A&O Shearman

Litigation

Partner

Stephen is an accomplished trial lawyer whose achievements in recent years include successful representations of defendants in criminal insider trading trials and a $44 million plaintiff’s jury verdict in a trade secrets misappropriation case.

Stephen also has deep experience in antitrust, compliance, and internal investigations, including his appointment by the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as the independent compliance monitor for Baker Hughes, Inc. in what was then the largest FCPA case on record.

Stephen has represented individuals and companies in a wide range of criminal matters, with a particular emphasis on white collar and financial crimes such as securities fraud. Stephen was trial and appellate counsel to Todd Newman in the landmark United States v. Newman insider trading case where he obtained a complete exoneration of his client in a decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals that established high standards for charging insider trading offenses. Stephen also represents Chris Worrall in the United States v. Blaszczak insider trading case, where he obtained acquittals at trial on 14 of 16 counts and the two remaining counts of conviction were reversed on appeal resulting in the dismissal of all charges against his client. Stephen’s criminal representations also include complex multinational investigations, for example, his representation of Citigroup in the Banamex/Oceanografia fraud matter, his representation of Bilfinger SE in its FCPA investigations and deferred prosecution agreement with the DOJ, and serving as the DOJ- and SEC-appointed independent compliance matter for Baker Hughes, Inc.

Stephen’s civil litigation practice includes all types of commercial disputes, with a focus on breach of contract and trade secrets matters. Stephen recently obtained a $44 million jury verdict for his client SS&C Technologies, Inc. in a trial in Cook County, Illinois alleging theft of trade secrets, and has successfully obtained temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions in courts around the country in other trade secrets matters. Other commercial trial and arbitration experience includes defense verdicts in several contract disputes for German automotive company Continental AG, and defense judgments in licensing/affiliation agreement cases for NBC and Viacom.

Stephen also has deep experience in antitrust matters, both criminal and civil. In 2022, he represented Paramount Global and Simon & Shuster in the DOJ’s challenge to the proposed merger of Simon & Shuster and Penguin Random House. He was lead appellate counsel for 1-800 Contacts in persuading the Second Circuit to reverse and dismiss an FTC judgment that 1-800’s trademark settlement agreements with competitors violated the antitrust laws. In recent years, Stephen also obtained two federal court dismissals of monopolization claims against SS&C Technologies. On the criminal side, Stephen has represented companies and individuals in the largest price-fixing investigations in recent years, including BASF AG in the vitamins cartel case, Cargolux Airlines International in the air cargo cartel case, and several companies and executives in the automotive parts cartel cases.

Prior to joining the firm, Stephen was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York from 1988 to 1993, specializing in prosecutions of bank fraud and computer fraud. He served as a law clerk to the Honorable Jon O. Newman, Second Circuit Court of Appeals.