Michael Celio handles white collar criminal cases, complex civil litigation, and enforcement actions brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission or the Department of Justice. An experienced trial lawyer, Mr. Celio has tried more than a dozen cases to verdict in state and federal courts. He has significant expertise defending civil and criminal securities cases, having tried the only two U.S. cases involving allegations of stock-options backdating.
Mr. Celio’s recent civil cases have involved antitrust actions, shareholder derivative suits, allegations relating to the theft of trade secrets, and global violations of a contract restricting the sale of sensitive high-tech equipment. His clients include Topcon Positioning Systems and Electronic Arts.
While at the firm, Mr. Celio was seconded to the San Francisco district attorney's office, where he was responsible for dozens of prosecutions and successfully tried numerous cases to verdict.
Cases of Note
United States v. Former Chief Executive Officer: We represented the former CEO of a public company in a criminal stock options backdating trial. Following a six-week trial in Los Angeles federal court, jurors acquitted our client on 16 of 20 counts. A federal judge then threw out one of two mail fraud counts. Despite the government's recommendation of a six year prison term, our client only received eight months of home confinement and a fine.
Plaintiffs v. Electronic Arts Inc.: We represented Electronic Arts, its officers and directors in parallel class actions and derivative lawsuits alleging securities fraud. After we won a motion to dismiss, the plaintiffs in all pending cases voluntarily dismissed their claims.
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Former Chief Financial Officer: We are defending the former chief financial officer of San Francisco-based hedge fund firm against charges of insider trading, which are part of the government’s recent push to make insider trading the focus of financial fraud prosecution. The Securities and Exchange Commission named our client and several others in a civil suit, alleging they made more than $8 million trading on stocks based on insider tips. A jury trial has been scheduled in the Northern District of California for early 2012.
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Former Executive: We represented the former controller of a failed online bank in a securities fraud action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The case was settled on favorable terms.
United States v. Computer Programmer: We represented a Russian computer programmer arrested in the U.S. for allegedly violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. He was the first person to be charged under the criminal provisions of that statute.
United States v. Michael Shanahan Jr.: In a criminal options backdating case, we secured a dismissal before trial for Michael Shanahan Jr., who served on Engineered Support Systems Inc.'s board of directors and was a member of the company's compensation committee. We also represented him in a parallel options backdating action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission. After eight days of trial testimony, a federal judge in Missouri granted our motion for judgment as a matter of law.
Awards and Honors
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Board member, The Health Trust
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Northern California Super Lawyer, White Collar Criminal Defense and Securities Litigation, 2010 and 2011
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Winner of the Williston Contract Competition, Harvard Law School, 1996
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Best Brief, First Year Ames Moot Court competition, Harvard Law School, 1995
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Chevening Scholarship, 1994
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Firestone Award for Outstanding Research, Stanford University, 1994
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Phi Beta Kappa, Stanford University, 1993
Speaking Engagements
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“Government Initiatives and Perspectives/How to Deal Effectively with the Government,” Securities Litigation & Enforcement Institute, 2010 and 2007
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NITA Trial Advocacy Course, Instructor, Securities Litigation & Enforcement Institute, 2008 and 2010
Publications
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"2012 Securities Roundtable," California Lawyer, 2012
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“Anything You Don't Say Can and Will Be Used Against You: Adverse Inferences from Invoking the Right to Remain Silent in DOJ/SEC Parallel Proceedings,” Practicing Law Institute, Securities Litigation & Enforcement Institute, 2010
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"Books & Records: More Than Just a Paper Cut,” Practicing Law Institute, Securities Litigation & Enforcement Institute, 2008
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“Internal Investigations: The Other Side Of Cooperation,” Practicing Law Institute, Securities Litigation & Enforcement Institute, 2007