Former federal prosecutor Luke Cass defends corporations and individuals in a variety of federal criminal allegations, including health care fraud, price-fixing, conspiracy, mail and wire fraud, embezzlement, bank fraud, and money laundering. He also conducts proactive, corporate investigations related to bribery, misbranding, bid rigging, drug diversion, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and the False Claims Act (FCA). Luke served as a federal prosecutor for over a decade and has significant experience with white collar investigations. Luke has extensive trial experience and has litigated federal appellate and district court cases throughout the United States.
Previously, Luke worked as a Senior Trial Attorney with the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division where he handled public corruption investigations and prosecutions of elected, appointed, and career government officials. Luke served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Financial Fraud and Corruption Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico before working at the DOJ in Washington. In addition to Luke's extensive federal trial experience, he has also briefed and argued numerous appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He also clerked in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
As a result of his experience, Luke is well qualified to counsel clients in nearly every aspect of complex white-collar matters involving both the public and private sectors.
Representative Experience
Any result the lawyer or law firm may have achieved on behalf of clients in other matters does not necessarily indicate similar results can be obtained for other clients.
Criminal Defense
- Representation of public official in Special Counsel’s Office investigation in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
- Representation of corporate executive in DOJ criminal price-fixing and market allocation grand jury investigation.
- Representation of company in bid rigging grand jury investigation in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
- Representation of corporate executive charged with criminal tax offenses in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
- Representation of corporate executive following conviction for mail and wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy before U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
- Representation of corporate executive in extradition proceedings involving the Republic of Korea.
- Representation of health care services companies and corporate executives in DOJ Health Care Fraud Unit Strike Force investigations in Dallas, Houston, Miami, and New Orleans.
- Representation of an individual charged with wire fraud and RICO offenses in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
- Representation of a health care executive charged in a $125 million health care fraud conspiracy in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
- Representation of pharmaceutical distributor in grand jury investigation.
- Representation of companies and individuals in OSHA investigations.
- Representation of targets or subjects in grand jury proceedings in United States District Courts in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Oregon, Texas, and the District of Columbia.
- Representation of companies and executives in criminal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) fraud allegations.
Corporate Investigations
- Led corporate investigation into FCPA allegations involving Central Africa.
- Led investigation on behalf of Tribal Nation into financial fraud allegations.
- Led corporate investigation on behalf of medical device company into FDA violation allegations.
- Led corporate investigation into FDA misbranding allegations.
- Led corporate investigation into Controlled Substances Act violation allegations.
- Led corporate investigation into bid rigging allegations.
- Led corporate investigation into wire fraud and Travel Act allegations.
Civil RICO & False Claims Act Matters
- Defense of civil RICO matter in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York seeking $90 million in damages resulting in complete dismissal.
- Defense of a critical defense infrastructure supplier in a FCA qui tam matter, which settled for $500,000 with no admission of liability for alleged damages of $29 million.
- Defense of FCA qui tam matter in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia resulting in complete dismissal.
- Defense of trade secret misappropriation matter in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.
- Representation of company in FCA Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) investigation.
Prosecution
- Trial and conviction of a former senator for wire fraud and embezzlement of federal benefits.
- Trial and conviction of a defendant relating to a $7.5 million Ponzi scheme and money laundering conspiracy.
- Trial and conviction of a defendant for obstruction of justice.
- Investigation and prosecution of corporate and individual defendants for introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce in coordination with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations.
- Lead counsel in the first hate crime prosecution in federal court in Puerto Rico that involved cyber threats and numerous investigations relating to cybercrimes and digital forensic evidence.
- Investigation and prosecution of one of the largest healthcare fraud schemes in Puerto Rico.
- Lead counsel for appeal of an 82-day trial involving a $10 million disaster fraud and bribery conspiracy.
- Designated as a Special Attorney to the Attorney General, as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and held TS/SCI clearance.
