
Lauren R. Randell
Partner
Biography
Lauren Randell is a white collar litigator whose international experience provides her individual and corporate clients with valuable insights into the most high-stakes civil and criminal enforcement issues, both before and after an enforcement case begins, from compliance counseling to internal investigations to enforcement defense.
Her practice focuses on white collar matters that impact the global C-suite, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), criminal antitrust, fraud, and securities enforcement defense, as well as emerging issues involving digital assets and cryptocurrency-related firms. A Partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Buckley LLP, Ms. Randell has been involved in numerous precedent-setting cases against the government.
Recent work includes representing corporations and individuals under investigation by federal and state government agencies and in related parallel litigation, including:
- Universal Entertainment Corp., a large Japanese gaming manufacturer, and its subsidiary, Aruze USA, Inc., in FCPA-related litigation brought by Wynn Resorts Ltd., as well as in related parallel matters. The case involved one of the first examples of a private party using allegations of FCPA violations as an affirmative weapon to gain an upper hand in an unrelated contract dispute. After six years of litigation – during which the parties produced millions of documents, argued more than a dozen appeals and scores of motions, and took nearly 100 depositions – Wynn Resorts agreed to pay $2.6 billion to our clients just a month before trial
- Executives in antitrust investigations into the auto parts and car carrier shipping industry
- A senior derivatives trader in the DOJ’s investigation of LIBOR-setting at major global banks
- Large regional construction company in an investigation and resolution with several federal and state agencies regarding M/W/DBE compliance
- Noble Corp.’s former CEO/CFO, Mark Jackson, in the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) lawsuit against him over alleged bribery in Nigeria related to oil and gas drilling rigs. Unlike almost all SEC enforcement actions in the FCPA space, Mr. Jackson fought the SEC’s allegations against him. The case was the only contested litigation to arise out of the SEC and Department of Justice's (DOJ) broad FCPA investigation into oil and gas drillers in Nigeria, and would have been the first SEC trial on FCPA claims in 30 years. Ms. Randell and Buckley put the SEC to the test through extensive litigation in Houston federal court, including challenges to what appear to have been the SEC’s first expert witnesses ever in FCPA cases. The case ultimately settled on the eve of trial with Mr. Jackson paying no money to the SEC, accepting no bar to his future employment, and neither admitting nor denying a simple controlling person claim unrelated to bribery
- Ongoing representation of executives at global corporations in FCPA investigations by the DOJ
- The owner and General Manager of a military arms company in the Africa Sting/Shot Show case, the largest FCPA criminal enforcement proceeding ever brought by the DOJ against individuals. Ms. Randell second chaired the trial team for John Mushriqui in a four-month trial ending in a hung jury, which ultimately led to the dismissal of all charges against him by the DOJ
- The former Senior Vice President and Controller of Fannie Mae in parallel DOJ and SEC investigations and in related shareholder litigation. The matter involved alleged accounting errors reported in 2004 by the company’s regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which resulted in a $6 billion restatement. Summary judgment and dismissal were granted in the securities fraud class action after full discovery over eight years completely exonerating our client of the highly-publicized allegations
Recent work with companies prior to enforcement litigation includes:
- Internal investigation into potential FCPA issues in Asia.
- Compliance counseling regarding anti-bribery and corruption issues in several countries
- Advising digital assets and cryptocurrency-related companies on enforcement risks and interactions with U.S. authorities
Prior to joining Buckley, Ms. Randell practiced at Mayer Brown, where she was part of the trial team that secured an acquittal for a senior executive of W.R. Grace in one of the largest criminal environmental prosecutions ever brought by the DOJ. Ms. Randell received her J.D. and B.S. from Yale University. Following law school, she clerked for the Honorable Franklin S. Van Antwerpen of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
In The News
Legal 500 2022 recognizes 18 Buckley attorneys in five practice areas
“They treat their clients better than any other law firm I’ve experienced,” is what one respondent said about Buckley LLP to Legal 500, which ranked the firm as a top law firm in five categories and recognized 18 of its attorneys for its 2022 edition.
The publication recognized...
AnnouncementsLegal 500 2021 recognizes 17 Buckley attorneys in six practice areas
“While some firms will provide lengthy and expensive legal analysis, Buckley’s team relies on their depth and breadth of expertise to provide useful guidance from various team members quickly and efficiently,” a respondent told Legal 500, which ranked Buckley LLP as a top law firm and...
AnnouncementsLegal 500 2020 recognizes 21 Buckley attorneys in six practice areas
“Buckley attorneys are incredibly responsive while providing top quality legal services,” is how respondents described the firm in the 2020 edition of Legal 500, which ranked Buckley as a top law firm and recognized it in six categories:
- Corporate Investigations and White ...
Lauren R. Randell quoted in Business Insurance article, “DOJ policy shift could trigger increased demand for D&O cover”
Lauren R. Randell was quoted on December 11, 2018 in a Business Insurance article, “DOJ policy shift could trigger increased demand for D&O cover,” which discussed Deputy U.S. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s announcement of modifications to the “Yates memo” — the 2016 Memorandum on Individual...
