T. Hart

Benton, III

Hart counsels businesses and individuals in criminal and civil government investigations, enforcement proceedings, and prosecutions, including in matters involving allegations of healthcare fraud and abuse, bank fraud, wire and mail fraud, securities fraud, insurance fraud, and deceptive trade practices. His recent experience includes defending a former executive of a naval shipbuilding company in one of the largest white collar criminal cases ever filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Alabama. The case followed a seven-year investigation by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the US Department of Justice and involved more than 100 potential witnesses, approximately 20 million documents, and an anticipated eight-week trial.

Hart is also regularly called on when alleged misconduct by an employee, officer, or other company representative creates potential criminal, regulatory, financial, or reputational exposure. In those situations, he helps clients identify the full scope of the problem, coordinate their legal and operational responses, and address enterprise-level risk before it develops into broader enforcement proceedings or prolonged litigation.

As part of that work, Hart’s internal investigations have involved suspected fraud, self-dealing, internal control failures, regulatory breaches, conflicts of interest, unlawful competition, misuse of confidential information, whistleblower allegations, and other corporate misconduct. His investigations practice draws on his experience litigating matters involving employment law, trade secrets, restrictive covenants, fiduciary duties, and corporate governance. Hart also routinely advises management, boards, and in-house counsel on evidence preservation, employment actions, remediation, government disclosure considerations, and responses to law enforcement or regulatory authorities.