NY boutique hires ex-fraud prosecution head

NY boutique hires ex-fraud prosecution head

After serving Slaughter and May for three years as consultant, Sir David Green moves to a new role

Having left Slaughter and May in October, 2021, David Green, QC, is joining Cohen & Gresser (C&G), an investigation and litigation boutique in New York.

Following three and a half years as a senior consultant at Slaughters and six years as director of the SFO, Green joins C&G in London as a partner in the white collar defence and regulation practice group. The former director of the Crown Prosecution Service's Central Fraud Group also practiced law for 25 years as a barrister.

Added that Sir David's experience and expertise from working with regulators and enforcement agencies across the world will be a valuable asset to our clients, C&G global managing partner Lawrence Gresser said: "There are few lawyers who have accumulated the level of experience and expertise that Sir David has accumulated over the course of his career."

The former SFO director will be joining C&G's London criminal defence practice alongside John Gibson, who was a senior prosecutor at the SFO while Green served as its chairman and Richard Kovalevsky QC, who joined the firm from litigation specialist Stewarts in 2020.

Green's hire continues the firm's development of its capabilities by adding highly-regarded attorneys and he will coordinate with its international offices to handle corporate and individual inquiries relating to compound domestic and multijurisdictional investigations.

Green is known for the first Deferred Prosecution Agreement and the first conviction under the UK Bribery Act for the UK and C&G says his experience in both areas will allow him to assist clients with the development of strategies, settlement processes, non-prosecution resolutions and global strategies.

"Cohen & Gresser's fresh approach to investigation brings fresh insight to international cases," commented Green. "The firm has an experienced and close-knit team of former prosecutors and lawyers who are adept at providing advice on investigations and enforcement matters across jurisdictions. I am looking forward to working with them on key investigations and enforcement matters."

In addition to litigation and investigations, C&G specializes in deal-making and transactional activities. Jeffrey Bronheim, formerly of Cheyne Capital Management's legal department, was appointed to lead the London office after the Paris and Seoul locations were opened in 2018. There are currently 17 attorneys, including seven partners in the office.

According to Bronheim, Green will provide "unique senior insight and expertise in UK and international investigations and prosecutions," stating that Green's engagements in government and private practice at the highest levels will be an invaluable resource for our clients.

Increasingly, white collar crime experts are in demand and Green is one of many prominent lawyers who have successfully landed jobs at top law firms after leaving public office.

In December 2021, campaigners called for the UK government to review rules governing what regulators can do after leaving office following Elizabeth Denham's rapid transition from the UK information commissioner to Baker McKenzie, following her abrupt departure. In accepting her appointment, Bakers stated that the decision raised 'valid' and 'understandable' questions. With respect to her previous roles and responsibilities, Bakers said that the decision respected her former role as a regulator.

At the time of Green's hiring in 2018, Slaughters said he would not work on matters with which Green was affiliated while he was at the SFO. A firm that advised Rolls Royce on its £497m DPA with the SFO in 2017 and represented Olympus when it was charged by the SFO in 2013.