Sean S. Buckley photo
Sean S. Buckley
Lawyer
New York
800 Third Avenue
New York, New York 10022
+1 212 488 1253
New York
800 Third Avenue
New York, New York 10022
+1 212 488 1253

Sean Buckley, a former U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecutor, is a trial and investigations lawyer who defends clients in white-collar criminal matters, international government enforcement actions, and intellectual property litigation. Mr. Buckley serves as counsel in cross-border investigations, often involving allegations of bribery or U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations, antitrust matters or money laundering, and also has experience with enforcement actions alleging spoofing, market manipulation and other illicit trading practices in the commodity futures space. With an extensive background in national security law, Mr. Buckley also advocates for clients affected by sanctions issued by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Commerce, and handles other issues relating to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and Title III of the Helms-Burton Act.

Before joining Kobre & Kim, Mr. Buckley served as a DOJ prosecutor, most recently as co-chief of the Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. In that capacity, he was responsible for overseeing complex international and cross-border investigations relating to international terrorism and terrorism financing across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, as well as economic espionage, U.S. sanctions and violations of anti-money laundering laws. Specifically, he handled various matters related to economic sanctions regimes involving the countries of Cuba, Venezuela, North Korea and Iran, among others. As a DOJ prosecutor, Mr. Buckley served as lead counsel in some of the United States Attorney’s Office’s most high-profile trials and handled a wide range of cases including those involving securities fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, cybercrime, national security and extradition.

Earlier in his career, he practiced at Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, where he conducted internal investigations and represented corporate clients in trial and appellate courts in antitrust, patent and commercial litigations.

Admissions

  • New York
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Trial Bar

Education

  • University of Virginia School of Law, JD
  • University of Virginia Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, MA
  • Princeton University, AB

Accolades

  • Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award
  • Assistant Attorney General's Exceptional Service Award
  • Executive Office of the United States Attorneys Director's Award
  • FinCEN Law Enforcement Award, Department of the Treasury
  • Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association National Group Achievement Award

Select Engagements

  • Representation of the foreign and domestic subsidiaries of an international conglomerate in internal investigation of potential U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations.
  • Representation of a large European corporation in trial and appellate courts in a patent litigation, including a patent infringement trial that resulted in a US $43.1 million jury award.
  • Representation of a global manufacturing and distribution company in an antitrust and bid-rigging lawsuit, including securing jurisdictional dismissal of claims against a European subsidiary.
 

Publications & Presentations

  • Co-author, "Too Wealthy To Bail: Navigating Pretrial Release Strategy" (Law360, March 2021)
  • Co-author, "Criminal Wire Fraud Charges Are Coming to Securities and Cryptocurrency Markets Near You" (Bloomberg Law, February 2021)

Credentials

Admissions

  • New York
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Trial Bar

Education

  • University of Virginia School of Law, JD
  • University of Virginia Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, MA
  • Princeton University, AB

Accolades

  • Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award
  • Assistant Attorney General's Exceptional Service Award
  • Executive Office of the United States Attorneys Director's Award
  • FinCEN Law Enforcement Award, Department of the Treasury
  • Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association National Group Achievement Award

Engagements

  • Representation of the foreign and domestic subsidiaries of an international conglomerate in internal investigation of potential U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations.
  • Representation of a large European corporation in trial and appellate courts in a patent litigation, including a patent infringement trial that resulted in a US $43.1 million jury award.
  • Representation of a global manufacturing and distribution company in an antitrust and bid-rigging lawsuit, including securing jurisdictional dismissal of claims against a European subsidiary.

News

Publications & Presentations

  • Co-author, "Too Wealthy To Bail: Navigating Pretrial Release Strategy" (Law360, March 2021)
  • Co-author, "Criminal Wire Fraud Charges Are Coming to Securities and Cryptocurrency Markets Near You" (Bloomberg Law, February 2021)