David Reich has over thirty years of experience as a litigator, representing clients in trials and appeals before federal and state courts and in high-stakes arbitrations. His practice focuses on complex commercial litigation, primarily in the areas of securities, bankruptcy, corporate governance, antitrust and trade regulation, and general commercial disputes. He also has substantial experience in conducting internal investigations and representing clients facing criminal and regulatory investigations.
David has conducted jury and bench trials and argued appeals in both civil and criminal cases. He was selected to the New York Super Lawyers list for white collar criminal defense from 2019 through 2021. He was recently named a “Client Service All-Star” by BTI Consulting Group. Criteria for the award, now in its 13th year, include client focus, innovative thought leadership, exceptional understanding of the client’s business, legal skills, outsized value, and outstanding results. Recipients of the award are selected based on independent reviews from Fortune 1000 companies. With the award, BTI recognized David’s commitment to exceptional client service in complex commercial litigation.
David is an active member of the Federal Bar Council and the Bar of the City of New York, and for several years co-authored a regular column about trial strategy and tactics in The National Law Journal.
David’s engagements include:
- Representing a foreign bank in responding to money laundering investigations conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Treasury, and federal banking regulators, and in defending against related civil suits filed by private litigants;
- Defending a Bell operating company against an antitrust class action alleging that it conspired with the other Baby Bells to stifle competition and to block the growth of upstart telephone companies;
- Defending the largest retailer-owned wholesale grocery cooperative in the western United States against theft of intellectual property and breach of contract claims;
- Representing a prominent American investor charged with conspiring to bribe foreign officials in Azerbaijan in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act;
- Representing a telecommunications company in a false advertising case against a leading competitor;
- Advising a group of futures and options exchange directors concerning their fiduciary duties in evaluating proposed corporate transactions;
- Counseling a pharmaceutical company in resolving federal criminal and civil charges that it had defrauded the FDA;
- Assisting an Independent Consultant to the SEC in reviewing an investment bank’s supervisory and compliance policies and procedures for its third-party clearing operations;
- Representing an international aluminum company in a civil RICO case that sought to collaterally attack judgments that had been rendered in Russian legal proceedings;
- Representing an investment bank against securities class actions brought on behalf of investors in a mining company; and
- Defending a manufacturer of equipment for electric utilities against product liability claims.
Before founding Reich & Paolella in 2011, David was a partner at Winston & Strawn in New York City, where he handled civil and criminal matters. Prior to joining Winston & Strawn, he served for six years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the District of New Jersey, where he focused on prosecuting securities, tax, and banking offenses. He also practiced for several years as a corporate lawyer in Sullivan & Cromwell’s mergers and acquisitions, securities, and financial institutions groups.
David received an A.B. degree in economics magna cum laude from Davidson College. He received his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.