Reported Cases
- United States ex rel. Winnon v. Lozano, No. CV 17-2433 (RJL), 2023 WL 6065162, at *1 (D.D.C. Sept. 18, 2023)
- Aarow Elec. Sols. v. Tricore Sys., LLC, No. CV JKB-22-2363, 2023 WL 6161897, at *1 (D. Md. Sept. 21, 2023)
- Highmore Fin. Co. I, LLC v. Greig Companies, Inc., No. 21 CIV. 11021 (AT), 2023 WL 4865722, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. July 31, 2023)
- United States v. Fisher, No. 1:21-CR-231-TCB, 2023 WL 4604647, at *1 (N.D. Ga. June 9, 2023)
- United States v. Fisher, No. 1:21-CR-231-TCB, 2022 WL 16698685, at *1 (N.D. Ga. Nov. 3, 2022)
- United States v. Fisher, No. 1:21-CR-231-TCB, 2022 WL 17097023, at *1 (N.D. Ga. Oct. 13, 2022)
- United States v. Fisher, No. 121-CR-231-TCB, 2022 WL 17477945, at *1 (N.D. Ga. Sept. 29, 2022)
- Shawnee v. Mnuchin, 984 F.3d 94 (D.C. Cir. 2021)
- United States v. Rickmon, 952 F.3d 876 (7th Cir. 2020)
- United States v. James, 888 F.3d 42 (3d Cir. 2018)
- United States v. Castrillon-Sanchez, 861 F.3d 26 (1st Cir. 2017)
- United States v. Rivera-Izquierdo, 850 F.3d 38 (1st Cir. 2017)
- United States v. Reyes-Santiago, 804 F.3d 453 (1st Cir. 2015)
- United States v. Jimenez-Bencevi, 788 F.3d 7 (1st Cir. 2015)
- United States v. Dávila-Félix, 763 F.3d 105 (1st Cir. 2014)
- United States v. Guzman-Montanez, 756 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2014)
- United States v. Delgado-Marrero, 744 F.3d 167 (1st Cir. 2014)
- United States v. Monserrate-Valentin, 729 F.3d 31 (1st Cir. 2013)
- United States v. Medina-Villegas, 700 F.3d 580 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Espinal-Almeida, 699 F.3d 588 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Aponte-Guzman, 696 F.3d 157 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Acevedo-Maldonado, 696 F.3d 150 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Lozada-Aponte, 689 F.3d 791 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Ayala-Lopez, 493 F. App’x 120 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Dávila-Tapia, 491 F. App’x 197 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Díaz, 670 F.3d 332 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Dávila-Nieves, 670 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2012)
- United States v. Huete-Sandoval, 668 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2011)
- Gómez-Pérez v. Potter, 452 F. App’x 3 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Dávila-Félix, 667 F.3d 47 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Rodríguez-Rodríguez, 663 F.3d 53 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Ramos-González, 664 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2011)
- Villanueva v. United States, 662 F.3d 124 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Walker, 665 F.3d 212 (1st Cir. 2011)
- Carroll v. United States, 661 F.3d 87 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Collazo-Castro, 660 F.3d 516 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. De Jesus Viera, 655 F.3d 52 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Nunez-Polanco, 428 F. App’x 13 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Rios-Hernandez, 645 F.3d 456 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Meises, 645 F.3d 5 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Vazquez-Castro, 640 F.3d 19 (1st Cir. 2011)
- Ramos-Martinez v. United States, 638 F.3d 315 (1st Cir. 2011)
- United States v. Ayewoh, 627 F.3d 914 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Fernandez-Cabrera, 625 F.3d 48 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Salas Fernandez, 620 F.3d 45 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Rivera-Rodriguez, 617 F.3d 581 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Rosa-Carino, 615 F.3d 75 (1st Cir. 2010)
- Roman-Cancel v. United States, 613 F.3d 37 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Rosado-Perez, 605 F.3d 48 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Rodriguez-Velez, 597 F.3d 32 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Alfonzo-Reyes, 592 F.3d 280 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Franquiz-Ortiz, 607 F.3d 280 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Perez-Melendez, 599 F.3d 31 (1st Cir. 2010)
- United States v. Ayala-Garcia, 574 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2009)
- United States v. Correa-Alicea, 585 F.3d 484 (1st Cir. 2009)
- United States v. Perez-Cruz, 558 F.3d 50 (1st Cir. 2009)
- United States v. Campusano, 556 F.3d 36 (1st Cir. 2009)
