Perceived) Once They've Occurred, Jones Day MCLE University - October 20, 2016
What to Do When the Government Comes Knocking, California Minority Counsel Program's Annual Business Conference - January 27, 2016
Lawyers Behaving Badly: How to Avoid Being Tomorrow's Headline, Jones Day MCLE University - August 25, 2015
Mobile Privacy and Security Issues in 2015: Practical Guidance to Mitigate Data Breaches - June 10, 2015
Cybersecurity for Lawyers: Understanding and Complying with Your Ethical Obligations, Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California - March 20, 2015
Cybersecurity: An In-House Primer, Motion Picture Association of America - January 22, 2015
Ethical Blind Spots -- Top-Rated Lawyer Shows on Television Score Poorly on Legal Ethics, Jones Day MCLE University - January 14, 2015
Prosecuting and Defending Doctors & Pharmacists in Prescription Drug Cases, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' 35th Annual Advanced Criminal Law Seminar
- University of California, Los Angeles (J.D. 2001; Order of the Coif; Moot Court President; Recipient of the Law Guild of Beverly Hills Eleanor Klein Merit Award); University of California, Irvine (B.A in Political Science with honors 1997; Phi Beta Kappa)
- California; U.S. Supreme Court; U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second, Sixth, and Ninth Circuits; and U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Eastern, Central, and Southern Districts of California
- Co-Chair, Los Angeles Police Commission's Advisory Committee on Building Trust and Equity (July 2020-present)
CMCP's Law Firm Diversity Leader Award (2018)
Southern California Super Lawyers (2018-2020)
Who's Who Legal: Investigations — Future Leaders (2020)
LACBA's Patricia Phillips Outstanding Committee Service Award (2017)
Recognized as among the "Most Influential Lawyers: White Collar and Cyber Crime," Los Angeles Business Journal (2015)
"Best Lawyer Under 40" Award, AALASC (2015)
- Law Clerk to the Honorable Ferdinand F. Fernandez, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit (2002-2003) and the Honorable Gary A. Feess, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (2001-2002)
- Arabic