Jim Walden

James Alvin Walden Jr. (born January 19, 1966) is an American attorney. After serving as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York from 1993 to 2002, Walden entered private practice, where he has been a defense attorney for corporations in cases involving white-collar crime, antitrust violations, and market manipulation. He has represented Grigory Rodchenkov, the former head...

James Alvin Walden Jr. (born January 19, 1966) is an American attorney. After serving as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York from 1993 to 2002, Walden entered private practice, where he has been a defense attorney for corporations in cases involving white-collar crime, antitrust violations, and market manipulation. He has represented Grigory Rodchenkov, the former head of Russia's anti-doping laboratory, and UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor, underground high stakes poker organizer Molly Bloom and plaintiffs in class action lawsuits against WeWork, the New York City Department of Education, and the New York City Housing Authority. He served as special counsel to a task force created by Governor of New Jersey Phil Murphy to investigate the administration of the state's tax incentive programs. Early life and education James Alvin Walden Jr. was born on January 19, 1966, and grew up in Levittown, Pennsylvania. Walden received his B.A. from Hamilton College. He graduated magna cum laude from Temple University School of Law in 1991 where he was first in his class. Legal career Assistant U.S. Attorney Following law school, Walden served as a law clerk for Judge Anthony J. Scirica in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Walden then joined the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York as an assistant U.S. attorney. He served in this capacity for nearly nine years before turning to private practice. While at the USAO, Walden led the prosecution of Li Yun-chung, a significant figure in an international heroin ring. U.S. Customs authorities in 1991 seized three-quarters of a ton of heroin in Hayward, California, then the largest seizure of heroin in U.S. history, and Li was indicted in U.S. District Court in 1996. Walden also was part of the teams who prosecuted members and associates of New York's most prominent Mafia families, including the 1999 prosecution of Colombo family head Alphonse "Allie Boy" Persico. and the 2001 prosecution of Anthony Spero, who was convicted of three ordering three murders, and racketeering, as a soldier and one-time acting boss of the Bonanno family. Spero was convicted on April 5, 2001, of ordering murders during his 20 years serving the family. Walden's work prosecuting organized crime was profiled in The New York Times and featured in a documentary filmed by National Geographic. Walden also successfully prosecuted Chris Paciello (also known as Chris Ludwigsen), for his 1993 murder of Staten Island housewife Judith Shemtov during a robbery Paciello had planned in association with the Bonanno crime family. Paciello pleaded guilty to murder in 2000 and served a six-year sentence; he was credited for providing evidence that led to guilty pleas from nearly 20 people related to the Shemtov murder. Benjamin Brafman, Paciello's attorney, "estimated that 'more than 70 people' had been prosecuted directly and indirectly as a result of [Paciello's] cooperation'". This included testimony that Alphonse Persico plotted with Paciello in 1997 to kill a dissident mafioso. The identification of two made members of the Bonanno family ultimately led to the take-down of the entire crime organization. Walden appears in a 2018 "Vanity Fair Confidential" episode discussing the Shemtov murder and the Paciello prosecution and is cited extensively in the book Clubland: The Fabulous Rise and Murderous Fall of Club Culture. Private practice Walden spent three years as a partner at O'Melveny & Myers before joining the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP in 2006. Walden co-chaired Gibson Dunn's White Collar-Criminal Defense & Investigations practice in addition to leading the office's pro bono efforts. In 2015, Walden left Gibson Dunn to found a new firm, Walden Macht & Haran LLP, with fellow former prosecutors Timothy Macht and Sean Haran. The firm was founded with a focus on white-collar criminal defense, civil litigation and investigations. The firm also gave Walden a platform to continue representing advocacy and community groups. Joseph Cassano and AIG While a partner at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, Walden, along with F. Joseph Warin, successfully represented Joseph Cassano, the CEO of AIG's Financial Products unit, for his alleged role in the 2008 financial crisis. U.S. Department of Justice investigators and prosecutors conducted an investigation into whether Cassano deliberately withheld information from investors and auditors. Walden utilized a proactive defense strategy by engaging prosecutors early in the process to present evidence, rather than engaging the public. Neither the Department of Justice nor the Securities and Exchange Commission ultimately brought charges against Cassano. Molly Bloom In 2013, Walden represented Molly Bloom, who was arrested and charged as part of a $100 million illegal poker game in Los Angeles that attracted wealthy individuals and celebrities. In 2014, Walden secured a lenient sentence for Bloom who was facing six months in federal prison for her involvement in the gambling ring. Bloom later wrote a book about her experiences called Molly's Game which was turned into a 2017 film by Aaron Sorkin. Actor Idris Elba portrays a fictionalized character based loosely on Walden. Tether USDT In 2019, Walden initiated representation of Tether, a cryptocurrency stablecoin company, in a consolidated class action lawsuit alleging $1.4 trillion in market manipulation damages. William Anderson and Newsweek fraud investigation In 2020, Walden defended William Anderson in a case stemming from a $30 million fraud and money-laundering investigation of Newsweek magazine executives, and related criminal charges, filed by the Manhattan District Attorney. Anderson pleaded guilty and received a non-custodial sentence. WeWork class action