In The NewsJames A. Wolfe Litigation – News and Resources
A compilation of media coverage and developments:
In The NewsBuckley Sandler secures $2.632 billion settlement for Universal Entertainment against Wynn Resorts
WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 8, 2018)—Buckley Sandler LLP represented Universal Entertainment Corporation and its subsidiary Aruze USA, Inc. in securing a $2.632 billion settlement that resolves a six-year lawsuit against Wynn Resorts, Limited. The settlement announced today will resolve all claims...
Press Releases
Publications
"Night of the living SEC injunction" by Lauren R. Randell (Law360)
Just in time for Halloween, a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit raises the specter that conduct once considered time-barred can return from the dead to haunt defendants in the securities industry. The case, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Gentile, further...
Articles"A practical guide to depositions in Japan: Make a plan and be flexible" by Lauren R. Randell (American Bar Association)
You need to take or defend the deposition of a witness in Japan. Perhaps the witness is a corporate custodian or a key executive of a party. For whatever reason—the witness’s inability to travel, discovery rules, or simple agreement of the parties—the deposition is taking place in Japan. Now what?...
Articles"Increased government demands for de-confliction will impede internal investigations" by Lauren R. Randell
The Department of Justice recently faced criticism for getting too involved in an internal investigation ostensibly conducted by a company’s external lawyers, with the government telling the company’s lawyers which employees to interview and what questions to ask them. But less attention has...
Buckley Commentary & AnalysisA Quick Guide to Depositions in Japan
You have a case involving a witness in Japan. Maybe the witness is a corporate custodian, or a key executive of a party. For whatever reason — a witness’s inability to travel, discovery rules, or simple agreement of the parties — the witness is going to be deposed in Japan. Now what? Based on our...
ArticlesChallenges to the DOJ's Jurisdiction Over Extraterritorial Conduct
Part One of a Two-Part Article The United States is often criticized for trying to be the world’s policeman — for trying to prosecute wrongdoing all over the world, even when the connection to U.S. interests is, at best, tenuous. The Supreme Court has in recent years begun imposing limits on the...
Articles"Individual and Coordinated Prosecutors Accelerate - Along With The Challenges" by David Krakoff, Lauren Randell, Veena Viswanatha, & Mehul Madia (American Bar Association Criminal Justice Magazine)
For years, federal and state prosecutors have touted their willingness to charge individuals as an essential deterrent to white-collar criminal action, often responding to criticism of prosecutions of corporate entities without any accompanying prosecution of related executives. And for years,...
ArticlesWriting the Facilitating Payments Exception Out of the FCPA
Last summer, a lawsuit brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleging Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations against two individuals related to Noble Corporation, a global oil and gas drilling services company, nearly went to trial in federal court in Texas. SEC v...
ArticlesSpecial Alert: Lessons Learned from Arab Bank's U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act Verdict
On September 22, 2014, following a two-month trial, a federal jury in the Eastern District of New York ruled in favor of a group of 297 individual plaintiffs in a civil suit accusing Arab Bank PLC, headquartered in Amman, Jordan, of supporting terrorism. Linde vs. Arab Bank PLC , No. 1:04-CV-2799 (...
Articles
Awards and Recognitions
Awards & Recognitions
- Legal 500 2022: Recognized in Corporate Investigations and White-collar Criminal Defense practice area
- Legal 500 2021: Recognized in Corporate Investigations and White-collar Criminal Defense practice area
- Super Lawyers 2020: Criminal Defense: White Collar, Securities Litigation
- Legal 500 2020: Recognized in Corporate Investigations and White-collar Criminal Defense practice area
- Super Lawyers 2019: Criminal Defense: White Collar, Securities Litigation
- Legal 500 2016: Recognized in the Litigation - White-Collar Criminal Defense practice area
- Super Lawyers 2016 Rising Star: Criminal Defense: White Collar, Securities Litigation
- Super Lawyers 2015 Rising Star: Criminal Defense: White Collar, Securities Litigation
- Law360 2015 Rising Star: White Collar
- Super Lawyers 2014 Rising Star: Criminal Defense (White Collar), Securities Litigation
Practice Areas
- Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering & Sanctions
- Complex Civil Litigation
- Congressional Investigations
- E-discovery
- Enforcement Actions & Investigations
- Environmental Enforcement & Litigation
- Fintech
- Foreign Corrupt Practices Act & Anti-Corruption
- Internal Investigations
- Monitorships
- Securities Enforcement
- White Collar
Education
- J.D., Yale University
- B.S., Yale University
Admissions
- District of Columbia
- New York
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
Government Service
- Law Clerk, Hon. Franklin S. Van Antwerpen, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Memberships & Involvements
- Member, The Barristers
- Member, Women's White Collar Defense Association