Niall Lynch

About Niall Lynch

Partner in the San Francisco office of Latham & Watkins, representing leading US and global companies in United States Department of Justice (DOJ) criminal antitrust investigations and follow-on litigation.I help clients navigate the unique intricacies of DOJ antitrust investigations, drawing on 15 years of experience as a former prosecutor in the DOJ\'s Antitrust Division. My distinctive experience in international antitrust and competition matters includes cartels, civil conduct, and criminal investigations, as well as follow-on class action litigation.I have represented multinationals and their managers in criminal and administrative price-fixing investigations in Brazil, Canada, Europe, Japan, Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States. My experience spans various industries, including semiconductors, information technology, electronics, chemicals, oil and gas, consumer food products, government contracts, and media.I handle every stage of criminal antitrust investigations, including negotiating compliance with DOJ grand jury subpoenas quickly and efficiently; resolving DOJ investigations with no enforcement action; securing favorable terms in plea agreements; and achieving winning results at trial.Prior to joining Latham, I served as Assistant Chief in the DOJ\'s San Francisco Field Office. I also led several of the Division\'s most significant criminal prosecutions, including the liquid crystal display (LCD) and dynamic random access memory (DRAM) grand jury investigations, which resulted in US$1.6 billion in criminal fines and dozens of individual prosecutions. I have prosecuted numerous cases in the General Crimes Section while serving as a Special Assistant United States Attorney and tried several jury trials, and received numerous awards during my tenure at the DOJ. I have earned recognition as one of the world\'s foremost competition practitioners, including by The International Who\'s Who of Competition Lawyers & Economists, every year since 2013. Also, I am one of a handful of lawyers in California to be named a 2022 Thought Leader by the publication. Currently, I rank in Chambers USA as Band 2 for Nationwide Antitrust Cartels. In 2020, I was recognized by The Legal 500 US as a Hall of Fame lawyer for his Antitrust: Cartel work.Portions of this profile may constitute attorney advertising. Any testimonial or endorsement on this profile does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Experience

1. Partner

   Latham & Watkins

   Jan 2011 — Present

   Niall E. Lynch is a partner in the San Francisco office of Latham & Watkins, and a member of the firm’s Global Antitrust & Competition and White Collar Defense & Investigations Practice Groups.Having spent 15 years as a prosecutor in the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice, Mr. Lynch is able to draw upon his in-depth experience when counseling clients with issues pertaining to international antitrust and competition matters, including cartels, merger review, civil conduct, and criminal investigations. His expertise spans a variety of industries including semiconductors, information technology, consumer electronics, chemicals, oil and gas, consumer products and food additives. Prior to joining Latham, Mr. Lynch served as Assistant Chief in the San Francisco Field Office of the DOJ. He led several of the Division’s most significant criminal prosecutions, including the ongoing grand jury investigation into the Liquid Crystal Display market, the dynamic random access memory (DRAM) grand jury investigation (resulting in $1.6 billion in criminal fines and dozens of individual prosecutions), and worked on a variety of merger review matters. He also prosecuted numerous cases in the General Crimes Section while serving as a Special Assistant United States Attorney and tried several cases during his tenure at the DOJ. Mr. Lynch received numerous awards during his tenure at the DOJ, including the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award (the second-highest award for DOJ employee performance) in 2006.

Education

• University of California, Berkeley

  B.A, Political Science

  1986

• University of California, College of the Law, San Francisco (formerly UC Hastings)

  J.D., Law

  1988 — 1991