Barry Wm. Levine joined Dickstein Shapiro in 1975. He is the co-leader of the firm’s Business Litigation Practice and White Collar Criminal Defense & Investigations Practices. In his tenure at the firm, Mr. Levine has represented dozens of defendants in major white-collar crime cases. His criminal practice spans from pre-indictment counseling and grand jury practice to full-fledged jury trials of lengthy and complex criminal cases. Mr. Levine has represented numerous high-ranking elected and appointed public officials, lawyers, scientists, bankers, and businesspeople. He also has represented clients in congressional investigations. Additionally, he has a substantial and wide-ranging complex civil litigation practice. He has defended class action lawsuits on behalf of corporate defendants, and has litigated as both plaintiff’s and defendant’s counsel regarding antitrust, healthcare, insurance, law firm partnership disputes, and energy.

AREAS OF CONCENTRATION

Mr. Levine is a veteran of the Independent Counsel wars, having represented former Tyson Foods’ lobbyist Jack Williams in the investigation of Secretary of Agriculture Mike Espy, individuals in the Whitewater investigation, prominent Reagan administration figures in the Iran-Contra matter, and the most prominent Housing and Urban Development (HUD) builder in the independent counsel bribery investigation with respect to former HUD Secretary Sam Pierce. Mr. Levine’s other criminal defense representations include:  former would-be Presidential assassin, John Hinckley; the president of a major defense contractor in Operation “Ill Winds,” the Pentagon procurement fraud probe; the National Bank of Washington in a money-laundering prosecution; as well as numerous other criminal cases in diverse areas including election laws, money-laundering, public corruption, government contract fraud, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), environmental crimes, immigration fraud and securities fraud. He has represented members of Congress in both Congressional hearings and federal court litigation. 

In the area of complex civil litigation, Mr. Levine has represented the Washington Redskins and trustees of the estate of former Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke, the Ogden Corporation in multi-million dollar litigation, MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, and many others. Many of Mr. Levine’s cases frequently involve allegations of financial fraud. He routinely appears in the federal trial and appellate courts throughout the nation and in various legal forums in other parts of the world. 

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND

From 1969 to 1975, Mr. Levine was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia, principally assigned to the Fraud Section. In that capacity, he was involved in hundreds of major criminal fraud investigations and prosecutions, and was lead counsel in scores of jury trials.

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Mr. Levine is admitted to practice in New York, California, and the District of Columbia. He is a member of the District of Columbia Bar Association, the American Bar Association (ABA), the ABA Criminal Justice Section, the White Collar Crime Committee of the ABA Criminal Justice Section, and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He is admitted to the U.S. courts of appeal for most circuits including the Federal Circuit.

Mr. Levine mentors young attorneys, is active in pro bono matters, and is a vigorous participant in working to heighten law firms’ sensitivity to diversity and diversity-related matters.

AWARDS AND HONORS

Mr. Levine is ranked in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business as a leading individual in the area of Litigation: White Collar Crime & Government Investigations for the District of Columbia. In the 2010 edition, the guide writes of Mr. Levine: “‘A real fireball,’ he is a ferocious advocate for his clients and is praised for his trial skills.” According to the 2009 guide, Mr. Levine “earns praise from satisfied clients who endorse his ‘elegant and seamless handling of a case, to achieve the best resolution.’ He is highly regarded for his strength as an innovative strategist, and for his confident and persistent manner.”

In 2006, Mr. Levine was honored by Lawdragon magazine as a “Leading Lawyer,” in a list that represents less than one percent of the legal profession and is determined based on a combination of independent research and peer reviews. Since 1995, he has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of Commercial Litigation and White-Collar Criminal Defense. He also has appeared in the 2007–2010 editions of Washington DC Super Lawyers.

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

Mr. Levine lectures lawyers, accountants, and students and has spoken on trial practice before the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, Practising Law Institute, Attorney General’s Advocacy Institute, and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Inns of Court, and ABA panels on matters of grand jury and other regulatory investigations, as well as on evidence and current trial-related legal issues.

PUBLICATIONS

Mr. Levine is an author of “The Deprivation of ‘Intangible Rights’ Under the Mail Fraud Statute: Some Key Considerations,” in Complex Crime Journal (ABA Section of Litigation, Criminal Litigation Committee, December 1994); and “Responding to Subpoenas,” a chapter in the Lawyer’s Desk Book on White-Collar Crime (ed., Milton Eisenberg, 1991).

EDUCATION

Mr. Levine received his B.S., with honors, from New York University (1964). He received his legal education at the University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall), where he was awarded a J.D. (1967). Subsequently, he was a graduate fellow at L’Institut Universitaire de Hautes Etudes Internationales in Geneva (1967-1968).