Joe got his start doing work for the police union, where there was always plenty of criminal defense work to go around. That meant that Joe could be trusted to hold confidences within the blue wall, a requisite for being trusted by a cop. Even though Bernie had risen to the point of disproving the Peter Principle, he was a beat cop at heart and knew his duty.
Joe did a great job of buying Bernie out of his Bronx charges, where he paid over the money he should have paid in the first place and got to drive home in his black BMW. But when Bernie was indicted by the feds, Joe Tac was nowhere to be found. It appears that he was the first victim of the government’s deep and loving concern over Bernie’s conflict-free legal representation, according to New York Magazine.
So “no Joe,” where do you go? Strangely, Bernie went the anti-Tacopina route, to former federal prosecutor cum Biglaw partner, Kenneth Breen. Breen spent a decade in the Eastern District of New York, just across the Brooklyn Bridge from the courthouse at 500 Pearl Street in the Southern District, where he was Deputy Chief of the Business and Securities Fraud Section. It would certainly seem like he would know something about how the government operates, right?
And as with all important prosecutors who have dedicated their lives to the welfare of the American people and the maintenance of law and order in society, Breen left the United States Attorneys office to become a partner at Biglaw, first Fulbright & Jaworski and then to Paul Hastings. Could this have something to do with Fulbright & Jaworksi suing Kerik for $200,000 for work Breen did while there? There must be a new rule, “When stiffed, change firms.”
So why this paradigm shift from criminal defense lawyer Joe Tac to Biglaw, former prosecutor Breen? The gut reaction is that Breen’s insider knowledge of the workings of the DOJ make him the right man for the job, notwithstanding my numerous polemics about how former prosecutors do not bring inherently make competent defense lawyers. Having heard nothing on the street about Kenneth Breen’s formidable skills in the defense of criminal charges, it seems reasonable to take a quick look around.
From Concurring Opinions, an old post that gives us a fairly good picture of Kenneth Breen’s vision of the function of white collar criminal defense:
Kenneth M. Breen, a partner at the New York law firm Fulbright & Jaworski, held a seminar for corporate lawyers one recent evening to explain the “significant risks for the non-compliant” in government counterterrorism investigations. A former federal prosecutor, Breen said failure to provide the required information could create “the perception that your company didn’t live up to its duty to fight terrorism” and could invite class-action lawsuits from the families of terrorism victims. In extreme cases, he said, a business could face criminal prosecution, “a ‘death sentence’ for certain kinds of companies.”
Excuse me? The secret to success is to capitulate to the government lest the potential target invite “class-action lawsuits?” Well that certainly doesn’t make me feel all warm and fuzzy in the protective cocoon of Breen’s representation.
So what about the pre-indictment stage. Certainly an insider should know just what to do to kill a pending indictment and show the government how much you love them. This is what Breen had to say :
“We are confident that whomever at the Department of Justice reviews this matter will conclude that there is no case here.”
No self-respecting criminal defense lawyer would have said “whomever,” I can tell you that. And by the way, Ken Breen blew that call, big time. Now if this was just a matter of typical defense lawyer hyperbole, it would be business as usual. But this comes from the inside out, making it a dubious commentary on the path down which Bernie’s defense is going.
And now the government wants Breen off the case. From what I can see, this can’t arise from any boast that he’s never lost a criminal trial as defense lawyer, as I can’t seem to find any case he’s ever tried as a defense lawyer. Nor can it come from his inability to get along with prosecutors, thus making meetings with the government too unpleasant, since it’s nearly impossible for a defense lawyer to be any closer to the government than a member of the club like Ken Breen. So what’s upshot?
It’s hard to fathom why Bernie, a street guy made good, then better, then bad, would wrap himself up in a world where he at best is tolerated, especially when he doesn’t pay his legal fees. Maybe it’s because no real criminal defense lawyer would take the case until the check cleared? Maybe it’s because big time guys like Bernie require Biglaw representation like Kenneth Breen?
Going out on a limb here, Kenneth Breen would be the lawyer I would chose if I wanted someone who could march me into 1 Saint Andrews Plaza and know his way around, saying “hi, how are you” to everyone he meets along the way. But if I had some desire to not have my fall from grace require me to wear an orange jumpsuit and sensible sneakers, my choices would be somewhat different.
In the meantime, it should be a pretty good show watching the government explain why they can’t have Kenneth Breen represent Bernie Kerik. With Marc Mukasey, son of the new Attorney General, law partner of presidential candidate Rudolph Guiliani, former Southern District of New York Assistant United State Attorney, making sure that his former officemates leave America’s Mayor and Bernie’s former best friend out of the mix.
Discover more from Simple Justice
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Another Kerik Lawyer Bites the Dust
Bernie Kerik is about to become a martyr to the cause of legal representation, now that his latest lawyer, Kenneth Breen of the
well-knownhighly-regardedgo-towhite shoe law firm of Paul, Hastings, JanofskyAnother Kerik Lawyer Bites the Dust
Bernie Kerik is about to become a martyr to the cause of legal representation, now that his latest lawyer, Kenneth Breen of the
well-knownhighly-regardedgo-towhite shoe law firm of Paul, Hastings, JanofskyAnother Kerik Lawyer Bites the Dust
Bernie Kerik is about to become a martyr to the cause of legal representation, now that his latest lawyer, Kenneth Breen of the
well-knownhighly-regardedgo-towhite shoe law firm of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky