King & Spalding announced that NAFUSA member Paul Murphy, who most recently served as Chief of Staff to FBI Director Chris Wray, has rejoined the firm as a partner on the Special Matters and Government Investigations team. King & Spalding now has eight former United States Attorneys with Murphy joining John Richter, Zach Fardon, Craig Carpenito, Rod Rosenstein, John Horn, Sally Yates and Jim Vines.

Murphy, who is based in the Atlanta and the Washington, D.C. offices, was a King & Spalding partner from 2004 to 2019, when he took his position with the FBI. At the firm, he counseled clients in a wide array of industries and helped them navigate their most sensitive legal challenges, including white-collar criminal defense matters, civil investigations, internal corporate investigations and corporate compliance reviews. He also represented clients in litigation under federal and state False Claims Acts, as well as in other civil fraud matters.

“We are thrilled to have Paul back on our team,” said Zach Fardon, chair of King & Spalding’s Government Matters practice group, of which the Special Matters and Government Investigations team is a part. “Paul has long been recognized by clients as a great lawyer, counselor and strategist. His FBI experience will be a further boon to our Special Matters and investigations clients, and will add strength to other practices such as our National Security team.”

During his FBI tenure, Murphy worked on a daily basis with Director Wray on all issues before the agency, including white collar enforcement issues regularly facing private sector clients. Murphy has previously held several roles with the Department of Justice, including as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Paul also served as an Associate Deputy Attorney General and later as the Chief of Staff to then-Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson. He started at King & Spalding as an associate in 1988 and had become a partner by the time he started his first position at the DOJ.

Murphy has been recognized as a leading white-collar criminal defense attorney by several publications, including Best Lawyers and Chambers USA. He earned his JD, magna cum laude, from the University of Georgia and received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University, also magna cum laude.

“I’m so fortunate to have had a front-row seat to see King & Spalding’s growth over many years, and I’ve always been impressed by its world-class investigations practice and supportive, truly collaborative environment,” Murphy said. “The firm’s remarkable growth has continued during my service at the FBI, and I am excited to be rejoining my top-notch colleagues here to represent our clients and come up with solutions to their most pressing legal needs.”

Phelps announced on February 1, 2021, that Mike Hurst, the immediate past U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, has become a litigation partner at the firm. Hurst, who will work from the Jackson office, joins three other former U.S. Attorneys in Phelps’ acclaimed litigation group. He will also be the fourth NAFUSA member at Phelps, joining Walt Green, Brian Albritton and Harry Rosenberg.

Mike served as U.S. Attorney from 2017 until early this year. Under his leadership, the Southern District of Mississippi increased prosecutions by 178%, almost tripling the number from just three years earlier, while saving American taxpayers over $1.7 million.

Notable prosecutions during his tenure included some of the largest cases in Mississippi history: the largest health care fraud scheme (Wade Walters, et. al.), the largest Ponzi scheme (Lamar Adams), the largest False Claims Act health care fraud settlement (Region 8), and the largest nursing home False Claim Act settlement (Hyperion). In addition, as Chief Federal Law Enforcement Officer for the Southern District, Hurst oversaw the largest single-state immigration worksite enforcement operation in our nation’s history, involving seven different locations operated by multiple companies. While United States Attorney, Hurst personally argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and, previously as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, he handled some of the most complex cases in the office, dealing with white collar crimes, public corruption and financial fraud, including numerous jury trials before almost every federal judge in the Southern District.

“Mike has shown himself capable of getting results in the most complicated, high-pressure cases around. His courtroom skills and his relationships with the federal judiciary will be of great benefit to our clients,” said Phelps Managing Partner Marshall Redmon.

At Phelps, Mike will handle both civil and criminal litigation, putting his years of experience before judges and juries to work. While based in Mississippi, he will be involved in litigation matters for clients throughout the Gulf South.

“Phelps has an incredible reputation in litigation, both in Jackson and throughout the region, and I am excited to join these litigators in helping clients both inside and outside the courtroom,” said Hurst. “I believe my experience in government, both as a federal prosecutor and as counsel on Capitol Hill, will be invaluable to those who are facing investigations, government enforcement actions, public policy issues, or other complex legal situations.”

