Kathleen A. Sacks

• Representing a European trading company in an international dispute, concerning US$ 500 million breach of contract claims under various corporate and shareholders' agreements in a South American joint venture.
• Served on team to counsel the monitor, Frances McLeod of Forensic Risk Alliance ("FRA"), and worked arm-in-arm with FRA to lead the combined DOJ monitorship team for Balfour Beatty Communities ("BBC"). BBC pled guilty to major fraud against the United States in December 2021, and DOJ imposed an independent compliance monitor as part of that plea agreement. The monitorship team focused on evaluating and testing the BBC compliance program and fraud controls in key categories such as government contracts, self-dealing, corruption, conflicts of interest, and government disclosure and reporting requirements.
• Counsel to TikTok in nationwide litigation in which personal injuries and school districts plaintiffs allege harms arising from adolescent use of social media and entertainment platforms.
• Counsel to Activision Blizzard in connection with nationwide lawsuits alleging a variety of harms arising from the purported addiction to video games.
• Represented Albemarle Corporation, an international chemical company, in connection with government investigations, an internal investigation, and extensive compliance counseling involving multiple jurisdictions in Southeast Asia, China, the Middle East, South American, and Africa. The company reached settlements with the DOJ and SEC in 2023, and the DPP declined prosecution. Citing Albemarle's extraordinary efforts to timely and effectively remediate its compliance program and internal controls, the DOJ did not impose a monitorship. Since the resolution, DOJ Fraud Section officials have repeatedly and publicly cited Albemarle's compliance design and implementation efforts and responses to the misconduct as exemplary.
• Represented pool of individual employees of a foreign company in Asia under investigation by the DOJ and other federal agencies for fraud, drug trafficking, and other violations of federal law the government views as derivative of the company's failure to implement an effective compliance program.
• Won final summary judgment for a private equity fund and its officers in long-running Georgia state court lawsuit in which plaintiff sought multi-million dollar punitive damages award arising from fund's $470 million acquisition of portfolio company.
• Represented a financial services institution and broker in defense of $100 million claim before a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority arbitration panel arising from sale of preferred securities to state chartered banks.
• Advising clients on a wide array of international compliance matters, with specific expertise and focus on the design and implementation of anti-corruption compliance programs tailored specifically to an organization’s risk, industry, geographic, and operational profile.

Kathleen Sacks focuses on cross-border investigations and disputes, complex commercial litigation, and white-collar criminal defense including anti-corruption compliance counseling. As counsel based in the Washington, D.C. office, Kathleen has experience representing clients facing investigations before the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as other domestic and international authorities. She also handles cases for clients in high-stakes adversarial proceedings, including trial-level litigation, arbitrations, and government enforcement actions.

Kathleen represents companies across the globe in high-stakes matters. She has handled investigations and enforcement actions in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Kathleen is experienced in all aspects of compliance counseling and investigations, including compliance assessment, remediation, and data privacy considerations. 

She defends clients across industries before domestic and foreign government enforcement authorities and represents clients in complex civil litigation. Kathleen handles contract disputes, business tort claims, shareholder disputes, professional liability claims, and consumer class actions and is well-versed in all aspects of litigation, with extensive experience in motions practice, trial preparation and depositions, and appellate briefing. 

From 2010 to 2012, Kathleen served as the President of the Atlanta Chapter of the Georgia Association for Women Lawyers.