Richard S. Hartunian

Profile

Richard S. Hartunian offers clients the benefit of his decades of experience as lead government counsel in high-profile, high-stakes criminal and civil disputes.

Rick defends clients against allegations of white collar crime, healthcare fraud, BSA/AML violations, and environmental and defense procurement fraud, and advises on cross-border security and trade issues. He also helps clients manage crises that result from litigation and government enforcement efforts, particularly when investigations involve multiple agencies and jurisdictions.

During his tenure as United States attorney for the Northern District of New York, Rick served in national leadership positions as a member, vice chair and chair of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee of U.S. Attorneys, providing advice and guidance to the department’s leaders on the full range of criminal and civil issues affecting DOJ and United States Attorneys’ Offices nationally. While serving on this prestigious committee, he provided input for notable DOJ initiatives, such as the department’s Individual Accountability Policy in cases involving cooperation by corporations (the Yates Memo, September 2015), various DOJ discovery initiatives (including responses to calls for expansion of the DOJ’s discovery obligations from the judiciary and state bar associations) and the Associate Attorney General’s Civil Enforcement Cooperation Memo (September 2016). Within the Northern District of New York, Rick headed several key initiatives and prosecutions and strengthened his office’s Civil Division by emphasizing affirmative civil enforcement to combat healthcare, procurement and environmental fraud. Rick also worked closely with the FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security on cybercrime, including trade secret and customer data theft.

Prior to his appointment as U.S. attorney, Rick served as an assistant United States attorney (AUSA), where he investigated and prosecuted immigration, narcotics and violent crime offenses, as well as white collar cases, including tax and bankruptcy fraud matters. He also served as Narcotics chief and coordinator of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. As an AUSA, he gained vast experience working with all federal investigative agencies and their task forces, in addition to many state and local law enforcement agencies, and was recognized with several awards and case-related commendations.

Rick has substantial knowledge of and good working relationships with U.S. and Canadian border security agencies, enabling him to assist U.S. and Canadian businesses that have pressing border-related concerns. Rick also has experience with Native American tribal affairs and gaming matters.

Frequently interviewed by the legal press, Rick is also regularly invited to address both public and private organizations and bar associations.

Speaking Engagements

Regularly invited to address both public and private organizations, including county, state, federal and national bar associations. Recent engagements:

Federal Bar Association Qui Tam Section Webinar, September 2022

Various New York, California and Virginia-based Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, September – December 2020

Western Bankers Association 2020 Cannabis Forum, October 2020

ACI Summit on Controlled Substances, June 2021

Association of Corporate Counsel, National Capital Region, May 2019

Armenian Bar Association Public Servants Dinner, April 2019

American Bar Association Health Law Symposium, November 2016

National Association of Former U.S. Attorneys, October 2016

Publications

Co-author, “Addressing The Security Risks Of University Foreign Funding,” Law360, January 19, 2021.

Co-author, “Foreign Banks Should Remain Wary of US Sanctions Laws,” Law360, May 10, 2019.

Co-author, “America’s Opioid Crisis,” Bloomberg BNA’s Pharmaceutical Law & Industry Report, March 30, 2018.

Co-author, “The National Opioid Epidemic: The Emergence of a Multi-Layer Approach,” Law Journal Newsletters, February 1, 2018.

Select Media Mentions

“Richard Hartunian’s Fight Against Terrorism,” NewYorkUpstate.com, September 28, 2016.

“Northern District Federal Prosecutor Beefs Up Civil Enforcement,” New York Law Journal, September 1, 2016.

“Hartunian Testifies on Synthetic Drugs,” Justice.gov, June 7, 2016.

“Hartunian Testifies on Northern Border Security,” Justice.gov, April 22, 2015.

10.19.23

Manatt Successfully Represents Marine Veteran in Request to Change ...

Manatt successfully represented a Marine veteran, T.M., in his request to upgrade his service discharge from Under Other Than Honorable Conditions ...
05.24.21

Manatt Represents Rosco, Inc., in Favorable Settlement of Patent ...

Manatt represented and advised Rosco, Inc., a leading global supplier of vision safety solutions to the bus and truck marketplace, in the favorable...
10.21.20

Hartunian Quoted in Law360 on the Purdue Pharma Opioid Settlement

Manatt investigations, compliance and white collar defense partner Richard Hartunian spoke with Law360 about the proposed $8 billion settlement ...
06.28.20

Hartunian Featured in Times Union on Recent U.S. Attorney Developments

Manatt investigations and white collar defense partner Richard Hartunian spoke with Times Union on the recent departure of U.S. Attorney ...

01.19.21

Addressing the Security Risks of University Foreign Funding

Manatt partners Scott Lashway and Richard Hartunian and special counsel Matthew Stein authored an article for Law360 about the security ...

10.08.20

An Intersection Between Ransomware and U.S. National Security: OFAC ...

Manatt partners Scott Lashway, Andrew Zimmitti and Richard Hartunian and special counsel Matthew Stein authored an article for Corporate ...

05.10.19

Foreign Banks Should Remain Wary of U.S. Sanctions Laws

While major enforcement actions against foreign banks for U.S. sanctions violations appear to have subsided over the past few years, recent ...

04.01.18

America’s Opioid Crisis

"The nation’s opioid epidemic claimed more than 42,000 lives in 2016, and experts fear it will get worse before it gets better. What can ...

12.16.21

The Government’s New Strategy To Counter Corruption: What You Need To ...

On June 3, 2021, the White House issued a memorandum formally establishing the fight against corruption as a core national security interest.
11.11.21

OFAC Speaks Again on Ransomware: Mature Cybersecurity Programs Are ...

As employees clicked away at home amid the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, ransomware attacks surged.
12.02.20

Security Implications of Foreign Funding and Access at U.S. Colleges ...

While global media outlets have focused attention on election security, major U.S. healthcare facilities have been under direct cyberattacks in ...
10.05.20

An Intersection Between Ransomware and U.S. National Security: OFAC ...

Picture this: At some point in the next six months, you lose access to your files. Even worse, your company loses access to its files.

09.28.22

Hartunian to Speak at Federal Bar Association Qui Tam Section Webinar

Investigations, Compliance and White Collar Defense Partner Richard Hartunian will speak in a virtual webinar session titled “The FCA and ...

06.14.21

Hartunian to Serve as Co-Chair for ACI’s 4th Annual Summit on ...

Manatt’s Richard Hartunian, partner in the firm’s investigations and white collar group, will co-chair the American Conference ...

12.10.20

2021 Litigation Landscape: Key Trends to Watch After a Year of ...

Nine months after the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, how has the litigation landscape been transformed? Join Manatt for a ...

12.02.20

Episode 4: Previewing DOJ Activities Affecting Marketing Post-Election

In contrast to their familiarity with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as a source of regulatory guidance and enforcement, many marketers ...

Richard S. Hartunian

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Investigations, Compliance and White Collar Defense

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