Joseph A. Rillotta

Joe has worked on various criminal defense and investigations matters, encompassing allegations concerning both tax and non-tax offenses. In cases where tax issues are the focus, Joe’s work has involved:

• Counseling professionals, small business owners, and corporate officers with respect to IRS, grand jury and state revenue authority investigations.
• Advocating for non-prosecution and for the favorable resolution of criminal tax matters.
• Advocating for the abatement or reduction of civil tax and Title 31 penalties.
• Working with accountants to reconstruct income and expense items.
• Preparing and delivering presentations to IRS-Criminal Investigation agents and federal prosecutors.
• Working with foreign co-counsel to advise bank officers in civil and criminal fraud cases, including in connection with the DOJ Tax Division’s Swiss Bank Program.

Joe’s work on additional financial crimes and white-collar matters includes:

• Representing individuals and businesses in public corruption and procurement fraud investigations.
• Counseling individual clients and organizations concerning alleged FCPA and securities laws violations.
• Defending corporate executives and managers against allegations of environmental crimes and regulatory violations.

Joe has worked with clients on a variety of internal investigations. Sample representations include:

• Representing professional services firms in connection with grand jury investigations into tax shelters and other allegedly abusive transactions.
• Conducting due diligence investigations concerning potential FCPA and UK Bribery Act implications of proposed acquisitions by U.S. investors of foreign companies, and recommending remediation and risk mitigation measures regarding such transactions.
• Advising importers with respect to potential violations of customs laws.
• Counseling businesses and nonprofit organizations that are the victims of embezzlement and intellectual property theft. This has entailed working with law enforcement and insurance carriers to mitigate losses, as well advising clients on preventative measures going forward.

Joe has represented clients in the U.S. Tax Court, and in other federal and state courts throughout the country. His experience includes:

• Contesting the IRS’s assessment of tax and imposition of penalties.
• Defending nonprofit organizations against allegations bearing on their tax-exempt status.
• Defending auditors, accountants, attorneys and other professionals against allegations of malpractice and misconduct, including in licensure revocation proceedings.
• Defending clients in False Claims Act litigation and investigations, at both the federal and state levels.