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Kevin J. O’Brien, a founding partner at Ford O’Brien Landy, is one of the top attorneys in the country at defending individuals and companies in white-collar criminal cases. Successes for clients characterize this New York Metro Super Lawyer’s entire 43-year career. He is also a highly sought-after commentator by the national and international news media, which regularly turns to him for expert analysis on legal topics.
What are the secrets to his success? O’Brien’s wealth of experience, dedication to his clients, courtroom skill, and professional discretion all contribute to his ability to protect those he represents and secure positive outcomes on their behalf.
A distinguished career, a lifetime of experience
O’Brien’s legal career has been diverse and wide-ranging. After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1979, he entered the government, becoming Assistant US Attorney in the Eastern District of New York in 1983, and subsequently successfully tried multiple corruption cases during his tenure in public service. In 1990, he entered private practice and co-founded Ford O’Brien — which is headquartered in Manhattan and has an office in Austin, Texas — in 2016. The firm added a newly-named partner, Robert Landy, in 2022.
“I know what I’m doing,” O’Brien admitted with a self-deprecating laugh.
That’s putting it mildly. In one large civil case, O’Brien successfully earned a $100 million settlement. “We tried a case against one level of insurance for a big utility in Illinois,” he explained. “We went against that level, but the impact of the win was felt all the way up the line, with all the other layers equally.” Subsequent decisions won a total in the high nine figures.
In another case, O’Brien successfully appealed a pro bono client’s sentence to death before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
When asked what his secret weapons are, O’Brien listed putting in hard work for long hours, writing well, and being persuasive. “I also have a sense of humor,” he said. “In the courtroom, that helps when you’re talking to a jury. It’s important to be able to relate to them on a personal level. Humor is a really important instrument for doing that. Trials are boring, and most lawyers are somewhat intimidating. Jurors appreciate anything that connects to their personal circumstances, and that helps the client.”
Discreet, effective negotiation
O’Brien was the legal mastermind who obtained a full acquittal for Platinum Chief Executive Officer Joseph SanFilippo, who confronted five felony counts for alleged fraud. He also served as co-counsel for Michael Rigas. After a six-month trial, that case ended in a hung jury for the counts that weren’t outright acquittals.
Asked what cases he is most proud of, O’Brien answered: “Well, I wish I could talk about it, but you know, it never went public. We did it all behind the scenes.”
As a white-collar criminal defense lawyer, O’Brien represents clients who face government investigations and possible action by regulatory agencies such as the SEC, the FDA, FINRA, and the FDIC. According to him, when a white-collar criminal defense is successful, it often doesn’t leave a trail.
“In this field, many successful representations are never brought to the public,” he explained. “The success lies in keeping the pot from boiling over and preventing things from happening. Success means preventing an indictment, preventing the matter from going public, or preventing a court filing that would expose the conflict.”
The mark of a superior white-collar criminal defense lawyer, therefore, is discretion, as well as the capacity to keep legal matters quiet. “Also, the ability to negotiate effectively with prosecutors or potential prosecutors is a crucial skill,” O’Brien said.
“Another value is just delay,” he added. “If you can put something off, sometimes it may never come back. Government lawyers are busy and don’t have the staff. As time goes on, they move on and become private-sector lawyers themselves. The file is left for someone else who might choose not to run with it. Anything you can do to cause the prosecutor to pause might help because they might never return to the initial investigation.”
Taking the work personally
Perhaps the most important secret to O’Brien’s success is his unrelenting focus on clients’ needs.
“I take clients’ interests as seriously as my own and pursue them with all the vigor and experience I have at my disposal,” he said. “I work on the matters I individually bring in. As a result, I identify with clients personally. Wholly apart from the dollar and cents of it, I feel for their particular circumstances.”
Unlike large law firms, where attorneys focus on billable hours and assistants do much of the work, Ford O’Brien Landy LLP offers accomplished lawyers who deliver personalized service. “We’re a small firm, so we’re scrappy and leave no loose ball unattended,” O’Brien explained. “One of the advantages of being a partner at a small firm is that we don’t have a huge roster of clients. We don’t have service partners that just sort of check in and check out. We tend to eat what we kill here.”
Describing his process, O’Brien emphasized the importance of attention to detail. “Picking up small discrepancies — small, factual assertions that may escape normal notice — proofreading, and comparing how statements or representations vary even slightly over time — which is useful for cross-examination — and things like that are just so important,” he said. “The most senior successful lawyers have this quality where they want to look at things again one last time before they go out the door, and that’s certainly what I do. I like to read all my stuff one last time before it gets filed, or before it gets sent to opposing counsel.”
The best in white-collar criminal defense
O’Brien’s unique background, decades of experience, unparalleled legal skills, effectiveness in the courtroom, savviness as a negotiator, and wise discretion have made him a top white-collar criminal defense lawyer in the United States. When individuals and companies need an effective fighter in their corner, they are lucky to have him.
