Nicole Sprinzen

Practice Areas

White Collar Defense and Investigations; Antitrust; Securities Litigation and SEC Enforcement; Government Contracts; Financial Services.

Career

Nicole focuses her practice on representing companies and individuals in criminal matters and parallel civil proceedings, as well as in internal investigations. Her practice includes advising clients in matters arising under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), U.S. export controls & sanctions and anti-money laundering regulations, the securities and commodities laws, as well as in connection with federal procurement, mortgage, and bank fraud allegations. She frequently represents corporate and individual clients in antitrust cartel internal and government investigations.

An experienced trial lawyer, Nicole has tried federal and state cases in the District of Columbia and throughout the country. She has litigated cases involving a broad range of industries.

Prior to joining the law firm, she served as a prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division, Fraud Section, where she prosecuted FCPA, securities and commodities, procurement, and health care fraud cases, as well as cases involving fraud against the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Nicole was one of the first prosecutors of cases involving the manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) and other international bank interest rates.

Professional Memberships

American Bar Association

National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

Women's White Collar Defense Association

Publications

Top DOJ Changes to its Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs (Mar. 07, 2023)

--As part of a sweeping revamp of its white collar criminal enforcement policies that began last year, the DOJ announced two significant changes in March of 2023.

DOJ Offering Increased Reductions in Fines to Incentivize Companies to Voluntarily Report Misconduct (Jan. 18, 2023)

--Nicole Sprinzen & Joseph Simpson discuss the Department of Justice's changes to its existing Corporate Enforcement Policy that will grant as much as a 75% reduction in fines for companies that voluntarily self-report wrongdoing.

Doing Battle on (At Least) Two Fronts: What Happens When Multiple Regulators Engage in Parallel Enforcement Efforts? (July 20, 2021)

--Multi-agency cooperation efforts can go a long way toward obtaining mitigated civil or criminal penalties.

CFTC Issues New Guidance Prioritizing Compliance Programs in Enforcement Decisions (Sept. 16, 2020)

--Nicole discusses the CFTC's new guidance memorandum outlining factors that the Division of Enforcement will consider when evaluating compliance programs in connection with actions it brings.

DOJ Antitrust Division Endorses International Cooperation in Cartel Investigations (Aug. 20, 2020)

--Nicole Sprinzen, Bruce Maffeo, and Thomas Ingalls discuss the DOJ's the Guidance on Enhancing Cross-Border Leniency Cooperation.

Emerging Trends Under the DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement Policy (Feb. 20, 2020)

--Niki Sprinzen and Kara Kapp authored an article in Corporate Compliance Insights, titled Emerging Trends Under the DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement Policy, offering guidance to help compliance professionals navigate the FCPA landscape given what lies ahead, particularly in terms of white-collar prosecutions.

DOJ Antitrust Division Now Gives Credit for Compliance Program in Cartel Investigations (July 22, 2019)

--Nicole Sprinzen and Thomas Ingalls discuss how, under the new Antitrust Division policy, an effective compliance policy would prevent antitrust violations but also remediate them when they do occur.

DOJ Issues Guidance Emphasizing Importance of Remedial Action to Corporate Monitorship Decisions (Oct. 17, 2018)

--Under new Justice Department guidance, corporate defendants have a crucial, time-sensitive window to implement remedial changes independently to potentially avoid the imposition of a government-required monitor to oversee that process.