Scott Mascianica is a partner in the firm’s Government Enforcement & Investigations Practice Group. Recognized by Chambers USA, Securities Docket, and Lawdragon 500 as one of the top white-collar defense and investigative attorneys in the country, clients praise Scott as an “all-around great lawyer” who is “incredibly smart” with a “very practical” approach to navigating difficult issues in high-stakes matters.
Scott has a national practice where he routinely advises clients across the country in connection with government enforcement proceedings, internal investigations, and related litigation. Leveraging his 20 years of practice, his experience as a former forensic consultant at a Big Four accounting firm, and his extensive government investigations experience, Scott is frequently called upon to lead internal investigations for corporate clients, audit and special committees, and boards of directors on extremely sensitive issues. He has led dozens of internal investigations for Fortune 500 companies, publicly traded issuers, regulated entities, and private companies concerning a multitude of issues, including fraud, embezzlement, corporate accounting and disclosure concerns, whistleblower and hotline complaints, employee misconduct, and regulatory noncompliance.
Additionally, Scott frequently represents regulated entities, private equity firms, public companies, and their employees in connection with high-stakes government enforcement, examination, and litigation matters. Drawing on his extensive experience developed at the SEC and DOJ, Scott leverages his government background to assess how investigators will approach investigations, what they prioritize, and how to position a client's response. He has successfully defended entities and individuals in complex investigations by the SEC, DOJ, FINRA, CFTC, and various state regulators involving scores of exposure areas, including allegations of accounting and disclosure misconduct, controls-related violations, regulated entity misconduct and associated regulatory matters, insider trading, securities offerings, market manipulation, and auditor misconduct.
Scott spent nearly a decade at the SEC in various investigative and supervisory capacities. Most recently he served as assistant regional director for the SEC’s Division of Enforcement for the SEC’s Fort Worth region, and as assistant director with the Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit, a nationwide unit that leads the SEC’s investigations in the asset management industry. In his management roles, Scott supervised a team of enforcement attorneys and accountants on more than 150 confidential investigations across the securities law spectrum. He also previously served at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, where he prosecuted crimes involving securities-related misconduct.
As a result of his broad knowledge and experience, Scott is a sought-after speaker, writer, and commentator on various government enforcement and compliance issues. He has been quoted in publications such as Bloomberg, Agenda, Politico, Law360 and Texas Lawbook, and has authored more than 100 articles and alerts on various government enforcement topics.