Addition of Fraud Section Litigator Strengthens White Collar and Investigations Team
Boies Schiller Flexner LLP today announced that former U.S. Department of Justice Fraud Section Trial Attorney Blake Goebel* has joined the firm’s Washington, D.C. office as a partner in the global investigations and white collar group.
“In rejoining private practice, I wanted the opportunity to use my skills as a trial lawyer and fraud investigator to help clients with their white-collar enforcement challenges, as well as litigate complex civil cases,” Goebel said. “Boies Schiller does both extremely well. Plus, the list of law firms that simultaneously do plaintiffs and defense work at a high level is very short. As a former prosecutor, the chance to take on sophisticated cases on both sides of the ‘v’ is incredibly attractive.”
For the majority of his time at the DOJ, Goebel worked in the Fraud Section’s Market Integrity and Major Frauds Unit (previously known as the Securities and Financial Fraud Unit). In that role, he handled numerous sophisticated financial frauds, such as the investigation and prosecution of the founder of Trustify, a privately held technology startup, for securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Goebel was also part of the team that handled the first jury trial to arise out of the DOJ’s foreign exchange (FX) investigation, which the Second Circuit upheld on appeal, and a related Deferred Prosecution Agreement.
“Blake’s considerable experience in complex trials and investigations involving financial fraud will greatly benefit our clients,” Managing Partner Matthew L. Schwartz said. “The skills and relationships he developed at the DOJ are invaluable at trial firms like ours. We have a deep bench of white collar attorneys throughout the firm, and Blake adds strength in an area where we continue to be very busy. I’m looking forward to working with him.”
Goebel received the DOJ’s Criminal Division Assistant Attorney General (AAG) Exceptional Service Award as part of the team fighting loan fraud related to the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program. An accomplished litigator, he is also dedicated to supporting Cycle for Survival, which funds pioneering research and lifesaving clinical trials at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
“I think the world of Blake and have no doubt he will be a great fit for the firm,” said Los Angeles partner Alison Anderson, who was formerly an Assistant Deputy Chief in the Fraud Section. “As a prosecutor, he was smart and tenacious in his pursuit of the facts, which can be extraordinarily complex in cases involving financial crime; and he is incredibly talented at breaking those facts down for a jury to understand. I’m very excited to work with Blake again.”
Boies Schiller’s global investigations and white collar practice handles sensitive, complex, and often high-profile regulatory or criminal investigations on behalf of clients in matters around the world, as well as independent internal investigations. The firm advises clients on all aspects of their cases, from crisis management to negotiations with regulators and, when necessary, trial or appeal. Clients range from global financial institutions and multinational corporations to wellcapitalized startups and high-net-worth individuals.
*Admitted to practice in Illinois only; practice limited to matters before federal courts. Not admitted to practice in Washington D.C.; supervised by a member of the D.C. bar.