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As the former Chief of the Economic Crimes and Securities Fraud section for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Francisco, Doug Sprague is a trial lawyer focusing on Litigation and White Collar Criminal Defense & Investigations.
Mr. Sprague has more than 14 years of experience as a federal prosecutor. As Chief of the Economic Crimes and Securities Fraud section for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California, he supervised more than 10 prosecutors responsible for investigating and prosecuting a wide range of white collar crimes, including securities fraud, health care fraud, and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). He also previously served as Chief of the office’s White Collar Crime section and Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Oakland.
In addition to his supervisory duties, Mr. Sprague maintained a full caseload of white collar prosecutions and investigations. He has served as lead counsel in more than 10 jury trials, including several multi-week complex white collar cases. Mr. Sprague also has briefed and argued several cases before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Sprague worked at law firms in Chicago and San Francisco, focusing on white collar criminal defense, commercial litigation, and intellectual property litigation.
- Representing major financial institutions in connection with investigations and inquiries being conducted by multiple federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice, the SEC, and the FDIC.
- Conducted multiple internal investigations for corporate clients.
- Representing numerous individuals in various DOJ and SEC investigations and related class action litigation.
- Representing multi-national corporation and its Chairman in federal criminal case alleging bribery and fraud.
- Representing individual in federal criminal case alleging fraud and antitrust violations.
- Represented individual in federal criminal case alleging false statements; obtained dismissal of all charges prior to trial.
- Represented individual in criminal case in Marin County Superior Court; jury acquitted client on all charges after one-week trial.
Previous Experience
- Assistant United States Attorney, Northern District of California (2003-2015)
- Chief, Economic Crimes and Securities Fraud Section (2012-2015)
- Deputy Chief, Economic Crimes and Securities Fraud Section (2011-2012)
- Chief, White Collar Crime Section (2009-2011)
- Chief, Oakland Branch (2006-2009)
- Deputy Chief, Major Crimes Section (2005-2006)
- Assistant United States Attorney, Eastern District of California (2000-2003)
January 20, 2021, Covington Alert
Based on the top-line numbers, 2020 was a banner year for U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) enforcement. We saw several record-setting fines as U.S.-recovered penalties from corporate resolutions totaled more than $2.75 billion—the highest on record; and a new company entered the all-time U.S. recoveries Top 10 resolutions list. While some commentators ...
Criminal Statutes of Limitations and Speedy Trial Act Considerations During the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 3, 2020, Covington Alert
COVID-19 (hereinafter, “the coronavirus”) is causing significant interruptions to the legal system across the United States, with implications for actual and potential subjects in government investigations and defendants in enforcement actions. This client advisory analyzes the pandemic’s potential effects on the default statute of limitations for federal crimes ...
January 30, 2020, Covington Alert
It has been another strong year in anti-corruption enforcement, with 2019 meeting or beating the high-water mark for enforcement across a number of measurements.
September 10, 2019, The Recorder
July 22, 2019, The Recorder
Doug Sprague spoke with The Recorder about the increase in white-collar legal work in Silicon Valley. Mr. Sprague said, “The Department of Justice as a whole is focused on actors from overseas, especially Asia, and being more specific, China.”
July 19, 2018, Covington Alert
Last week, in SEC v. Cohen, a federal district court dismissed an SEC enforcement action, in its entirety, on statute-of-limitations grounds. Most notably, citing the Supreme Court’s 2017 Kokesh decision, the court held that the injunction sought by the SEC in the case "would function at least partly to punish Defendants and is therefore a penalty" for purposes ...
February 23, 2018, Covington Alert
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court issued its much-anticipated decision in Digital Realty Trust, Inc. v. Somers. Ruling 9-0, the Court held that the Dodd-Frank Act prohibits retaliation against whistleblowers only if they reported suspected wrongdoing directly to the SEC.
January 25, 2018, Covington Advisory
Our message this year is simple: FCPA enforcement is here to stay. Despite pre-election statements to the contrary, various senior officials in the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) have, over the past year, consistently reaffirmed DOJ’s and the SEC’s commitment to FCPA enforcement.
June 7, 2017, Covington Alert
On Monday, in Kokesh v. SEC, the Supreme Court handed a major loss to the Securities and Exchange Commission, unanimously holding that SEC claims for disgorgement of ill-gotten gains are subject to a five-year statute of limitations. The Kokesh decision also calls into question the proper measure of disgorgement (e.g., gross versus net profits) and even whether ...
June 7, 2017, Covington Alert
On Monday, in Kokesh v. SEC,1 the Supreme Court handed a major loss to the Securities and Exchange Commission, unanimously holding that SEC claims for disgorgement of ill-gotten gains are subject to a five-year statute of limitations. For decades, the SEC had taken the position that its disgorgement claims could reach back indefinitely, and recently obtained a ...
Alumni Prosecutors Panel: Inside the Latest Regulatory and Anti-Corruption Enforcement Developments, and What They Reveal About Compliance Priorities
October 2016, Co-Chair, ACI West Coast Conference on FCPA Enforcement & Compliance
March 28, 2016
SAN FRANCISCO — The Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Asian Law Caucus (ALC) will be recognizing Covington as the 2016 Pro Bono honoree at its 44th Anniversary dinner on May 5th. The firm is being honored for its work on Omar v. Kerry, a case involving Mosed Shaye Omar, a U.S. citizen whose passport was illegally revoked by the U.S. Embassy in Yemen. The ...
Walking the Line between Aggressive Business Practices and Illegal Business Practices
August 2015, California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, White Collar Seminar
Former Federal Prosecutors Daniel Shallman, Aaron Lewis Join Covington’s New Los Angeles Office
March 6, 2015
LOS ANGELES, March 6, 2015 — Former federal prosecutor and leading white collar defense lawyer Dan Shallman will join Covington as a partner in the firm’s new Los Angeles office on March 9. Mr. Shallman will head the firm’s Southern California white collar and investigations team while also playing a leading role in the growth of Covington’s LA office. Aaron ...
Federal Sentencing Reform: Ten Years After United States v. Booker
February 2015, UC Hastings College of the Law
Senior San Francisco Prosecutor Joins Covington
January 21, 2015, Global Investigations Review
Covington & Burling partner Doug Sprague is featured in the article above regarding his move to the firm's San Francisco office.
Former SF USAO Securities Fraud Chief Joins Covington
January 20, 2015
SAN FRANCISCO, January 20, 2015 — Douglas Sprague, former chief of the San Francisco U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes and Securities Fraud section, has joined Covington & Burling’s litigation group as a partner, further strengthening the firm’s highly regarded white collar practice. He will be resident in Covington’s San Francisco office. Mr. Sprague has ...
- Chambers USA, Litigation: White Collar Crime & Government Investigations (2018-2019)
- The Best Lawyers in America, Criminal Defense: White Collar (2017-2019)