Partner

Michael D. Mann

White Collar Defense and Investigations
Securities Enforcement and Regulatory
Crisis Management and Strategic Response
Commercial Litigation and Disputes

mdmann@sidley.com

New York +1 212 839 5837

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MICHAEL MANN strategically counsels and defends companies, financial institutions, and related individuals in internal, criminal, and regulatory investigations, prosecutions, and litigations. He is a trusted advisor to senior management and boards of directors faced with some of their most complex and sensitive enforcement and investigation-related issues, including matters concerning alleged bribery and corruption, money laundering, and other forms of financial and ethical misconduct.

Michael regularly counsels companies, financial institutions, and their boards on the design, implementation, and maintenance of anti-corruption compliance programs, compliance with anti-money laundering laws and regulations (including the Bank Secrecy Act and the USA PATRIOT Act), the due diligence of business partners in international business transactions, and the development of proactive risk assessments. He has directed many internal investigations and sensitive reviews on behalf of clients in Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. Michael also represents clients in an array of complex commercial litigation and employment disputes in federal and state courts, as well as in arbitral forums.

Michael has been ranked in Chambers USA in the field of Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations in New York (2023–2024). The Legal 500 Latin America recommended Michael for his work in Compliance and Investigations (2024). He has also been recognized as one of five white collar “Rising Stars” by Law360 (2019); and received the “Best in White Collar Crime” award at both the inaugural and second annual Euromoney LMG Americas Rising Star Awards. Michael has been recommended as an international leader in “Business Crime Defence” by Who’s Who Legal, and as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers magazine, a Thomson Reuters publication. He has served on Law360’s White Collar Editorial Advisory Board and the American Bar Association’s Global Anti-Corruption Committee. Michael is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation, a member of the Board of Visitors of the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park, and serves on both the Dean’s Advisory Council (DAC) and the National Advisory Board for the Advocacy Institute at the University at Buffalo School of Law. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health.

Earlier in his career, Michael served as deputy director of scheduling and advance to former President Bill Clinton.

Experience

Recent representations include, among others:

Bill Baroni, the former Deputy Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey, in obtaining a unanimous (9-0) decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned Baroni’s criminal conviction for his alleged role in the national political scandal known as “Bridgegate” (Kelly v. United States, 590 U.S. ___ (2020));
Head Football Coach Urban Meyer in connection with The Ohio State University’s investigation into allegations of misconduct regarding an assistant coach on his staff;
the Corporate Compliance Monitor of HSBC Holdings plc, who was appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, in connection with a cross-border monitorship resulting from HSBC Group’s US$1.9 billion resolution of money laundering and sanction violations;
the controller of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities in connection with the investigation and prosecution of individuals associated with the Madoff Ponzi scheme;
a U.S. public company in the waste management industry in a coordinated resolution with the DOJ, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as well as Brazilian authorities—including the Comptroller General’s Office (CGU), the Attorney General’s Office (AGU) and the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF)—in connection with bribery allegations, including alleged violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), in Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina;
a multinational conglomerate before the DOJ and SEC in connection with a global FCPA investigation and a subsequent assessment and enhancement of the company’s corporate compliance program, including an anti-corruption compliance review of company operations in more than 65 countries, including in-country reviews of subsidiaries and affiliates in China, Russia, India, Turkey, Brazil, Ukraine, Mexico, Romania, Venezuela and Italy;
the chief executive officer of a Texas-based energy company, who spent nearly three years under indictment for an alleged US$1 billion securities fraud scheme, in securing a rare deferred prosecution agreement on the eve of trial;
a hedge fund founder at trial in an insider trading prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and in parallel civil enforcement proceedings brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC);
a relative of a foreign head of state at trial in the Southern District of New York in connection with criminal drug importation charges;
a global financial institution in connection with the U.S. Dollar LIBOR manipulation investigations by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the SEC;
a clearing house before the SEC, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) in connection with alleged naked short selling issues and potential violations of SEC Regulation SHO;
a former senior manager of the hedge fund SAC Capital Advisors LP in connection with insider trading investigations by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the SEC;
a private equity firm in connection with its FCPA diligence of investments, acquisitions and joint venture partners in China, Indonesia, Brazil, Canada, United Arab Emirates, Poland, Turkey, South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana;
a private equity firm in the exit of its investment in a portfolio company following the high profile arrest and detention of the portfolio company’s founder and CEO by foreign anti-corruption authorities;
a Latin American financial institution in connection with the assessment and enhancement of its anti-corruption and anti-money laundering compliance controls;
a leading pharmaceutical company in an FCPA investigation by the DOJ and SEC following the voluntary disclosure of bribery issues identified during the due diligence of a prospective acquisition;
the audit committee of a publicly traded e-commerce company in an internal investigation performed in response to whistleblower allegations against c-suite executives;
a senior executive at a prominent financial institution in connection with an SEC investigation involving High Frequency Trading and dark pool investments;
a global financial services company in connection with internet gambling and fantasy sports compliance issues;
the chief compliance officer of a foreign financial institution in connection with a Bank Secrecy Act investigation and resolution with the DOJ and the New York Department of Financial Services;
a special committee of the Board of Directors of an internationally recognized cultural institution in an internal investigation into stolen antiquities and a resolution with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security;
a top biopharmaceutical company in bribery and corruption investigations in China, the Philippines and Hong Kong;
an inter-dealer brokerage firm in connection with investigations by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the New York Attorney General and the SEC into potentially manipulative credit default swaps trading;
a global energy company in connection with anti-corruption due diligence and a risk assessment of an acquisition target with global operations;
a Latin American bank in an internal investigation into money laundering allegations related corruption in infrastructure projects;
the chief revenue officer of a public company in an SEC investigation into revenue recognition and other accounting issues;
a multinational telecommunications company in False Claims Act litigation over alleged violations of Federal Communications Commission program rules;
a multinational medical device company in connection with anti-corruption diligence of acquisitions across Latin America and the Middle East;
Great Hill Partners in performing anti-corruption due diligence related to its US$90 million investment in Terminus, an account-based marketing platform;
AAE Aerospace in connection with anti-corruption diligence related to its sale to Karman Missile & Space Systems, a portfolio company of Trive Capital;
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a global insurance brokerage, risk management, and consulting services firm, in anti-money laundering and anti-corruption due diligence in connection with its acquisition of the treaty reinsurance brokerage operations of Willis Towers Watson plc for US$3.25 billion;
The seller of the TheraBreath brand in performing anti-corruption diligence related to its US$580 million sale to Church & Dwight Co., Inc.
ILIA Inc. in connection with anti-corruption diligence related to its sale to Famille C, the Courtin-Clarins family holding company and owner of the Clarins brand;
Goldman Sachs Asset Management in connection with anti-corruption due diligence related to a US$116M investment round in cloud-native database SingleStore; and
GIC, OMERS Infrastructure and Wren House in anti-corruption due diligence related to their pending purchase of Direct ChassisLink, Inc. (DCLI) from funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management and EQT.

