David A. O’Neil is a litigation partner and member of the firm’s White Collar & Regulatory Defense Group. Recommended by Chambers USA (2022) and The Legal 500 US (2022) as a leading lawyer in White Collar Crime & Government Investigations and International Litigation, his practice focuses on white collar criminal defense, internal investigations, anti-corruption and FCPA defense and congressional investigations. In both 2018 and 2020, Mr. O’Neil was recognized as a Litigation Trailblazer by the National Law Journal and he was named a White Collar MVP by Law 360 in 2018. In Chambers USA (2022), clients report that he is an “extraordinary lawyer with experience and technical knowledge” and is the “rare and valued combination of brilliant lawyer, fearless strategist and exceptional leader.” He has also been described as “driven,” “practical,” “responsive and sharp.” Mr. O’Neil is also recommended for compliance and investigations by The Legal 500 Latin America (2023).
Mr. O’Neil has a unique practice focused on representing clients in high-stakes matters involving significant legal, political and public relations implications. His experience spans criminal investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice and foreign law enforcement bodies; sensitive, confidential internal investigations for high-profile companies; investigations by the United States Congress; litigation brought by state Attorneys General; and class action lawsuits.
Prior to joining Debevoise in January 2015, Mr. O’Neil served for eight years in prominent positions within the Department of Justice. In early 2014, the President and Attorney General designated Mr. O’Neil to lead the Criminal Division, where he was responsible for supervising more than 600 attorneys investigating and prosecuting the full range of federal crimes, including corporate malfeasance, cybercrime, fraud offenses and money laundering. Mr. O'Neil also served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Fraud Section. In that capacity, he supervised more than 100 prosecutors engaged in nationwide enforcement of the FCPA, healthcare fraud and securities and financial fraud.
Before moving to the Criminal Division, Mr. O’Neil served for three years as Senior Associate Deputy Attorney General and Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General, the Department's second-in-command. In that role, he was part of DOJ’s core management team, with direct supervisory responsibility for more than two dozen attorneys. He participated in a broad range of high-profile matters, including significant FCPA prosecutions, the LIBOR investigations, and high-profile investigations of financial institutions for money laundering and Bank Secrecy Act violations.
In 2009, Mr. O’Neil served as Assistant to the Solicitor General. He argued three cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, authored more than 50 briefs filed with the Supreme Court, and handled appeals from high-profile white-collar criminal convictions.
Mr. O’Neil began his career at DOJ as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, he tried numerous cases to successful jury verdicts and argued several appeals. He worked on multiple cases involving financial institutions, including bank fraud, mortgage and identity-theft matters.
Mr. O’Neil earned his J.D. magna cum laude in 2000 from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review. He graduated from Princeton University with a B.A. magna cum laude in 1995.
Upon graduation from law school, he clerked for two years, first for Judge Robert D. Sack of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and then for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
David A. O’Neil 律师是诉讼业务合伙人，以及本所白领犯罪和合规辩护部门成员。他受到《美国钱伯斯》（2022年）和《美国法律500强》（2022年）的推荐，被评为“白领犯罪和政府调查”以及“国际诉讼”领域的杰出律师。O’Neil律师的执业领域主要为白领犯罪辩护、内部调查、反腐败与FCPA辩护以及国会调查。他在2018和2020年均被《国家法律期刊》（National Law Journal）评为“诉讼领域之先驱”，在2018年被《法律360》评为“白领犯罪领域最具价值律师”。客户在《美国钱伯斯》（2022年）中称赞O’Neil律师一位“具有经验和技术知识的非凡律师”，是“才华横溢的律师、无畏的战略家和杰出的领导者的罕见而有价值的结合。”，并表示他“主动”，“务实”，“反应迅速，思维敏捷。”O’Neil律师还获得《拉美法律500强》（2022年）在合规与调查领域的推荐。
O’Neil律师执业的一个特点在于他专注于代表客户处理涉及重大的法律、政治和公共关系影响的高风险事务，包括美国司法部及海外执法机构的刑事调查；知名公司的敏感而机密的内部调查；美国国会调查；由州司法部长提起的诉讼以及集团诉讼。
在2015年1月加入德普前，O’Neil律师曾在司法部担任要职八年。2014年上半年，美国总统和司法部长官任命O’Neil律师担任犯罪部门负责人，负责监督超过600名检察官调查并起诉各种联邦犯罪，包括公司渎职、网络犯罪、欺诈和洗钱。O’Neil律师还曾担任欺诈部门的副助理司法部长。在担任该职务期间，他曾监督超过100名检察官处理全国范围内的《海外反腐败法》（FCPA）执法、医疗欺诈，以及证券金融诈骗。
在调任犯罪部门前，O’Neil律师曾在三年内担任高级助理副司法部长、副司法部长首席工作人员、部门二把手。在担任此职位期间，他作为司法部核心管理团队，直接监督超过二十名检察官。他还参与处理了大量要案，包括重要的FCPA案件公诉、有关伦敦银行同业拆借利率调查、有关洗钱和违反《银行保密法》的对金融机构的大型调查。
2009年，O’Neil律师担任联邦总律师助理。他曾在美国最高法院的三起案件中进行辩论，起草超过50份提交最高法院的诉状，并处理大型白领犯罪案件定罪引发的上诉。
O’Neil律师在司法部的职业生涯起始于担任纽约南区联邦检察院检察官。作为一名助理联邦检察官，他曾参与众多案件获得胜诉陪审团裁决，并参与数起上诉案件的辩论。他曾处理多起涉及金融机构的案件，包括银行欺诈、按揭和身份窃取问题。
O’Neil律师于2000年作为优等生从哈佛法学院取得法律博士学位，他曾在《哈佛法律评论》担任编辑。他于1995年作为优等生毕业于普林斯顿大学，获得文学学士学位。
从法学院毕业后，他曾在两年期间担任美国联邦第二巡回法院上诉法院Robert D. Sack法官书记员，后曾担任美国最高法院Ruth Bader Ginsburg法官的书记员。