Ariel A. Neuman

Complex Business Litigation; White Collar Criminal Defense; Business & Financial Crimes; Securities Fraud & Insider Trading; Internal Investigations; Intellectual Property; Class Actions

Ariel Neuman is a trial lawyer who represents companies and individuals in high-stakes civil litigation, white collar criminal matters, and sensitive internal investigations. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, an invitation-only fellowship of pre-eminent lawyers in the United States and Canada.

Mr. Neuman has been recognized by the Daily Journal as a “Top 100 Lawyer,” “Top White Collar Lawyer,” and “Leading Commercial Litigator” for multiple years. He is ranked by Chambers USA, which describes him as a “tough and tenacious advocate,” and he was named the 2023 Lawyer of the Year for Criminal Defense: White-Collar by Best Lawyers®.

He represents Fortune 100 companies, multinational corporations, and individuals in high-stakes business disputes, regulatory enforcement actions, mass tort and class action matters, and criminal investigation and prosecution of white collar matters. He also conducts internal investigations involving sensitive allegations for corporate clients and boards.

A former federal prosecutor, Mr. Neuman has led trial teams in federal and state courts and has argued numerous appeals before the Ninth Circuit. He is frequently retained in “bet-the-company” matters across industries including financial services, technology, healthcare, energy, automotive, real estate, and sports and entertainment.

Representative matters include:

-Defending one of the nation’s largest waste management companies in a mass tort action involving nearly 10,000 plaintiffs.

-Obtained a precedent-setting order compelling arbitration in a putative class action against one of the world’s largest vehicle manufacturers.

-Lead trial counsel in a multi-firm defense of the world’s leading electric vehicle manufacturer in an enforcement action by California authorities.

-Lead trial counsel in a multi-firm defense of one of the world’s largest energy companies against criminal charges in the Central District of California.

-Defended a Fortune 150 company at trial against criminal charges arising from the largest oil spill in recent California history.

-Led an internal investigation and related civil litigation for the Los Angeles Angels relating to the death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs.

-Obtained a multi-million dollar jury verdict and an order requiring demolition of an illegal mansion in Bel Air following a six-week trial against celebrity developer Mohamed Hadid.

-Represented members of Congress in connection with grand jury investigations.

-Persuaded the U.S. Department of Justice to abandon an investigation and return millions of dollars seized in cash.

-Represented entrepreneurs, professional athletes, and medical and financial professionals facing federal criminal charges.

Mr. Neuman and his trial team were awarded Benchmark Litigation‘s Impact Case of the Year for People v. Plains All American Pipeline.

Mr. Neuman also represents students and families facing preparatory school and university disciplinary proceedings.

Mr. Neuman is active in mentorship and nonprofit service. For more than a decade, he served as visiting faculty at Harvard Law School’s Trial Advocacy Workshop. In 2020, he joined the board of Bet Tzedek Legal Services, and previously served on the board of the Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice.

Before joining Bird Marella, Mr. Neuman served for nearly seven years as an Assistant United States Attorney in Los Angeles. He was named Prosecutor of the Year by the Federal Law Enforcement Officers’ Association and received multiple commendations for his work prosecuting white collar and violent crime matters.

Visiting Faculty, Harvard Law School: Trial Advocacy Workshop

Board Member, Bet Tzedek Legal Services

Board of Directors, American Bar Association White Collar Crime Committee, Southern California Regional Subcommittee

Member, American Bar Association: Criminal Justice Section, Section of Litigation

Member, Federal Bar Association: Federal Litigation Section, Criminal Law Section, Health Law Section, Securities Law Section

Member, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

Moderator, "Effective Openings and Powerful Closings," National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) West Coast White Collar Conference, June 2026

Quoted, "Family feud over real estate empire ends with $1.9M punitive damages award," Daily Journal, June 2026

Guest, "Menendez Case Shows Peril of Talks with DOJ," Bloomberg Law Podcast, July 2024

Author, “Menendez Case Shows Possible Peril of Pre-Indictment Meetings”, Bloomberg Law, July 2024

Co-Author, “Bank Secrecy Act exposes failure of Congress in articulating its intent," Daily Journal, October 2022

Co-Author, “Renewed fight against corporate crime,” Daily Journal, November 2021

Contributor, “California: An Introduction to Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations,” Chambers and Partners USA, May 2021

Representative matters include:

-Defending one of the nation’s largest waste management companies in a mass tort action involving nearly 10,000 plaintiffs.

