Steptoe & Johnson LLP has announced the continued growth of its Investigations and White-Collar Defense practice and New York office with the addition of Andrew C. Adams, the former Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, the first Director of Task Force KleptoCapture, and former Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

In Andrew’s most recent position as the Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division, he oversaw Department-wide efforts tied to economic sanctions, export controls, and foreign malign influence, and supported the establishment of the Department’s National Security Cyber Section, focusing on cyber offenses linked to nation-state actors or targeting US critical infrastructure.

Andrew also led Task Force KleptoCapture as its inaugural Director from February 2022 through July of this year.

The Task Force advanced investigations and prosecutions involving violations of sanctions and export controls, and included agents and analysts from numerous law enforcement agencies, including the FBI; Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations; IRS-Criminal Investigation; and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

Prior to leading the Task Force, Andrew was Co-Chief of the Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York, overseeing the Office’s Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering prosecutions, and was a Co-Supervisor of the Office’s asset forfeiture program where he advanced cases in the banking, fintech and blockchain/cryptocurrency, and the art and cultural property sectors. During his time as an Assistant United States Attorney with the SDNY, Andrew handled multiple cases at trials to verdict and on appeal before the Second Circuit, including financial fraud and racketeering cases.

Steptoe Chair Gwen Renigar commented: “Andrew’s experience at DOJ and SDNY fits perfectly with our Investigations and White-Collar practice. His distinguished trial record and reputation for handling sanctions, export controls, and anti-money laundering issues, in collaboration with our other partners, will meet existing and future client needs at the intersection of national security, cross-border financial transactions, and trade issues.”

Andrew added: “I’m looking forward to bringing my experience working at the DOJ to Steptoe. This is an exciting next step in my career where I will be joining a team of accomplished attorneys to continue to grow the firm’s profile in white collar trials, international investigations, and matters of economic countermeasures and asset forfeiture.”

Over the past two years, Steptoe’s Investigations and white-collar defense practice has handled a number of significant matters including the representation of Volkswagen AG in a diesel emissions case and successful negotiation of the largest corporate criminal and regulatory settlement in recent history. Steptoe’s IWC practice acts for both corporations and individuals and was recently named by Global Investigations Review to its GIR 30, an independent guide to the world’s best firms for international investigations for the 8th year running, in addition to rankings in Chambers USA, Legal 500 and Chambers Asia Pacific.