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Daniel Suleiman

Partner

Washington +1 202 662 5811

  • About
  • Representative Matters
  • Credentials
  • About

    Dan Suleiman represents institutions and individuals in high-stakes white collar investigations and litigation matters and has a track record of obtaining declinations and other highly successful outcomes for clients in their most sensitive cases. He is rated in Chambers USA, which notes that he “leverages his experience” at DOJ to “expertly advise major corporations and individuals in complex white-collar investigations and litigation.”

    A former senior official in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, Dan is a zealous advocate who brings a sophisticated yet practical perspective to all his matters. He speaks fluent French and conversational Spanish and regularly handles investigations with an international dimension.

    Dan co-chairs Covington’s Aerospace, Defense, and National Security Industry Group and is a member of the firm’s Evaluation Committee. He frequently serves as lead counsel to multi-national corporations and individuals in complex criminal, civil, and internal investigations, and he has first-chaired multiple felony trials to verdict. Dan also serves as Co-Chair of the American Bar Association's White Collar Crime Subcommittee for the D.C. Region.

    Dan has guided clients through high stakes—and often highly publicized—investigations and has obtained declinations on behalf of numerous clients, including government contractors and companies in the defense, telecommunications, and automotive industries. He has also guided corporate and individual clients through guilty pleas, but he is unafraid to take a case to trial when necessary. All of Dan's clients benefit from the perspective he gained while serving from 2010-2013 as a senior official in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, including as Deputy Chief of Staff & Counselor to Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer.

    Dan maintains an active pro bono practice, often representing indigent defendants in criminal cases in state court, and writes frequently on issues of criminal law, having published opinion pieces in the Wall Street Journal, Baltimore Sun, National Law Journal, Bloomberg Law, Law360, and other publications. 

    Areas of Expertise

  • Practices and Industries
  • Representative Matters
    • Lead counsel to public company and its subsidiaries, which pleaded guilty to Animal Welfare Act and Clean Water Act violations after two-year federal criminal investigation by DOJ, USDA-OIG, and EPA-OIG in United States v. Envigo RMS, LLC, et al. (W.D. Va.).
    • Lead counsel to leading U.S. financial institution in U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act investigation by DOJ and the SEC, securing declination.
    • Lead counsel to public company and its subsidiaries in Endangered Species Act and Lacey Act investigation into animal importation practices, securing declination after five-year federal criminal investigation by DOJ and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
    • Co-Lead counsel to Japanese airbag manufacturer Takata Corporation, which pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in connection with conduct that led to one of the largest automotive sector recalls in history.
    • Lead counsel to Asiana Airlines in investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board into crash of Asiana Flight 214.
    • Lead counsel to U.S. automotive supplier in fraud investigation by DOJ, securing declination.
    • Lead counsel to Japanese automotive conglomerate and its U.S. subsidiary in internal investigation relating to allegations of employee embezzlement.
    • Co-Lead counsel to federal government contractor Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. in parallel criminal and civil investigations by DOJ and the SEC, securing declination of criminal and SEC investigations and favorable civil settlement.
    • Co-Lead counsel to leading U.S. construction company in parallel criminal and civil disadvantaged business enterprise fraud investigation by DOJ, securing declination of criminal investigation and favorable civil settlement.
    • Lead counsel to global semi-conductor manufacturer in criminal antitrust investigation by DOJ, securing declination.

    • Lead counsel to European luxury goods manufacturers in connection with U.S. sanctions exposure and other risks.
    • Lead counsel to national newspaper and one of its star reporters in litigation to quash trial subpoena, securing favorable result.
    • Lead counsel to U.S. consumer goods manufacturer in internal investigation relating to allegations of Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act violations.
    • Lead counsel to independent school in Washington, DC in connection with investigation and prosecution of former employee.
    • Lead counsel to husband and wife on verge of indictment by DOJ on criminal tax fraud charges, securing declination.
    • Lead counsel to defendant in criminal fraud investigation into binary options industry by DOJ, securing favorable guilty plea and sentencing result.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Credentials
    Education
    • Columbia Law School, J.D., 2004
        • James Kent Scholar
        • Class of 1912 Prize (in Contracts)
        • Columbia Law Review, Articles Editor
    • Harvard University, A.B., 1999
        • magna cum laude with high honors in social studies
        • Harvard Crimson, Co-Editorial Chair
        • Rolling Stone College Journalism Competition for Essays and Criticism, Winner
    Bar Admissions
    • District of Columbia
    • New York
    Government Experience
    • U.S. Department of Justice
    Judicial Clerkship
    • Hon. Diana Gribbon Motz, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, 2004 - 2005
    Languages
    • French
    • Spanish
    Pro Bono
    • Represented plaintiff in Wone v. Price, et al., $20 million wrongful death suit arising out of murder of Washington lawyer and former Covington associate Robert Wone.
    • First-chaired multiple felony jury trials in Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland.
    • Represented federal defendant in various proceedings, initially at invitation of Judge T.S. Ellis III to assess whether court could avoid imposing mandatory minimum sentences of imprisonment, winning more than 50-year sentence reduction.
    • Represented former prosecutor in investigation by U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Professional Responsibility, securing no-action result.
    • Represented inmate challenging conditions of detention in Virginia corrections system, securing reinstatement of Section 1983 Complaint by Fourth Circuit.
    Accolades
    • Chambers USA, Litigation: White Collar Crime & Government Investigations (DC)
    • National Law Journal, "DC Rising Star" (2015)
    • Washington DC Super Lawyers, Criminal Defense: White Collar "Rising Star" (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017)
    Memberships and Affiliations
    • American Bar Association, Criminal Justice Section, White Collar Crime Subcommittee for the D.C. Region, Co-Chair
    • The Center for Public Integrity, Board of Directors
    Previous Experience
    • Deputy Chief of Staff & Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division (2012-2013)
    • Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division (2011-2012)
    • Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division (2010-2011)

    Areas of Expertise

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