litigation In 2020, during the COVID-19 public health crisis, Walden represented WeWork customers located in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. cities, in a class action litigation demanding that the company cease charging their membership fees until public health restrictions were lifted. The plaintiffs also asked for sterilization of office spaces. St. Bernard’s School In 2020, Walden represented a group of parents of St. Bernard's School, located in New York City, in a class action lawsuit against members of the school board over the board's removal of the school headmaster and alleged financial malfeasance. Anti-bike lane and anti-bike share cases in 2011, Walden represented a group of Park Slope residents opposed to the installation of a two-way, protected bike lane on Prospect Park West in Brooklyn. Walden's involvement as a pro bono attorney for the group of residents was questioned. The case was dismissed by the trial judge which was affirmed on appeal. The Prospect Park West bike lane is one of the most used bike lanes in the city, with as many as 100,000 bike trips per month. Walden also represented a group of SoHo residents trying to remove a bike share dock at Spring & Lafayette Streets in Manhattan. The lawsuit was dismissed. The bike dock at issue is in the top 30 most active bike docks in the entire NYC bike share system. Computer Associates In 2003, Walden represented Lloyd Silverstein, who was charged in Federal Court along with a number of other executives, with financial mismanagement at Computer Associates. As the case moved towards trial in 2004, Walden negotiated a plea arrangement with the prosecutor that helped Silverstein avoid jail time completely. In 2007, Silverstein, the former senior vice president of finance at Computer Associates, became the first executive to testify in what ultimately became a $2.2 billion accounting scandal. CareCredit LLC In 2013, Walden negotiated a voluntary settlement with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on behalf of CareCredit LLC, a subsidiary of GE Capital Retail Bank. At the time of the inquiry, CareCredit was the largest issuer of consumer health care financing in the United States, with approximately 160,000 providers nationwide. The company was under investigation for alleged deceptive business practices. TRW Deutschland Holding GmbH Walden represented TRW Deutschland Holding GmbH, a global auto parts manufacturer, in connection with an international antitrust investigation spearheaded by the United States Department of Justice in 2012. TRW agreed to a favorable plea arrangement for its involvement in a conspiracy to fix prices of seat belts, airbags and steering wheels installed in cars sold in the United States. Raymond Felton In 2012, New York Knicks point guard Raymond Felton was arrested on two felony weapons possession charges after his estranged wife turned in a loaded gun belonging to Felton to a local police precinct. Felton had purchased the gun legally in North Carolina but never secured a permit in New York. Walden represented Felton in the matter and secured a noncustodial sentence and small fine for Felton. Felton avoided jail time. Kyle O'Quinn Walden was retained by New York Knicks forward Kyle O'Quinn in connection with an assault charge in 2017. Walden convinced the Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance to drop the criminal investigation against O'Quinn. Colonial Management Group LLC In 2014, Walden represented Colonial Management Group LLC, the managers of a 42-property portfolio under investigation by New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman. The management company was under investigation for allegations of tenant harassment. Under the settlement, the owners will provide more than $1 million in rent credits to tenants living in nearly 1,700 apartments. The agreement also required that delayed maintenance projects be completed within a year and that the management company be terminated. New Jersey Tax Incentive Task Force On January 24, 2019, the office of New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced that Jim Walden was selected as Special Counsel to a Task Force assigned to investigate the tax incentive program of the state's Economic Development Agency. During his tenure at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and at the firm he founded, Walden brought several cases against governmental and employer overreach and abuse. Mental Health Project at the Urban Justice Center In conjunction with the Mental Health Project at the Urban Justice Center, Walden was the lead attorney in a 2011 class action lawsuit against five Queens, NY administrative law judges alleging bias against Social Security applicants. The judges named in the lawsuit rejected an average of 63 percent of the cases they heard in the fiscal year the lawsuit was filed, compared with a national average of 36 percent based on an analysis by the New York Times. This action resulted in a settlement agreement, wherein an estimated 4,000 applicants had their cases reheard and the five judges underwent retraining. Walden and the legal team drew praise from the National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives for their efforts. Harris v. Eggleston Walden was also part of the legal team at Gibson Dunn, representing the plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit Harris v. Eggleston. The lawsuit charged that thousands of people were illegally denied food stamps after they moved to receive Social Security disability payments instead of welfare benefits. The lawsuit settled in 2006 and two years later nearly 9,500 households received approximately $12 million in awards. Long Island College Hospital Walden was instrumental in negotiating a settlement with the State University of New York in litigation involving the sale of Long Island College Hospital. The settlement deal opened the door to keep the site a hospital and required officials to consult with unions and the community before choosing a proposal. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio applauded Walden's efforts at a press conference where De Blasio remarked, "If there is magic in the law, Jim Walden has found it. Because we