State Attorneys General Investigations & Enforcement

Proactive. Pragmatic. Proven.

AG investigations are often crisis-driven and wide-reaching, involving multistate coalitions and joint actions with federal agencies. We help clients manage these challenges by:

• Anticipating AG scrutiny and providing proactive compliance and risk mitigation counsel
• Responding quickly to civil investigative demands (CIDs) and subpoenas
• Negotiating with AG’s offices to narrow or resolve investigations before litigation ensues
• Vigorously defending clients through trial in consumer protection, antitrust, data privacy, cybersecurity, labor, environmental, and public health enforcement actions
• Offering crisis management counsel, coordinating public relations efforts and providing board-level guidance

Our Areas of Focus

We regularly advise and defend clients in AG-related matters involving:

• Antitrust & Competition: Multistate inquiries into pricing, monopolization, mergers and acquisitions.
• Civil Investigative Demands (CIDs) & Subpoenas: Rapid response, privilege and Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) protection, and negotiations with AGs.
• Consumer Protection & False Advertising: Investigations into sales practices, deceptive trade and unfair competition.
• Crisis Management & Policy Strategy: Coordinating litigation defense with public relations, board oversight and legislative strategy.
• Data Privacy & Cybersecurity: Breach notification compliance, data handling and consumer data protection.
• Environmental & Public Health Enforcement: Hazardous waste, emissions, climate, PFAS and health crises.
• False Claims & Whistleblower Actions: Healthcare, financial and government contracting matters.
• Healthcare Sector: Regulatory advice, investigations and enforcement actions, fraud/deceptive practices, consumer protection, unfair competition allegations, and navigating state AG notice and approval processes for M&A.
• Industry Sweeps: Sector-wide investigations and compliance reviews.
• Labor & Employment Matters: Wage and hour disputes, worker misclassification, and workplace safety, privacy, and other protections.
• White Collar Criminal Defense: Defend against grand jury investigations and criminal litigation brought by state AGs against corporations, boards and executives.

Our Work in Action – Representative Examples

• Served as lead counsel for a major life science manufacturer, representing client in individual investigations and litigation brought by Attorneys General in Arkansas, Mississippi, New Mexico and Pennsylvania alleging violation of state false advertising statutes.

• Represented a medical practice in a Department of Justice federal criminal investigation involving the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of the Inspector General, the United States Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, and the Drug Enforcement Administration, and state investigations involving the Ohio Attorney General Health Care Fraud Unit and subsequently representing a business in production and interviews related to a secondary criminal investigation involving a former employee.

• Defended a nonprofit organization through a threatened investigation of its CEO by the California DOJ, including a whistleblower complaint alleging financial malfeasance. Resolved the matter with no press, financial penalties or admission of liability.*

• Defended a crypto stable coin client against a broad investigation by the Massachusetts AG into marketing practices and whether coin became unpegged from the U.S. dollar.*

• Defended a fuel supplier in a price-gouging probe by the New York AG involving an industry sweep of energy providers.*

• Represented ComEd in litigating a request for regulatory approval of its first-ever multiyear integrated grid plan, and a corresponding multiyear rate plan. Together, the plans detail every dollar the company plans to invest in providing electric delivery service over the next four years. In addition to ComEd, the case involved 12 parties. A total of 61 expert witnesses offered testimony, including 17 witnesses on behalf of ComEd. The Illinois Commerce Commission approved a $595 million increase in ComEd’s revenue requirement and a $3.57 billion increase in rate base over the four-year period.

• Represented a client in individual and multistate investigations brought by over 20 attorneys general and litigation concerning alleged Truth in Lending Act (TILA) violations for facilitating loans between lenders and solar installers. Actively litigated against the Minnesota AG in state and federal courts.*