David S.
Weinstein

Position: Partner
Office: Miami

David Weinstein is a partner in the Litigation Practice Group and a member of the corporate compliance and white collar defense team. He draws on his prosecutorial experience to help clients avoid, respond to, and defend against law-enforcement investigations and lawsuits.

With more than two decades of experience as a federal and state prosecutor and more than a decade in private practice, David Weinstein advises and represents individuals and companies in a broad range of white collar criminal defense and compliance matters. He understands the priorities of and processes followed by law-enforcement officials, and uses this knowledge to help clients develop, implement, and manage effective compliance programs, conduct internal investigations, determine self-reporting strategies, respond to agency inquiries, and mount a strong defense in jury trials and settlement negotiations.

David began his career in the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office, where he served more than nine years as an assistant state attorney. During this time — and in addition to trying 70 felony jury trials — he served as chief of the Narcotics Section, chief of the Robbery and Career Criminal Section, and deputy chief of the Felony Division.

David spent the next decade at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, where he served as an assistant US attorney. Among other leadership roles, he was chief of the Public Integrity, National Security and Criminal Civil Rights Section, chief of the Narcotics Section, and deputy chief of the Major Crimes and Narcotics Section. Over the course of his tenure, he tried dozens of jury trials primarily involving multi-defendant, multi-jurisdictional, and international drug conspiracy cases.

Since returning to private practice in 2009, David has focused on helping clients prevent, avoid, and respond to law enforcement investigations. He has a particular emphasis on the development of strong compliance programs and has experience with the full spectrum of federal and state statutes that regulate business activities in the United States and abroad, including the US False Claims Act and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act; matters under the purview of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and other financial services regulatory agencies; issues arising out of the conflict between state legalization of medical and recreational cannabis and federal laws classifying marijuana as a controlled substance; and the impact of executive orders issued at the federal and state levels.

In addition to helping clients establish effective compliance programs, David advises on internal investigations and provides ongoing training and regular updates to key executives and personnel on rapidly emerging legal and regulatory issues. David has also provided assistance to bank employees, executives, and managers during Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and law enforcement investigations. He assists in issues related to frozen assets, FinCEN Geographic Targeting Orders, and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) compliance issues. He also counsels clients in the context of major transactions, including acquisitions of non-US companies and other foreign business activities. He has provided advice to companies who are the subject of drug diversion allegations and investigations.

When clients are targeted for investigations or lawsuits, David draws on his experience to mount a strong defense at every step. He has successfully represented clients in disputes involving seized assets, dawn raids, allegations of financial fraud and money laundering, and other claims.

David is a sought-after legal analyst and commentator for the media. In addition to authoring numerous articles, he has appeared on international, national, and local news programs on ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, Fox, CNBC, MSNBC, CNN, CTV, BBC World News, SKY News, and other media outlets.