-Obtained a precedent-setting order compelling arbitration in a putative class action against one of the world’s largest vehicle manufacturers.

-Lead trial counsel in a multi-firm defense of the world’s leading electric vehicle manufacturer in an enforcement action by California authorities.

- Lead trial counsel in a multi-firm defense of one of the world’s largest energy companies against criminal charges in the Central District of California.

-Defended a Fortune 150 company at trial against criminal charges arising from the largest oil spill in recent California history.

-Led an internal investigation and related civil litigation for the Los Angeles Angels relating to the death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs.

-Obtained a multi-million dollar jury verdict and an order requiring demolition of an illegal mansion in Bel Air following a six-week trial against celebrity developer Mohamed Hadid.

-Represented members of Congress in connection with grand jury investigations.

-Persuaded the U.S. Department of Justice to abandon an investigation and return millions of dollars seized in cash.

-Represented entrepreneurs, professional athletes, and medical and financial professionals facing federal criminal charges.

Representative Matters at Bird Marella

Lead counsel for the Los Angeles Angels in all matters related to the death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs, including a criminal investigation of a former employee and civil lawsuits filed by the Skaggs family.

Trial counsel for two families in a high-profile dispute with developer Mohamed Hadid regarding an illegal mansion Hadid built in Bel Air. Following a six-week trial in which every lawyer, witness, and juror wore masks (and some jurors and witnesses participated by Zoom), secured a multi-million dollar verdict for clients as well as an order requiring that the mansion be demolished.

Trial counsel defending Plains All American Pipeline, a Fortune 150 company, in a four-month trial based on criminal charges filed by the California Attorney General’s Office and Santa Barbara DA’s Office, related to an oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara. Obtained dismissal of 37 out of 46 counts and a penalty a tiny fraction of that requested by prosecutors.

Defended healthcare start-up being investigated by the SEC for potential violations of various federal securities laws, including exemptions to the SEC’s registration requirements. Mr. Neuman conducted an internal investigation into the alleged misconduct and directed the company’s responses to the SEC. The SEC promptly closed their investigation without any finding of fault by the company or its executives.

Trial counsel defending a real estate developer charged with making an illegal bribe to a Los Angeles City Councilmember.

Represents a multi-billion dollar publicly-traded technology company in the mobile app ad space in relation to a civil anti-trust investigation being conducted by the Department of Justice.

Obtained full return of over $4 million in cash seized from client, and convinced US DOJ to abandon the case.

Represented multiple members of Congress in various grand jury investigations.

Represents a former NBA player in a healthcare fraud case pending in the Southern District of New York.

In “bet-the-company” litigation, defeated a preliminary injunction demand that would have shuttered oil-services business and required firing of all employees.

Represented one of the largest minority-owned broker/dealers in a FINRA arbitration and successfully defeated a demand for a permanent injunction regarding certain business practices related to muni bonds and fixed income investments.

Represented a financial professional involved in a dispute with his former business partners, who attempted to freeze Mr. Neuman’s client’s out of the partnership and deprive him of his rightful assets and membership interests. The matter was confidentially settled to the satisfaction of Mr. Neuman’s client.

Represents a doctor in an investigation by the DOJ related to various health care fraud allegations. Mr. Neuman convinced the Assistant U.S. Attorney to reverse a decision to indict the client on charges of billing for non-existent or medically unnecessary procedures.

Represented a CFO and part owner of a media holding company against money laundering and Travel Act charges in connection with the recent indictment in Arizona relating to Backpage.com, as well as in connection with numerous related forfeiture proceedings in Los Angeles.

Represented a patent attorney under investigation for violation of the Hobbs Act (extortion involving threats of financial harm). Mr. Neuman set the stage for his client to get immunity from the Department of Justice.

Represented an individual under investigation for antitrust, anti-competitive activities in the public works construction area. The investigation was closed without any charges being filed against Mr. Neuman’s client.

Represented an immigration attorney charged with securities fraud and other violations by the SEC related to the attorney’s work on behalf of clients seeking EB-5 visas.

Harvard Law School, J.D., magna cum laude, 2005

Columbia University, B.A., magna cum laude, 2001