Lauren Beck Kerwin

Lauren Beck Kerwin is Counsel in the firm’s Litigation, White Collar Defense and Investigations, and Nonprofit and Tax-Exempt Organizations practice groups.  She has represented U.S. and foreign corporations, individuals, and nonprofit organizations in matters ranging from commercial disputes to fraudulent schemes that cross international borders.  Her experience includes both initiating and defending civil litigation, conducting internal investigations for corporations and a foreign government, and advising multinational corporations on compliance with U.S. law.

REPRESENTATIVE MATTERS

• Obtained dismissal of the initial and amended complaints in a case involving breach of contract, tort, and conspiracy claims filed in federal district court
• Defended corporate client and shareholder in wide range of litigation in state and federal court, including claims involving fraudulent transfer, breach of contract, and defamation
• Represented a Middle Eastern corporation in successfully pursuing claims arising out of multi-million-dollar bribery schemes, including by filing lawsuits in U.S. district courts alleging fraud and violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO)
• Conducted, along with a team of investigators and lawyers, an anti-corruption investigation for a foreign government, which included interviewing witnesses, analyzing documents, drafting a comprehensive report of legal and factual findings, and filing a civil complaint in U.S. district court based on investigative findings
• Advised clients regarding compliance with U.S. and international sanctions regulations
• Advised nonprofit corporations with respect to litigation, compliance, and corporate matters
• Represented individuals who were the subjects of false allegations in the media and obtained corrective press based on the results of internal investigations

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE

• Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP – Associate; Senior Attorney

HONORS AND AWARDS

• Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers “Rising Star,” 2014-2016

PRO BONO AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

• Assisted in preparing victorious merits brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of individuals tortured in Somalia during the 1980s in Samantar v. Yousuf, 130 S. Ct. 2278 (2010)
• Drafted motions and conducted legal and factual research to support the withdrawal of the death penalty in two capital murder cases
• Served as a student attorney in the Police Accountability and Civil Rights Project of the University of Chicago’s Mandel Legal Aid Clinic and assisted in representing the plaintiff in a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 police brutality case