Michael A. Schwartz is a partner in the Commercial Litigation, White Collar and Corporate Investigations, and Media and Communications Practice Groups of Pepper Hamilton LLP, resident in the Philadelphia office. Mr. Schwartz focuses his practice in the areas of criminal defense and counseling, internal corporate investigations, corporate compliance programs, and First Amendment matters. Mr. Schwartz serves on the firm's Professional Responsibility Committee.
Mr. Schwartz represents businesses and individuals facing investigation by federal and state law enforcement authorities, government regulatory agencies, and congressional committees. Mr. Schwartz also represents businesses and individuals who have been victims of crimes. For example, he has:
- conducted internal investigations for major pharmaceutical companies regarding the conduct of clinical trials, sales and marketing practices, pricing and other issues
- represented companies in criminal antitrust investigations, involving allegations of price-fixing and government procurement fraud
- represented publically traded companies and law firms in response to federal and state grand jury investigations
- represented hospitals/doctors in drug diversion investigations
- represented colleges/universities on Clery Act (crime reporting) compliance issues
- conducted internal investigations for companies regarding alleged fraudulent billings/embezzlements
- conducted internal investigations for companies regarding compliance with election, lobbying, and pay to play laws
- represented an insurance company in state Attorney General consumer fraud investigation
- represented individuals seeking amnesty through voluntary disclosures to the IRS of previously unreported foreign bank accounts and income
- represented both victims of, and those charged with, computer intrusion
- represented an individual charged with immigration fraud
- represented companies and individuals who were victims of crimes, including victims of ponzi schemes, embezzlements, and other frauds
- represented companies and individuals under investigation for alleged corruption, mail/wire fraud, honest services fraud, disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) fraud, insurance fraud, and criminal tax fraud.
Before joining Pepper in 2008, Mr. Schwartz headed the Corruption, Civil Rights, Labor and Tax Fraud unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He successfully prosecuted some of the region’s highest-profile corruption cases, including the electronic surveillance investigation during former Philadelphia Mayor John F. Street’s administration and the corruption prosecutions of former City Treasurer Corey Kemp and former City Councilman Richard Mariano.
Mr. Schwartz serves as a member of the board of directors of the Committee of Seventy of Philadelphia. This non-partisan organization has conducted a permanent campaign for more than 100 years to improve the Philadelphia region by demanding ethical conduct of public officials, promoting government efficiency, educating citizens, and safeguarding elections. Mr. Schwartz also currently serves on the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. He previously served as the chair of the Mayor’s Task Force on Ethics and Campaign Finance Reform and as chair of an assessment team that evaluated the status of Philadelphia Safe and Sound, a city-founded nonprofit organization responsible for contracting protective services for children.
Mr. Schwartz is listed in The Best Lawyers in America.
Mr. Schwartz clerked for the Honorable Edmund V. Ludwig of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania before joining Dechert as an associate in 1991, concentrating on First Amendment and white collar matters. He left Dechert in 1994 to join the U.S. Attorney’s Office, where he spent five years before returning to the firm. He rejoined the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2000 and was appointed head of its Corruption unit in 2002.
Mr. Schwartz serves as an adjunct instructor at Temple University Beasley School of Law, teaching trial advocacy and corruption law and policy. Mr. Schwartz also lectures frequently on corruption and other white-collar crime issues.
