Blank Rome LLP is pleased to announce that Henry F. Schuelke, III and Lawrence H. Wechsler will join the Firm as partners from the premier Washington, D.C.-based white collar litigation boutique Janis, Schuelke & Wechsler Law Firm. The two attorneys helped to form the firm more than 30 years ago, after having served as Assistant United States Attorneys for the District of Columbia. Mr. Schuelke and Mr. Wechsler each bring more than 40 years of experience to the Firm in various areas of white collar criminal defense and international criminal law, and will be joined by their colleagues William B. Shields as Counsel and Ariel S. Glasner as Associate. The team will be based in Blank Rome’s Washington, D.C. office.
“Hank and Larry have tremendous reputations and bring a depth of white collar defense experience that will enhance our practice and profile in Washington, D.C., as well as nationally,” said Alan J. Hoffman, Co-chairman and Managing Partner. “The team’s collective experience will be a great complement to our existing practice, and benefit to our clients.”
For the past 30 years, the Janis, Schuelke & Wechsler firm has built a renowned reputation in the area of white collar criminal law in the Washington, D.C. market, attracting numerous high-profile white collar criminal matters. The team brings vast experience to Blank Rome in the areas of white collar criminal defense, FCPA, antitrust, corporate internal investigations and compliance, fraud and abuse, healthcare fraud, and environmental matters. Mr. Schuelke and Mr. Wechsler have been involved in many of the most noteworthy, large-scale investigations our country has seen over the past four decades, including those involving Adelphia Communications, Enron Corporation, WorldCom, Bank of Credit and Commerce International, the impeachment of President Clinton, and the Iran-Contra affair, among others.
“When I joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office as a fledgling prosecutor 35 years ago, I looked up to Hank and Larry as the top trial lawyers in the office,” said Jerry D. Bernstein, Blank Rome Partner and head of the firm’s White Collar Criminal Defense & Investigations group. “We have remained friends over the years, and I am thrilled to work with them again.”
During his nearly eight-year tenure with the U.S. Attorney’s office, Mr. Schuelke spent three years as Executive Assistant United States Attorney. Most recently, Mr. Schuelke, assisted by Mr. Shields, served as special counsel appointed by U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan to investigate the conduct of Department of Justice lawyers in the prosecution of former Senator Ted Stevens, and has testified before Congress regarding the results of his report. He currently serves as Special Counsel to the District of Columbia Commission on Judicial Disabilities and Tenure. Since entering into private practice, Mr. Schuelke has served as General Counsel to The Autism Society of America, Special Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Special Counsel to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics, and as a member of the Committee on Grievances for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He received his undergraduate degree from St. Peter’s College and his law degree from Villanova University. Following his graduation from law school, Mr. Schuelke served for four years in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps, U.S. Army, including three years as a Military Judge in the U.S. Army Judiciary.
Mr. Wechsler spent eight years with the U.S. Attorney’s office, two as Deputy Chief of the Felony Trial Division. Since entering into private practice, he has served as a member of the Executive Committee and President of The Assistant U.S. Attorneys Association for the District of Columbia. Mr. Wechsler is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He has served as a lecturer for the American University Washington College of Law, and for the George Washington University Graduate School of Forensic Sciences. Mr. Wechsler received his undergraduate degree from Pennsylvania State University and his law degree from George Washington University, where he was a member of the Law Review and of the Order of the Coif. Following his graduation from law school, Mr. Wechsler served as law clerk to Judge Joseph C. Waddy of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Mr. Shields spent 15 years in public service, almost four as an Assistant District Attorney in the New York County District Attorney’s Office, and 11 as a Special Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the New York State Deputy Attorney General for Medicaid Fraud Control where he supervised a staff of attorneys, accountants and investigators in the investigation and prosecution of health care fraud. He entered private practice in 1988 and joined Janis, Schuelke & Wechsler in 1999. Mr. Shields received his undergraduate degree from Manhattan College and his law degree, as well as an LL.M. in Taxation, from the New York University School of Law.
Mr. Glasner counsels and defends individuals and corporations based domestically and internationally in matters related to white collar crime, including FCPA matters, antitrust violations, internal investigations and professional ethics sanctions. He is active in pro bono efforts, serves on the board of Equality Maryland, and is a volunteer attorney for the Democratic National Committee. Admitted to practice in the District of Columbia, Maryland and New York, Mr. Glasner received his Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law and his Bachelor of Science in Economics and Bachelor of Arts in International Relations, magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School and College of Arts and Sciences.
