About The Instructor
Dan Fridman is an internationally recognized corporate crime and investigations lawyer. He has led some of the largest corporate investigations in Latin America, including:
• An accounting fraud investigation in Brazil of a U.S.-listed public company that resulted in a $100 million restatement of financial results. The Securities and Exchange Commission closed its investigation without taking any enforcement action;
• A Foreign Corrupt Practices Act internal investigation of a Brazilian multinational company involving the payment of over $120 million in bribes to Brazilian politicians; and
• A Foreign Corrupt Practices Act internal investigation of a major Argentine company implicated in the chauffer's notebooks "cuadernos" bribery scandal. The thoroughness of the investigation assisted the company's auditors in issuing unqualified financial statements.
Mr. Fridman also helps companies design and implement anti-bribery and corruption compliance programs. He was appointed by the Board of Directors of a major Brazilian company facing a corruption probe to assist the company in implementing a world-class compliance program. Over the years, he has also conducted internal investigations for multinational companies in the pharmaceutical, technology, insurance, banking, energy, and agricultural sectors.
Before founding Fridman, Fels & Soto, PLLC, Mr. Fridman was a Partner at White & Case, LLP, one of the largest law firms in the world, where he helped establish its Latin America Investigations practice. He has been recognized by Chambers USA, the world leader in lawyer rankings, as one of the top white-collar crime and government investigations lawyers in Florida and by Chambers Latin America as one of the top corporate crimes and investigations lawyers in the region.
Chambers USA wrote in 2019:
The 'extremely smart, diligent and effective' Daniel Fridman is sought after for his experience representing both individuals and corporations involved in DOJ investigations and white-collar criminal cases. He is especially well versed in matters with a Latin American component.
Chambers Latin America wrote in 2019:
Labelled "very pragmatic" and "someone who listens and understands his customers' needs," Daniel Fridman regularly leads complex corruption investigations in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. Clients reveal: "He's a very experienced, insightful and results-oriented lawyer."
The key to Mr. Fridman's success in assisting clients in Latin America is that he has native proficiency in Spanish and is able to conduct internal investigations in Latin America entirely in Spanish or Portuguese, without the need for document translations or interpreters. This ensures that such investigations proceed efficiently and rapidly, with nothing lost in translation. He has recently completed investigations involving Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, and South Korea.
Mr. Fridman is a former Senior Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General of the United States and was Special Counsel for Health Care Fraud at the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, DC. He advised the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General in the George W. Bush Administration on national health care fraud enforcement policy, and he testified before U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives committees on law enforcement issues.
He also focuses his practice on representing companies and individuals facing criminal or civil cases brought by the U.S. Department of Justice. In a recent False Claims Act case, he defended the CEO of a national pharmacy that sold compounded pain and scar creams that were reimbursed by the TRICARE program. In another False Claims Act case, he defended a major PBM against allegations that the company defrauded the Medicare program by overbilling for diabetes supplies. He has also represented pharmaceutical and medical device company sales representatives in Anti-Kickback Statute investigations. He has represented doctors in civil litigation involving business disputes with national laboratories. He has also handled criminal tax cases where he obtained a sentence of probation in a failure to file case.
During his time as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of Florida, he prosecuted health care fraud, financial crimes, official corruption, aviation offenses, narcotics offenses, firearms offenses, and violent crimes. He was the lead prosecutor in numerous jury trials. After graduating from Harvard Law School, he clerked for the Honorable Alan S. Gold in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Mr. Fridman served from July 2011 through October 2020 on the Eleventh Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, which interviews and recommends candidates to the Governor for appointment as circuit and county court judges. He previously served as Chairman of the Commission in 2016. Approximately 40 currently sitting circuit and county court judges went through the JNC process during the time that Mr. Fridman has been serving on the Commission.