- United States v. Garcia-Garcia, 354 F. App’x 434 (1st Cir. 2009)
- United States v. Carrasquillo-Carmona, 339 F. App’x 1 (1st Cir. 2009)
- United States v. Rebollo-Andino, 312 F. App’x 346 (1st Cir. 2009)
- In re Two Subpoenas to Testify Before a Grand Jury Dated December 1, 2016, Returnable December 27, 2016, 252 F. Supp. 3d 170 (E.D.N.Y. 2017)
- United States v. Garcia-Pagan, No. 13-123, 2016 WL 8467757, at *1 (D.P.R. July 18, 2016)
- United States v. Diaz-Cestary, No. 12-601, 2015 WL 4275716, at *1 (D.P.R. July 14, 2015)
- United States v. Rodriguez-Correa, No. 12-245, 2015 WL 2451209, at *1 (D.P.R. May 22, 2015)
- Pabon-Mandrell v. United States, No. 11-2233, 2015 WL 1035226, at *1 (D.P.R. Mar. 10, 2015)
- United States v. Diaz-Cestary, No. 12-601, 2014 WL 10093660, at *1 (D.P.R. July 14, 2014)
- United States v. Jimenez-Bencevi, 934 F. Supp. 2d 360 (D.P.R. 2013)
- United States v. Rodriguez-Colon, 979 F. Supp. 2d 203 (D.P.R. 2013)
- United States v. Jimenez-Bencevi, No. 12-221, 2013 WL 1429445, at *1 (D.P.R. Apr. 5, 2013)
Professional & Civic Engagement
- Georgetown University Law Center, Adjunct Professor for White Collar Crime and Securities Fraud
- American Bar Association, White Collar Crime Committee, Member
- The Federalist Society, Member
Honors & Awards
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America for White Collar, Investigations, Enforcement (2025)
- U.S. Department of Justice, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, Recipient, Special Outstanding Investigation Award for Innovation & Multi-Agency Solution to Violent Crime in the Florida/Caribbean Region: Operation Stamp Out, 2020
- United States Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director’s Interagency Award Recipient, 2018
- United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General Award Recipient for Fighting Fraud, Waste, and Abuse, 2018
- United States Department of Justice, Executive Office for United States Attorneys Director’s Award Recipient for Superior Performance as a Criminal Assistant U.S. Attorney, 2014
Thought Leadership
Publications
- Co-Author, "SCOTUS Limits Scope of Federal Anti-Bribery Law," Corporate Compliance Insights, July 2, 2024
- Co-Author, "Foxes or Hedgehogs: Evolving Taint Team Jurisprudence," Compliance & Enforcement, August 7, 2023
- Co-Author, “Addressing Geographic Disparity In DOJ Taint Team Case Law,” Law360, June 20, 2023
- Author, "Our Shared Neighborhood: Corporate Criminal Enforcement & Compliance in Latin America," Corporate Compliance Insights, April 12, 2023
- Co-Author, "With Great ‘Empowerment’ Comes Great Responsibility (and Risk) for CCOs Under Monaco Memo," Corporate Compliance Insights, January 18, 2023
- Co-Author, “FCPA: Ecuador Bribes Prosecuted in US,” Latinvex, Sept. 14, 2022
- Co-Author, "Enforcement Trends for Genetic Testing and Potential Implications for Telehealth and Pharmacogenetic Companies," Health Law Weekly, American Health Law Association, June 17, 2022
- Co-Author, “DOJ Signals Expanded Use of Independent Monitors for Corporate Criminal Enforcement,” Corporate Compliance Insights, June 8, 2022
- Co-Author, "Reassessing the Overexpansion of RICO in White Collar Cases," The White Collar Crime Committee Newsletter, ABA Criminal Justice Section, Winter/Spring 2022
- Author, "Closed Courtrooms: Sixth Amendment and Public Trial Right Implications," Journal of Appellate Practice and Process, January 31, 2022
- Co-Author, “Corrupt Conciliations: Federal Blackmail & Extortion Cases on the Rise,” The White Collar Crime Committee Newsletter, ABA Criminal Justice Section, Summer/Fall 2020
- Co-Author, “SK Case Illustrates DOJ Focus On Procurement Fraud,” Law360, June 16, 2020
- Co-Author, “Federal Blackmail & Extortion Statutes: Nefarious Negotiations,” The National Law Review, May 11, 2020
- Co-Author, “The China Initiative: Combating Economic Espionage and Trade Secret Exfiltration,” IPWatchdog, February 9, 2020
- Author, “Quid Pro Quo 101,” Law360, October 31, 2019
- Author, “Market Manipulation in Milliseconds: Spoofing in Commodity Futures Exchanges,” The White Collar Crime Committee Newsletter, ABA Criminal Justice Section, Fall 2019
- Author, “What You Should Know About Courtroom Closures,” Law360, August 15, 2019
Presentations
- "Criminal and Civil Enforcement and COVID Fraud" and "Trial Practice Demonstration – Theranos Case," American Bar Association’s 34th Annual National Institute on Health Care Fraud, May 2-3, 2024
