Kamila Rivas

KAMILA RIVAS represents individuals and corporate clients in white collar criminal matters, internal investigations, and government enforcement actions.

Kamila has worked on a number of complex civil and criminal matters, including matters involving the anti-money laundering provisions of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the False Claims Act (FCA), and other fraud-based regimes.

Kamila has represented clients before a variety of regulatory and law enforcement agencies, including the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Offices of U.S. Attorneys, as well as in federal courts. Her clients span across a host of industries, including financial services and fintech, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, and manufacturing.

Kamila's practice also focuses on transactional due diligence work relating to government contracts. She advises clients on the risks and opportunities of acquiring or investing in companies that do business with state governments or federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. In addition to advising on a target company’s government contracts portfolio and compliance with key government contracting provisions, Kamila also works closely with corporate teams to identify and mitigate potential liabilities for clients post-closing.

Prior to joining Sidley, Kamila served as a fellow with the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia. She earned her law degree, cum laude, from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, where she served as managing editor of the Maryland Journal of International Law.

Kamila is fluent in Spanish and French.

Kamila's work at Sidley includes:

• Representing a prominent, global U.S. financial institution before the DOJ in an investigation of potential BSA/AML violations involving offshore bank transactions.
• Representing a Fortune 100 corporation in an investigation by a federal agency relating to alleged fraud in certain COVID-19 relief programs.
• Representing a pharmaceutical company defending against False Claim Act claims based on allegations of fraud on the Patent Office. United States ex rel. Silbersher v. Janssen Biotech, Inc. (DNJ).
• Representing a large publicly traded company in connection with an investigation into alleged violations of the Controlled Substances Act.
• Advising IDEX Corporation (NYSE: IDEX) in its US$1 billion acquisition of Mott Corporation and its subsidiaries.

Kamila maintains a robust pro bono practice, representing nonprofit organizations and individuals in immigration proceedings and post-conviction relief.