Jessica Fender is a trial lawyer and former federal prosecutor at Kobre & Kim whose practice spans white-collar criminal defense, intellectual property (IP) and technology disputes, and national security matters. Having spent more than a decade prosecuting some of the U.S. government’s most sensitive cases, Ms. Fender represents corporations, executives, and high-net-worth individuals facing criminal investigations, regulatory enforcement actions, and high-stakes civil litigation.

At Kobre & Kim, Ms. Fender applies that background to both sides of high-stakes disputes. Her white-collar defense work draws on her deep knowledge of how federal investigations are built, how the interagency sanctions and designation process operates, and how evidence developed in criminal proceedings can shape parallel civil exposure. Her IP and technology practice includes patent infringement and trade secret misappropriation matters, with a particular focus on disputes at the intersection of IP and government enforcement actions — cases where the theft or misuse of technology may carry criminal, sanctions, and civil consequences.

At the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Ms. Fender investigated and tried cases involving national security, money laundering, transnational criminal enterprises, and complex financial crimes. Among her notable achievements, she led the investigation that resulted in what was, at the time, the largest cryptocurrency seizure in DOJ history: the recovery of over 50,000 Bitcoin from the perpetrator of a sophisticated darknet hacking scheme.

Ms. Fender subsequently served as a Trial Attorney in the Counterterrorism Section of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, where she held a TS/SCI clearance and led DOJ’s liaison team to the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), U.S. Department of Defense. In that role, she managed complex litigation under the Classified Information Procedures Act (CIPA), coordinating with the Intelligence Community and foreign governments on some of the U.S. government’s most sensitive national security investigations and prosecutions, including matters involving heads of state.

Ms. Fender holds a master’s degree in chemistry and is a registered Patent Attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (Reg. No. 59364). She clerked for the Honorable Sharon Prost of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the U.S. federal specialized patent appeals court, and for the Honorable Joan Gottschall of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

• Danielle Bateman and Jesse Fender on Managing Complex National Security Investigations at InfraGard Philadelphia Event
• Kobre & Kim Examines How Regulatory Probes of Prediction Market Platforms Are Reshaping Risk and Strategy
• Combatting Investigations & Enforcement Arising Out of Prediction Markets
• U.S. Task Forces Target Companies and Individuals Linked to China
• Navigating Enforcement and Reputational Risks Amid Escalating “Shadow Fleets” Scrutiny
• New DOJ Data Transfer Rules Heighten Risks for China-Linked Businesses
• Managing Indirect Exposure Risks in a Shifting Global Sanctions Landscape

• Voices of Kobre & Kim: Jessica Fender