- “Ethics Exchange: Third-Party Applications and Ephemeral Apps," OneTrust, December 5, 2023
- "Exploring Cross-Border Privilege Issues," Womble Bond Dickinson CLE, October 26, 2023
- “How to Conduct an Internal Investigation,” 2023 Association of Corporate Counsel Annual Meeting, September 18, 2023
- “Trial Practice Demonstration – U.S. v. Yi,” American Bar Association’s 33rd Annual National Institute on Health Care Fraud, May 5, 2023
- Navigating Corporate Internal Investigations, Association of Corporate Counsel Compliance and Ethics Membership, April 18, 2023
- “Complying with DOJ Final Regs on Firearm Sales,” Electronic Transactions Association Spotlight Call, August 23, 2022
- "Business, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law after Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine," American Bar Association Paris Global Paris White Collar Crime Institute, June 2022
- "Enforcement Trends & Outlook Under the Biden Administration," The Federalist Society, April 2022
- "DOJ’s Corporate Criminal Enforcement," Association of Corporate Counsel Seminar, April 2022
- “The Paycheck Protection Program & COVID-19 Fraud Investigations,” Federal Bar Association, September 2020
- “Corporate Investigations: Creating Order from Chaos,” American Bar Association, Litigation Section Seminar, June 2020
- “Conducting Internal Investigations Post-Connolly,” American Bar Association Corporate Counsel Seminar, February 2020
- “Cryptocurrency Comes of Age: Notable Recent Regulatory Actions and a Look Ahead,” Federal Bar Association, September 2019
- “Shifting Frameworks. The Privacy and Data Security Patchwork: Federal and State Legal Outlook,” Bloomberg Leadership Forum D.C.: Privacy & Data Security, September 2019
Media Mentions
A recognized thought leader, Luke is a frequent speaker on white-collar investigations and has been quoted in major news articles including in CBS News, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Law, Politico, Forbes, CNN Politics, and Business Insider.
- "Return Of Venezuela Sanctions Reignites Criminal Probes," Law360, August 27, 2024
- "Bolsonaro may face legal problems in the U.S., too," The Brazilian Report, August 5, 2024
- "New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez's strategy of blaming his wife in bribery trial may have pitfalls,” CBS News, June 14, 2024
- "Trump-Fueled Attacks Test Prosecutors Pursuing Elected Officials", Bloomberg Law, June 13, 2024
- "Bob Menendez corruption trial, round 2: Prosecutors have 'compelling' narrative", Politico, May 13, 2024
- "Gold Bars, New Mercedes: What To Know About The Corruption Trial Against Sen. Bob Menendez Starting Today," Forbes, May 13, 2024
- "Lifecore Biomedical Declination Exemplifies 2023’s Self-Disclosure Trend," Anti-Corruption Report, December 20, 2023
- "Binance users brace for ‘cascading effect’ of potential US criminal charges," DL News, September 30, 2023
- "Reading the Regulators: Shifts in FCPA Enforcement," Anti-Corruption Report, August 16, 2023
- “’Evolution’ of Controversial Filter Teams Practice is Underway,” Law360, May 5, 2023
- “White Collar Attys Brace For More Latin America FCPA Action,” Law360, February 8, 2023
- “Anti-Corruption Compliance in Latin America,” Risk & Compliance, April 2022
- “Closing Time, with Luke Cass,” The National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA)’s Podcast May the Record Reflect, February 2022
- “Essex boys who made $660m in one day of oil trading face lawsuit,” The Times, December 18, 2020
- “DOJ lets prosecutors announce voter fraud investigations close to Election Day,” CNN Politics, October 7, 2020
- “Legal insiders brace for a world where Trump loses in November and the ex-president faces down a slew of reinvigorated court fights,” Business Insider, September 1, 2020
- “Bill Barr’s Hidden Truths About Justice Department’s Rule of Forbearance in an Election,” Just Security, August 31, 2020
- “How to Hire a White Collar Criminal Defense Lawyer,” Prison Professors Podcast, May 1, 2020
- “Split panel rules GPS software supports vehicle search,” Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, March 18, 2020
- “Trump Impeachment Inquiry Delves into Idea of Quid Pro Quo,” The Wall Street Journal, November 9, 2019
- “The Justice Department Has Argued Sex, Information, And Worthless Stock Were “Things Of Value.” But It Said Trump’s Request For Dirt Wasn’t,” BuzzFeed News, October 3, 2019
- “8 Lawyers You Should Know In the Impeachment Probe,” Law360, October 2, 2019
Languages
- French
- Spanish