Dylan Smith

Dylan Smith focuses on white-collar criminal defense and complex commercial litigation.  A former Assistant U.S. Attorney with more than 25 years’ experience, Dylan brings to every matter he handles a combination of sound judgment, strategic thinking, and a relentless focus on achieving the client’s objectives.

Dylan’s government-facing representations have encompassed the defense of prosecutions and investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, and various U.S. Attorneys’ Offices.  His complex commercial matters have included litigation involving the securities laws, the antitrust statutes, RICO, the fiduciary duties of officers and directors, and constitutional claims. 

Dylan recently obtained the dismissal of money laundering conspiracy charges against a corporate executive in connection with a bid-rigging investigation by the Antitrust Division.  A 2023 trial resulted in a complete victory for a corporate client alleged to have aided and abetted breaches of fiduciary duty by the inside directors of an acquisition target.

Dylan is also an accomplished appellate advocate, having briefed and argued numerous appeals before federal and state appellate courts.


Other matters exemplifying Dylan’s breadth of experience include: 

  • Representing a tribal entity in litigation involving the award of a casino owner’s license.
     
  • Representing individual clients in an SEC investigation involving corporate contributions to tax-exempt organizations.
     
  • Representing an Illinois state senator in a high-profile public corruption investigation.
     
  • Defending a client against Arms Export Control Act and related conspiracy charges.
     
  • Advising a U.S. branch of a foreign financial institution on Bank Secrecy Act/anti-money laundering issues related to a securities offering.
     
  • On behalf of a pharmaceutical company, conducting an internal investigation involving corporate ethics and regulatory compliance issues. 
     
  • Representing a corporate client in a civil antitrust suit asserting claims under Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act, including conspiracy to restrain trade, tying, group boycott, and refusal to deal.
     
  • Representing a federal inmate pro bono in a collateral attack on life sentence imposed for non-violent drug conviction.

Dylan began his legal career as a law clerk to the Honorable Joel M. Flaum of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

SELECTED COMMENTARY

“General Motors RICO Ruling Is Case Study in Proximate Cause,” Law360 (July 27, 2020).

“The First COVID-19 Prosecutions Under Defense Production Act,” Law360 (May 6, 2020).

Moderator, Federal Bar Association Criminal Practice Program, “The Third Rail:  Ethics of Press Contact” (June 2017).

Featured Faculty, Today’s General Counsel, “The Exchange” Compliance and Ethics Forum (Chicago 2016).

“When Internal Compliance Monitoring Stumbles, Directors and Officers May Face Risk,” Westlaw Journal Antitrust (May 2015) (with Jeffrey Cross).