Brian Heberlig

Background

About Brian Heberlig

I take tough white-collar criminal defense cases to trial and win. I recently obtained a complete defense acquittal for former Autonomy CEO Mike Lynch, after an 11-week securities and accounting fraud trial in San Francisco related to HP's $11.7 billion acquisition of Autonomy. Among other things, I cross-examined HP's former CEO, a "whistleblower" from Autonomy's U.S. finance department, the government's accounting expert, and the outside auditor witnesses, as well as delivered the successful closing argument. In 2020, I secured a rare post-trial dismissal with prejudice for Ali Sadr in a criminal Iran sanctions case after doggedly pursuing Brady violations, leading the U.S. Attorney for SDNY to conclude that it was "no longer in the interests of justice" to further prosecute the case. In 2017, I secured a Rule 29 acquittal for a Pennsylvania businessman in a pay-to-play federal bribery trial. In 2015, I secured an acquittal for the highest ranking BP executive charged in connection with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. I have also defended at trial a Blackwater contractor on charges arising out of a shooting incident in Baghdad, Iraq, WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers on securities fraud charges, DC real estate developer Douglas Jemal on corruption charges, a Naval Academy student in a general court martial, and a DC homicide detective on obstruction charges. I defend clients in all phases of federal criminal investigations and prosecutions. My cases have involved allegations of public corruption, securities and accounting fraud, FCPA violations, antitrust conspiracies, health care fraud, export controls and sanctions violations, theft of trade secrets, obstruction of justice, false statements, environmental offenses, and other business crimes. I also conduct internal investigations and handle parallel civil proceedings, including SEC enforcement proceedings, securities litigation, and congressional investigations. I am a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, where I have chaired the ACTL's Federal Criminal Procedure Committee (2022-24) and the District of Columbia Committee (2020-22). When I am not working, I enjoy golf, reading fiction, and live music. Disclaimer: content on this site may be considered attorney advertising under state law. Prior results do not constitute a guarantee or warranty of a similar outcome.