Pillsbury Welcomes Former UK Solicitor General Lord Garnier KC in London to Bolster Corporate Investigations & White Collar Practice

“As Solicitor General, Lord Garnier initiated and drove the work at the UK Serious Fraud Office towards its use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements,” said Firm Chair David Dekker. “He has unsurpassed experience navigating the intricacies of investigations, from both government and private practice perspectives. He will now bring that knowledge to bear on behalf of our clients.”

“The London office has grown by over 30% in the last twelve months, which shows the real importance Pillsbury places in being part of the London and broader UK legal market,” Dekker added.

Lord Garnier KC leverages his extensive experience in both politics and government, advising companies and individuals on corporate crime, international human rights, sanctions, defamation, privacy and related media law cases. He was the driving force behind the UK’s adoption of the U.S.’s Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA), through which a company accused of corporate crime agrees to meet certain conditions to pause or defer criminal charges. He led the legal teams in four of the twelve UK DPAs ever negotiated—two on behalf of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and two on behalf of respondents.

“Edward Garnier is among the UK’s most influential figures in financial crime and investigations,” said Pillsbury Global Head of Litigation Deborah Baum. “To have him working closely with our many outstanding practitioners in London and the United States is both an honor and of enormous benefit to our international clientele.”

Lord Garnier will work closely with head of the London practice and former SFO prosecutor Audrey Koh and other Corporate Investigations & White Collar Defense practitioners across the Pillsbury network. He adds to the firm’s deep bench of former government lawyers, which also includes former Acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rich Donoghue, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Markenzy Lapointe, and more than a dozen other ex-Assistant United States Attorneys across the firm.

“We are thrilled to welcome Edward to our team,” added Matthew Oresman, managing partner of Pillsbury’s London office. “His arrival serves as testament of our ability to attract the most qualified and sought-after legal advisors and offer the highest caliber of service to our clients.”

“Our London office is a critical component of our global platform and has been for more than 50 years. What’s more, London has come to serve as a nexus for Pillsbury’s Middle East practice, with London- and Doha-based partner Nadia Barazi coordinating those efforts through lawyers based in London, Doha and Riyadh. It’s a region of real growth,” Oresman added.

“We’re pleased to be growing our London white-collar practice, which has always been a strong point for the U.S. team”, said Audrey Koh, Head of UK Corporate Investigations & White Collar Defense. “With recent developments in UK legislation—including the introduction of the Failure to Prevent Fraud offence—this practice is growing to meet client demand. The extra-territorial nature of the corporate failure to prevent regime in the UK makes London a vital hub for cross border investigations, so our expansion feels both natural and timely,” Koh added.  

Lord Garnier’s arrival comes as Pillsbury continues to build out its offering in London, across multiple practices. The firm has welcomed seven new senior practitioners in London in the past 18 months, including Koh; Emerging Companies & Venture Capital partner Sarah Melaney; partner Daphne Higgs, who serves as Bay Area and London Chair of Technology Transactions and Artificial Intelligence; Restructuring partner Natasha Atkinson; Hamid Yunis, a Corporate and M&A partner who is particularly active in the healthcare and life sciences space and is known for helping global clients navigate highly complex transactions; and Laurence Lieberman, a cross-border disputes partner embedded in the Indian and Israeli markets.

Edward Garnier said, “I am delighted to be working with the expanding Pillsbury team to bring my nearly 50 years’ experience at the Bars of England and Wales and of Northern Ireland to assist the firm meet the needs of its clients. Having brought DPAs from America to England, I know there is a huge amount we British lawyers can learn from our U.S. counterparts about how to solve clients’ problems in the world of international and cross-border disputes, and I hope that I can bring plenty to the party in return, not least in relation to the British regime covering corporate failure to prevent bribery, tax evasion and fraud offences. I look forward to assisting Pillsbury and its many excellent lawyers here in London.”