New York – Sidley is pleased to announce that Matthew Podolsky has joined the firm as a partner in its White Collar Defense and Investigations practice and its Commercial Litigation and Disputes practice in New York. He joins Sidley after a distinguished career as a federal prosecutor, most recently serving as the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY).
As the Acting U.S. Attorney, Matt supervised approximately 220 lawyers across the criminal and civil divisions in one of the nation’s most active jurisdictions. During his more than 10 years at the SDNY, Matt also held a series of senior leadership positions, including Deputy U.S. Attorney, Acting Chief Counsel, and Chief of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. As Chief of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force, Matt oversaw teams of prosecutors in some of the Office’s most significant cases, involving market manipulation, insider trading, accounting and valuation fraud, crypto-asset misconduct, and investment adviser fraud. He frequently coordinated parallel investigations with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and other federal law enforcement agencies.
A first-chair trial lawyer known for meticulous preparation and persuasive advocacy, Matt tried high-profile fraud and corruption cases to verdict and briefed and argued more than a dozen appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. His trial record includes victories in cases involving major financial institutions, senior corporate executives, and public officials. At Sidley, Matt will be a key member of the firm’s national bench of first-chair trial lawyers, strengthening the firm’s New York trial and investigations platform and advancing Sidley’s strategic focus on integrating local excellence with national and global litigation capabilities.
“Matt’s decade of service at the SDNY, including as Acting U.S. Attorney, gives him exceptional insight into how regulators and prosecutors approach complex cases,” said Yvette Ostolaza, Chair of Sidley’s Management Committee. “Our clients will benefit tremendously from his experience leading high-stakes investigations and trials, as well as his deep understanding of market and financial enforcement dynamics.”
“Matt is an entrepreneurial and collaborative lawyer who drives his cases personally while building and empowering strong teams, which is an essential trait for Sidley’s trial and investigations practice,” said Nancy Chung, managing partner of Sidley’s New York office, head of the Litigation group in New York, and a member of the firm’s Management Committee and Executive Committee. “He embodies the energy and excellence that continue to strengthen Sidley’s New York litigation platform.”
Matt continues the growth of Sidley’s White Collar practice which added Lisa H. Miller, former U.S. Department of Justice Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, in Washington, D.C., earlier this year.
Sidley has over 190 white collar defense and compliance lawyers globally with extensive multinational, cross-border capabilities. Our lawyers have experience representing clients across the full spectrum of corporate compliance, defense, and enforcement matters.
Sidley is “Built to Win” at each stage of the litigation process and counts more than 750 litigators worldwide. With true geographic reach, the firm can field winning litigation teams in virtually any forum where its clients find themselves facing a dispute.
Sidley is an elite global law firm. With approximately 2,300 lawyers and nearly 160 years of experience, we have established a reputation for deploying innovative legal strategies to achieve powerful results for our clients in complex transactional, restructuring, crisis management, investigation, regulatory, and litigation matters.
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Matt Messinger, Director, Public Relations, +1 312 456 4009 (Global)
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