Neal J.Stephens

Partner

Vale do Silício + 1.650.687.4135

Neal Stephens is a trial lawyer with 30 years of experience focused on white collar and complex civil litigation, including defending grand jury investigations brought by the Department of Justice. Neal authored Prosecutorial Misconduct, A Practical Guide for Criminal Defense Lawyers, the leading treatise on defending federal grand jury investigations published by the American Bar Association.

Neal has successfully litigated over 70 cases through trial and appeal. He has served as trial counsel in securities, accounting, and bank fraud matters for Cara Obert (CFO of United Development Funding), Sean Cutting (CEO of Sonoma Valley Bank), Kent Roberts (general counsel of McAfee), and Greg Reyes (CEO of Brocade) and has represented public companies in federal grand jury investigations. Neal has also led internal investigations involving Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and accounting fraud issues and has provided compliance counseling on FCPA, antitrust, and anti-money laundering (AML) issues. On civil matters, Neal has represented clients in national opioid litigation matters, consumer class actions, trade secret cases, and antitrust matters.

As a federal prosecutor in Miami, Neal led the busiest federal trial unit in the country where he extradited high-level Colombian traffickers, including members of the Medellin Cartel. Neal received national awards from Attorney General Janet Reno, FBI Director Louis Freeh, and DEA Administrator Donnie Marshall for spearheading international roving wiretap prosecutions with the vetted team of the Colombian National Police and the legendary "A Team" of agents from DEA/FBI in Miami and DEA in Bogota, New York, and Los Angeles.

Neal has handled pro bono matters for the Northern California Innocence Project for 20 years, representing defendants wrongfully convicted due to prosecutorial misconduct.

Experiência

  • Recent Criminal Defense Matters
  • CFO defends allegations of wire and securities fraudJones Day acted as lead trial counsel for Cara Obert, CFO of United Development Funding, in a trial in the Northern District of Texas regarding wire fraud, securities fraud, and conspiracy allegations.
  • Former bank CEO defends allegations of bank fraudJones Day acted as lead trial counsel for Sean Cutting, CEO of Sonoma Valley Bank, in an eight week trial in the NDCA regarding bank fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering allegations.
  • Organic food producer obtains NPA in grand jury investigationJones Day acted as lead counsel for Mary’s Gone Crackers, LLC and secured a non-prosecution agreement following a federal grand jury investigation conducted by the USAO-EDCA regarding alleged immigration violations in its hiring practices.
  • CEO defends grand jury investigation relating to tax affairsJones Day represents a CEO in a federal grand jury investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice's Tax Division regarding the CEO's tax affairs.
  • Senior executive exonerated on securities fraud allegationsJones Day represented an EVP in a SEC investigation regarding various allegations of securities fraud related to disclosures to investors.
  • National retailer conducts internal investigation into allegations of money laundering in the United StatesJones Day represented a national retailer's e-commerce division in an internal investigation into allegations of money laundering in the United States.
  • National retailer defends allegations of corruption in Latin America and AsiaJones Day is representing a national retailer in an internal investigation into allegations of corruption in multiple countries in Latin America and Asia and related DOJ and SEC investigations.
  • Fortune 500 company conducts internal investigation related to potential FCPA violations in BrazilJones Day advised a Fortune 500 company regarding an internal investigation related to potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations in Brazil.
  • Public company conducts internal investigation related to potential FCPA violations in the Middle EastJones Day acted as lead counsel for an artificial intelligence software provider in an internal investigation regarding allegations of potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations in its sales operations in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan.
  • Public company conducts internal investigation related to potential FCPA violations in AsiaJones Day acted as lead counsel for a data analytics software provider in an internal investigation regarding potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations and kickbacks in its sales operations in Malaysia.
  • Multinational software company conducts internal investigation related to potential FCPA violations in AsiaJones Day acted as lead counsel for a software provider regarding several internal investigations of potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and kickback violations in its sales operations in China, Russia, Japan, Vietnam, and Malaysia.
  • National retailer conducts internal investigation into allegations of money laundering and OFAC violations in Latin AmericaJones Day represented a national retailer in an internal investigation into allegations of money laundering and OFAC violations in Latin America.
  • Recent Complex Civil Litigation
  • International retailer obtains voluntary dismissal from civil RICO litigationJones Day acted as lead counsel for an international retailer in a civil RICO matter filed in the Northern District of California.
  • National retailer defends against tort and public nuisance claims related to prescription opiate MDLJones Day is defending a national retailer against tort and public nuisance and related industry claims asserted in In re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation, MDL No. 2804.
  • Representative Criminal Defense Matters Prior to Joining Jones Day.

    Former McAfee General Counsel acquitted in securities fraud trial

    Trial counsel for Kent Roberts, former general counsel of McAfee, in parallel stock option backdating cases brought by the DOJ and SEC. Mr. Roberts was the first defendant to defeat both the DOJ (at trial) and the SEC (who voluntarily dismissed prior to trial) in a stock option backdating case.

    Trial counsel in stock option backdating trial

    Trial counsel for Greg Reyes, former CEO of Brocade, in his criminal retrial and parallel SEC enforcement action regarding allegations of stock option backdating.

    Lead counsel in public corruption litigation

    Lead counsel for Alfred J.R. "AJ" Villalobos and ARVCO Capital Research in a bribery/securities fraud action filed by the California Attorney General. Obtained a ruling in federal bankruptcy court confirming that the Attorney General made false allegations against Mr. Villalobos in its complaint.

    • April 21, 2016
      What To Do When . . . The Government Shows Up with a Search Warrant: Preparing for, Responding to, and Surviving a Raid
    • October 2013
      Business Beyond Borders: Protecting Companies from FCPA Violations in High Risk Markets
    • October 2013
      Managing Fraud and Corruption Risks in M&A: How to Incorporate Transactional Risks into your Due Diligence Process, ACI West Coast FCPA Boot Camp
    • June 2012
      Indemnity Issues in White Collar Criminal Defense Matters, National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys
    • November 2011
      FCPA and the UK Bribery Act 101: The Essential Primer for Life Sciences Compliance, ACI Life Sciences Boot Camp
    • July 2011
      FCPA Compliance Issues, 18th Annual Private Equity CFO Conference
    • May 2011
      FCPA, UK Bribery Act and Other Anti-Corruption Developments, Asian Pacific Bar Association
    • June 2009
      Internal Investigations — Top 10 Problems and How to Avoid Them, Compliance Week 4th Annual Conference
    • May 2009
      FCPA Compliance — How to Build an Effective Compliance Program
    • April 2009
      Concurrent Civil and Criminal Action — The Predicament Faced by Clients, Bar Association of San Francisco