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James W. Spertus was recently selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2012 in the field of Criminal Defense. Since its inception in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.” Mr. Spertus was also selected to Super Lawyers in 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
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| Mr. Spertus is a former federal prosecutor and an experienced advocate who is an expert in civil and criminal litigation. Mr. Spertus is a seasoned trial lawyer who has successfully represented companies and individuals in high-stakes cases and investigations in federal and state courts throughout the United States. Mr. Spertus has successfully defended clients charged with or investigated for fraud, structuring, money laundering, tax crimes, narcotics offenses, health care fraud, and wire and mail fraud. He recently won an acquittal in a federal fraud trial involving an executive of a publicly traded company, and obtained multiple acquittals in numerous other cases. Mr. Spertus has represented numerous professionals facing federal investigation or trial. On the civil side, Mr. Spertus has successfully litigated a variety of complex business disputes, trade secrets claims, employment disputes and a wide range of contract and tort disputes. Mr. Spertus has also represented businesses and individuals in matters brought under the False Claims Act. |
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| Mr. Spertus was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles from 1996 to 2004, and was responsible for the investigation, trial, and appeal of federal criminal cases involving major crimes, computer crimes, fraud, money laundering, structuring transactions, and narcotics. Mr. Spertus has tried over 25 cases to juries, and has briefed and argued numerous appeals. Mr. Spertus was a founding member of the Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Section at the United States Attorney's Office, and spent many years as a computer crimes and intellectual property specialist. Mr. Spertus supervised complex investigations involving trade secret theft, computer intrusions, and intellectual property theft, and pursued numerous cases involving novel and untested legal theories that set precedents for similar cases throughout the country. For example, in a case involving trade secrets valued at more than $25 million, Mr. Spertus obtained the first-ever economic espionage conviction in the Central District of California and, in an unrelated case involving the theft of satellite signals, obtained the first-ever conviction after trial in the United States under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. |
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| Before establishing his own practice in 2006, Mr. Spertus was a Vice-President at the Motion Picture Association of America (“MPAA”), Director of United States Anti-Piracy Operations. As Director of United States Anti-Piracy Operations, Mr. Spertus supervised all aspects of the MPAA’s anti-piracy program in the United States, including all day-to-day operations, the strategic development of new and innovative anti-piracy strategies, Internet piracy programs, and public relations efforts designed to increase public awareness of piracy issues. Mr. Spertus was ultimately responsible for all aspects of the United States anti-piracy program, including the activities of more than 150 permanent and contract personnel in all 50 states. |
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| Mr. Spertus has also lectured at numerous training sessions for federal agents and Assistant United States Attorneys, including advanced training sessions at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and has provided strategic advice on techniques and strategies for prosecuting intellectual property crimes. Mr. Spertus also has tremendous experience with complex fraud, narcotics, and major crimes cases, and has had many jury trials. |
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| From 1992 to 1996, Mr. Spertus was an associate at the Los Angeles law firm Irell & Manella, specializing in civil litigation. From 1991 to 1992, Mr. Spertus clerked for the Honorable Proctor Hug, Jr., on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Spertus earned his law degree from the University of Southern California Law Center in 1991, where he was Order of the Coif (Top 10%), Phi Kappa Phi (Top 5%), and Managing Editor of the Southern California Law Review. Mr. Spertus earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1988. |
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| Mr. Spertus is President of the Cutthroat Trial Lawyers Association. |
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