David Spears | New York Criminal Lawyer | New York
David Spears
Criminal, Civil & Human Rights, General Practice, Securities
- Law Office: Spears & Imes
- New York Law Firms
- Law School: Columbia University Law School, J.D. 1977
- Status: In Good Standing
212-213-6991
- Profile LAWPOINTS™49/ 100LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.
We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.
LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.
More Info for Lawyers - No Misconduct Found ✓
- Accepts Lawyer Referrals ✓
- Reviews Pro Bono Cases ✓
- Upgrade to a premium listing
- Update your listing
- LAWYERID™ COL-977-1013LawyerID™'s identify each individual within Lawyer.com’s directory of 2M global lawyers and help to ensure that the most accurate, up-to-date records are being kept on every lawyer. If you are a practicing lawyer without a LawyerID prominently displayed on your Lawyer.com profile, please call 800-840-0600 to receive one.
Contact Us
introduction
Mr. Spears spent the early years of his career working in government, including at the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C., focusing on antitrust matters; as a Trial Attorney and Deputy Chief Trial Attorney in the Enforcement Division of the Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C.; and as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. During his years at the SEC and the United States Attorney's Office, Mr. Spears tried a large number of cases involving a wide variety of charges.
In his more than two decades in private practice, Mr. Spears has tried many criminal and civil cases in federal and state courts and before the SEC, FINRA, and arbitration panels. Mr. Spears has also argued many cases in the United States Court of Appeals and New York State appellate courts.
QUESTIONNAIRE
Experience
Position | Organization | Location | Duration |
---|
Education
School | Degree | Major | Graduation |
---|---|---|---|
Columbia University Law School | J.D. | Law School | 1977 |
Northwestern University | B.A. | N/A | 1974 |
Admission
State / Court | Date |
---|---|
DC | 1982 |
NY | 1978 |
Associations
Honors & Awards
Cases
Mr. Spears represented lead defendant Jeffrey Stein in a case in which 19 KPMG accountants and lawyers were charged with federal tax crimes based on their involvement with tax shelters that the government alleged to be fraudulent. In a groundbreaking ruling, the Court threw out the indictment because the government had forced KPMG to terminate the payment of legal fees for the defendants. Mr. Spears argued the motion that resulted in the order of dismissal. United States v. Stein, 495 F. Supp. 2d 330 (S.D.N.Y. 2007); United States v. Stein, 541 F.3d 130 (2d Cir. 2008). Mr. Spears, together with partners Christopher Dysard and Jason Mogel, represented a group of financial institutions, including Allstate, Bank Leumi, Bayerische Landesbank, International Finance Corporation, Société Générale, and Travelers, in a six-week jury trial in a United States District Court against a major investment bank to recover large losses related to the sale of asset-backed securities. The jury returned a verdict for the Firm's clients resulting in a judgment of $144 million, which was one of the largest jury awards in the U.S. in 2008. The defendant appealed that judgment, and Mr. Spears argued the appeal before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, which affirmed the trial judgment. 646 F. Supp. 2d 385 (S.D.N.Y. 2009), aff'd, 2010 WL 2836684 (2d Cir. July 20, 2010). Mr. Spears and partner Jason Mogel represented an executive from a large investment bank against charges by FINRA alleging wrongdoing in the purchase and sale of auction-rate securities for corporate cash management clients. Following a two-week trial in February 2012, the FINRA Hearing Officer overseeing the case issued a lengthy decision rejecting all of FINRA's charges and exonerating the Firm's client of all charges against him. Dep't of Enforcement v. Morrison, FINRA Disc. Proceeding 2008013863702 (2012). A published article by Mr. Spears and associate Mónica Folch discussed important legal and policy issues raised in that proceeding.
Publications
- David Spears & Mónica Folch, A Bad Enforcement Policy at FINRA, New York Law Journal (Nov. 14, 2012)
Office Hours
Sun. | Mon. | Tue. | Wed. | Thu. | Fri. | Sat. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Verified Credentials
Lawyers with longer memberships tend to have more experience so we use the Membership date to help prioritize lawyer listings on search pages.
Verified Credentials | Date Verified |
---|
Above credentials have been verified independently by Lawyer.com.
Learn More
Legal Articles
Peer Endorsements
Additional Info
Service Type: Private
To recommend or link to this lawyer as a trusted attorney, we have provided a list of sample links. Please choose the one that meet your needs.
Want a Premium Customized Photo Badge?
Call Toll Free: 800-620-0900
Image Link 1
<div id="Lcom"><a href="//www.lawyer.com/david-spears.html"><img alt="Lawyer.com" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal/1733759i.png"></a></div><script type="text/javascript" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal.js"></script>
Image Link 2
<div id="Lcom"><a href="//www.lawyer.com/david-spears.html"><img alt="Lawyer.com" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal/1733759p.png"></a></div><script type="text/javascript" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal.js"></script>
Image Link 3
<div id="Lcom"><a href="//www.lawyer.com/david-spears.html"><img alt="Lawyer.com" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal/1733759f.png"></a></div><script type="text/javascript" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal.js"></script>
Image Link 4
<div id="Lcom"><a href="//www.lawyer.com/david-spears.html"><img alt="Lawyer.com" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal/1733759v.png"></a></div><script type="text/javascript" src="//www.lawyer.com/seal.js"></script>
Text Link 1
<div id="Lcom" style="width:250px;text-align:center;background-color: #fbaa02;padding:3px;"><a href="http://www.lawyer.com/david-spears.html" style="color: #fff;text-decoration:none;size: 12px;">Lawyer.com Listed: David Spears</a></div> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.lawyer.com/seal.js"></script>
Change History
51 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10010