Rasha Gerges Shields

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Los Angeles + 1.213.243.2719

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Rasha Gerges Shields is a former federal prosecutor with more than 20 years of first-chair trial and appellate experience. Rasha defends companies and executives in high-stakes civil and criminal matters, including DOJ and State Attorneys General enforcement actions. She also helps companies conduct internal investigations and develop effective compliance programs. She has been the lead trial counsel in federal court, has argued before the California Supreme Court and federal/state appellate courts, and has submitted amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court as lead counsel.

Rasha has significant experience representing clients in internal, whistleblower, and government investigations, including investigations relating to fraud, public corruption, tax, health care, cybersecurity, harassment/workplace violence, and e-commerce compliance. Rasha also litigates complex civil cases both affirmatively and defensively, involving a broad spectrum of claims, including high-profile disputes, contractual disputes, trade secret theft, product liability, fraud, antitrust and unfair business practices, racketeering, and claims against financial institutions.

Rasha has an active pro bono and public service practice. She is vice president of the Los Angeles Police Commission, overseeing the LAPD, and has served in leadership roles on several nonprofit boards and diversity pipeline programs. Rasha was the sole recipient of California Minority Counsel Program's Law Firm Diversity Leader Award in 2018.

Rasha serves on the Firm's Inclusion and Advancement Committee and on the Constitutional Policing and Civil Justice Reform Task Force. She immigrated from Egypt and is a first generation professional.

Experience

  • Swiss bank employees avoid U.S. criminal tax chargesJones Day represented a pool of current and former employees of a large Swiss financial institution being investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice for allegedly aiding and abetting tax evasion by the bank's U.S. customers.
  • International U.S.-based software company conducts internal investigation into allegations of employee misconductJones Day conducted an internal investigation into allegations that employee misconduct resulted in the disclosure of confidential information of an international U.S.-based software company.
  • Global packaging company conducts independent investigation in Netherlands of breached shipping containerJones Day conducted an independent investigation in the Netherlands arising after a global packaging company discovered that a container used to transport the company's products from the United States to Europe contained a large amount of narcotics.
  • U.S. company responds to bribery investigation by Chinese GovernmentJones Day represented a U.S. company in connection with requests by the Chinese government for testimony and documents, pursuant to the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, in a bribery investigation involving our client's business transactions with a Chinese company.
  • Internet software company avoids criminal copyright infringement chargesJones Day represented an internet software company and its partners in a criminal investigation conducted by the FBI for allegedly selling counterfeit software.
  • Scholars file amicus brief in Ninth Circuit related to executive order on immigrationJones Day filed an amicus brief on behalf of a group of constitutional law scholars to assist the Ninth Circuit as it considered whether to grant an emergency stay of a temporary injunction entered by the District Court for the Western District of Washington.
  • Parallel Capital Partners sells 12 office buildings located in Sorrento Valley area of San Diego to Boston-based Longfellow Real Estate PartnersJones Day advised Parallel Capital Partners, Inc. in its $112 million sale of 12 office buildings located in the Sorrento Valley area of San Diego to Boston-based Longfellow Real Estate Partners.
  • California Women's Law Center and Veterans Legal Institute file amicus brief in U.S. Supreme Court advocating for the rights of active duty mothers and their childrenJones Day filed an amicus brief on behalf of California Women's Law Center and Veterans Legal Institute to assist the U.S. Supreme Court as it considered whether to grant a petition for writ of certiorari relating to the rights of children of active duty mothers to allege negligence claims against military hospitals for birth injuries. 
  • Legal scholars file amicus brief in Second Circuit in support of sexual assault victim at military academyJones Day filed an amicus brief on behalf of a group of legal scholars to assist the Second Circuit as it considered whether a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point could bring claims under the Federal Torts Claims Act for the rape and sexual harassment she endured.
  • Guatemalan unaccompanied minor obtains asylumA Jones Day Los Angeles team of Rasha Gerges Shields, Michael Dailey, Jessica Sawyer, and Joe Gonzalez recently obtained asylum for our client, W.C., an unaccompanied minor who fled Guatemala for the United States at age 16.
  • Federated defends employee arbitration programFederated Department Stores, Inc. retained Jones Day to enforce its nationwide voluntary employment arbitration program, including its class action waiver, in the face of multiple putative class actions involving wage-hour claims.
  • Wrongfully convicted client seeks compensation for over 20 years of imprisonmentJones Day represented a client before the California Victim Compensation Board seeking restitution for the time he spent in prison for a murder he did not commit.
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    October 2023 White Paper

    Considerations for Addressing DOJ's Corporate Compliance Guidance on Mobile Devices and Messaging Platforms

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    Oregon Becomes 11th State to Enact a Comprehensive Data Privacy Law

    May 2023 Alert

    DOJ Loses Fourth Consecutive Criminal Antitrust Prosecution in Labor Markets

    April 2023 White Paper

    Insider Trading Enforcement in 2022

    April 2023 Alert

    Iowa Becomes Sixth State to Enact a Comprehensive Data Privacy Law

    January 2023 Commentary

    DOJ Criminal Division Announces Revisions to its Corporate Enforcement Policy

    November 2022 White Paper

    Conducting an Effective Internal Investigation: An Overview

    September 2022 Alert

    California Is First State to Adopt Age-Appropriate Design Code Law Alert
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    Additional Speaking Engagements

    • October 20, 2021
      Global Governmental Response, Eradicate Hate Global Summit
    • September 22, 2021
      Puffing and Lies: Ethics in Negotiations, Corporate Counsel Women of Color, Seventeenth Annual Career Strategies Conference
    • August 20, 2021
      Keynote Speaker, UCLA School of Law 2021 Convocation
    • June 23, 2021
      Side Bar Café Webinar: Criminal Justice Reform, Legal Education Access Pipeline, Inc.
    • April 2021
      Challenges and Opportunities for Arab American Lawyers, National Arab American Bar Association
    • March 2021
      Race in the Courtroom: A Look at How Race and Racial Justice Are Influencing Litigation Across the Legal Spectrum, Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles Litigation Forum
    • October 2020
      Succeeding as an Arab American Lawyer, Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California
    • October 2020
      Making Legal Representation Representative, UCLA Law Alumni Association
    • 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
    • May 2019
      The President's Address, Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California's Annual Banquet
    • 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 Leaders 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

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