Baker Donelson continues to expand its Government Enforcement and Investigations Group with the recent addition of prominent white collar lawyers Jonathan Biran and Ty Kelly. Mr. Biran and Ms. Kelly, both former Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Maryland who are consistently recognized as leading white collar defense attorneys in the Baltimore-Washington area, are joining the Firm as shareholders in Baker Donelson’s Baltimore and Washington, D.C. offices.
Also joining the Government Enforcement and Investigations Group in Baltimore is Associate Alison C. Schurick.
This team joins Baker Donelson’s growing Government Enforcement and Investigations Group, which has expanded in the last year with additions in Tallahassee, Florida; and Knoxville and Memphis, Tennessee. With the addition of Mr. Biran and Ms. Kelly, the practice group now includes 12 former U.S. Attorneys and Assistant U.S. Attorneys.
“As we continue to expand our Government Enforcement and Investigations Group across the Firm, bringing on Jonathan, Ty and Alison marks a significant addition to our team,” said Joe D. Whitley, chair of Baker Donelson’s Government Enforcement and Investigations Group. “With their more than 20 years of combined experience as federal prosecutors, Ty and Jonathan bring a wealth of knowledge that will bolster the existing strengths of our practice. They, along with Alison, join a national practice made up of a highly skilled group of attorneys with white collar criminal and tax defense experience, as well as government investigations experience with a vast ability to handle other high stakes litigation at the federal, state and local levels.”
Mr. Biran assists companies and individuals who are under investigation by governmental bodies, or who have been sued or charged by prosecutors or other regulators. His extensive prosecution and criminal and civil defense experience has included representing Fortune 500 companies as well as corporate executives in many states and abroad, including bet-the-company complex litigation matters. Mr. Biran has represented numerous individuals in white collar criminal investigations and indicted cases in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and other jurisdictions, and has also represented numerous clients in matters before various regulators, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the FDIC.
Prior to private practice, Mr. Biran was a federal prosecutor for more than 17 years. During that time, he was lead counsel in numerous complex grand jury investigations and trials, and worked closely with investigative agencies from virtually every federal law enforcement agency. He served as the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s lead in handling cases referred by the National Security Agency Office of Inspector General, and served as the Appellate Chief of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland. He was recognized with the United States Attorneys’ Award for Excellence in the Prosecution of Fraud. Before joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland, Mr. Biran was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut. He began his career in the Department of Justice as a trial attorney in the Criminal Division, Public Integrity Section.
Ms. Kelly is an experienced trial lawyer representing companies and individuals in a broad range of civil, administrative, white collar criminal and tax-related matters. She has represented numerous individuals and businesses in white collar criminal investigations and indicted cases in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and other jurisdictions, and has also represented a wide array of clients in complex litigation related matters before regulators, licensing boards and the Attorney General’s Office of Maryland.
Prior to private practice, Ms. Kelly served for seven years as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Maryland, where she prosecuted a wide variety of white collar crime and public corruption cases and also served as the district’s Election Official and the Procurement Fraud Coordinator. Prior to becoming an Assistant United States Attorney, Ms. Kelly served as a trial attorney in the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, Fraud Section, after being admitted into the prestigious Attorney General Honors Program. As a Fraud Section trial attorney, she investigated and prosecuted significant white collar criminal cases. During her tenure at the Fraud Section, she also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia trying cases in the District of Columbia Superior Court.
Ms. Schurick focuses her practice on representing individuals and entities threatened with or facing government action, investigation or litigation. Her practice also includes a broad range of administrative, civil and white collar criminal matters. Prior to private practice, Ms. Schurick served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Michele D. Jaklitsch of the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County for two years. A graduate of the University of Baltimore School of Law, Ms. Schurick practiced as a Rule 16 Attorney in the Saul Ewing Civil Advocacy Clinic and interned for Magistrate Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. She also interned at the Maryland Office of the Attorney General in the Consumer Protection Division, where she earned her mediation certificate.
James E. Edwards Jr., managing shareholder of Baker Donelson’s Baltimore office, said “Jonathan Biran and Ty Kelly are among the top white collar criminal defense attorneys in the Mid-Atlantic region. Their addition, along with Alison Schurick, to an already strong group of Government Enforcement and Investigations attorneys in our Baltimore office gives us one of the most formidable white collar criminal and civil defense practices in the state.”
Scott L. Campbell, managing director of Baker Donelson’s Washington, D.C. office, said “We’re thrilled to welcome Jonathan Biran and Ty Kelly. Their experience and reputation as leading white collar criminal defense attorneys is a strong complement to our Government Enforcement and Investigations professionals in Washington, who have a deep understanding of the regulatory bodies and governmental authorities involved in these matters. That knowledge is vital in effectively counseling clients on compliance as well as responding to investigations and enforcement actions.”
Baker Donelson’s Government Enforcement and Investigations Group defends businesses and executives in a wide range of domestic and international investigations and prosecutions. Led by Joe Whitley, former U.S. Attorney in the Middle and Northern Federal Districts of Georgia and former General Counsel of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the group includes more than 30 lawyers, including a former acting associate attorney general, former U.S. attorneys in multiple districts, a former FBI agent, appointed special attorneys general for several states and many former state and federal prosecutors.
Source: www.bakerdonelson.com