Michael devotes a significant amount of time to pro bono matters, including participation in the firm’s Capital Litigation Project, in which Sidley lawyers across the country represent prisoners on death row in the State of Alabama. For nearly 10 years, Michael represented inmate William Ziegler in a collateral review proceeding challenging his capital murder conviction and sentence. In November 2012, the Circuit Court for Mobile, Alabama, vacated Mr. Ziegler’s conviction and granted him a new trial, finding numerous constitutional violations in connection with his original capital murder trial. In April 2015, Mr. Ziegler was released from prison following a plea agreement with state prosecutors. This important case was reviewed in several articles in the Mobile Press Register, including: “How the system failed William Ziegler: Perjured testimony, trashed evidence, lying jurors,” and “Former Alabama Death Row inmate cuts deal, free after 15 years in prison.” Mr. Ziegler’s case was also mentioned in an article listing Sidley among Law360’s top Pro Bono Firms of 2014.

Michael has also been involved in other noteworthy pro bono criminal matters. In 2014, Michael helped obtain a significant victory for firm client Robert Medina, when, after a three-week trial, a jury sitting in the Southern District of New York acquitted Mr. Medina of federal murder charges as well as certain related weapons and narcotics conspiracy charges for which he would have received a mandatory minimum 45-year prison sentence if convicted on all counts (United States of America v. Medina, S2 13 Cr. 272 (PGG)). At sentencing the trial judge noted that: “This is one of those cases where I think one can say with some degree of certainty that the work of defense counsel led to a result which may well not have been achieved by different counsel.”

Michael’s pro bono work extends outside of the criminal context. He has represented individuals facing persecution in their home country obtain asylum in the United States, low-income artists in legal matters to protect their creative work, and non-profit organizations in a wide array of legal and business disputes. In one noteworthy case, Michael represented the Turning Point Foundation, a non-profit that operates group homes for individuals recovering from drug and alcohol addiction in disability rights litigation against the City of New Haven after the City attempted to use its zoning enforcement power to exclude the Foundation from residential neighborhoods in alleged violation of the federal Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. As part of a settlement, the City of New Haven agreed to allow the Foundation’s residents to remain in their homes, to pay $350,000 in damages and lawyers’ fees, and to work with the Connecticut Fair Housing Center to improve the City’s compliance with federal law.

Member of the Board of Directors of the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health
Member of the Board of Visitors of the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park
Member of the Dean’s Advisory Council and National Advisory Board for the Advocacy Institute at the University at Buffalo Law School
Member of the Federal Bar Council
Member of the American Bar Association’s White Collar Crime Committee and former member of the Global Anti-Corruption Committee
Former member of Law360’s White Collar Editorial Advisory Board

Credentials

Admissions & Certifications

U.S. Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit
U.S. District Court, E.D. of New York
U.S. District Court, W.D. of New York
U.S. District Court, S.D. of New York
New York

Education

University at Buffalo Law School, The State University of New York, J.D., 2006 (cum laude, Managing Editor, Buffalo Law Review)
University of Maryland, B.A., 2002