Prior to 2017, Hurst served for more than eight years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, as Director of the Mississippi Justice Institute, as General Counsel for the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, as Legislative Director to a U.S. Congressman, as Counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, and in private practice. He is a graduate of George Washington University Law School, Millsaps College, and East Central Community College.

On January 25, 2021, Robins Kaplan LLP filed an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court that the firm is handling pro bono on behalf of a group of former United States Attorneys. The case, United States v. Cooley, concerns the scope of tribal law enforcement’s search and seizure authority over non-Natives on the Reservation.

“As former U.S. Attorneys who prosecuted federal crimes on Reservations, the ten amici in this brief are all deeply familiar with the jurisdictional challenges facing federal, state, and tribal law enforcement officers and prosecutors as they endeavor to fight crime in those communities,” says NAFUSA member Tim Purdon. “I am pleased to have the firm support us on this important pro bono matter which will help strengthen public safety for American Indian Tribes across the country.” Tim is joined by his partner, NAFUSA member Brendan Johnson as amici.

Robins Kaplan’s pro bono program has a long-standing commitment to representing American Indian Tribes across the U.S. The firm’s work on behalf of Tribes includes representation of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in a lawsuit against the federal government after it closed the only hospital emergency room on the Rosebud reservation and an important North Dakota Voting Rights case for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Spirit Lake Nation. This work has earned the firm recognition on the National Law Journal’s Pro Bono Hot List.

Click here to review the amicus with a list of the 10 former U.S. Attorneys involved: Robins Kaplan amicus

The ABA Criminal Justice Section’s Podcast “The JustPod” interviewed NAFUSA member Joe Whitley on the events at the Capitol on January 6th. Click here to listen to: January 6th: A Review of Criminal Liability  Whitley discusses voter fraud and where and with whom there is potential criminal liability over the events of that day. Whitely, currently a partner at Baker Donelson, was the first General Counsel of the United States Department of Homeland Security.

On January 14, 2021, a group of eighty-five former senior officials of the United States Department of Justice who have served in the administrations of both political parties signed a letter to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in support of the confirmation of NAFUSA member Ali Mayorkas to serve as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Click here to review the letter: Mayorkas DOJ Letter

NAFUSA member Chuck Rosenberg has kicked off Season 4 of his of his successful Podcast The Oath with an interview of another NAFUSA member, Bob Mueller. The first part of this two hour in depth program is now available and the second half will be broadcast at the end of Season 4.

Bob will not be discussing the details of his role as special prosecutor. He does, however, talk at some length about his life as a student athlete, Princeton graduate, a decorated Marine officer in Vietnam, a graduate of the University of Virginia Law School, and his distinguished career at Justice. He truly is an American hero.

Previous seasons of The Oath have featured other NAFUSA members, including Pat Fitzgerald, Joyce Vance, Preet Bharara, Barb McQuade, and Carol Lam, as well as Sally Yates and Jim Comey. (msnbc.com/theoath)

NAFUSA life member and past president Jim Cissell (SD Ohio 1978-1982) has released the 2021 edition of Federal Criminal Trials. Jim has been producing this single volume treatise for several years. NAFUSA member Joe Whitley (ND Georgia 1990-1993, MD Georgia 1981-1986) calls Jim’s book “an indispensable resource to getting quickly to the heart of highly complex federal criminal litigation issues.”

Jim has offered NAFUSA members a 20% discount. Attached for use by NAFUSA is a PDF file containing a promotional flyer that includes information about the purchase discount.

OFF04536-1_P60877 Fed Criminal Trials 2021 Ed_Author flyer_final

Alejandro N. Mayorkas. J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press

NAFUSA member Alejandro Mayorkas will be nominated by President Elect Joe Biden to become the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Mayorkas served as the deputy secretary of Homeland Security from 2013 to 2016 and the director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) from 2009-2013. He is currently a partner at WilmerHale.

“It is no small task to lead the Department of Homeland Security, but I will work to restore faith in our institutions, and protect our security here at home,” Mayorkas said in a tweet.

Cuban born, Mayorkas graduated from the University of California at Berkeley and Loyola Law School. He served as the United States Attorney for the Central District of California, 1998-2001. He has been recognized as one of the “50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America” by the National Law Journal.