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Naana Frimpong

Naana Frimpong

Partner

Co-Chair, US-Africa Practice

Atlanta
About

Naana is a trusted partner to companies and executives navigating sensitive and often high-profile government investigations and related litigation and provides seasoned counsel to clients on the proactive adoption and refinement of compliance measures to meet an ever-changing global regulatory environment.

She is a former US federal prosecutor and trial lawyer with 20 years of experience conducting a broad array of investigations all over the world. She heads the firm's Atlanta litigation group and serves on the firm's Policy Committee. Her experience spans a range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, automotive manufacturing, nuclear power construction, government contracting, professional sports, and private equity and includes successfully resolving actions before a range of regulatory bodies. Her experience includes successfully resolving matters under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the False Claims act and general fraud. Although Naana's practice is global in its reach, she has a particular focus on Africa. She is co-chair of the firm's US-Africa Practice and is the US representative to the DLA Piper Africa Board.

During her tenure as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois (Chicago), she served as lead counsel on dozens of felony investigations and prosecutions, including various financial fraud schemes and transnational narcotics trafficking matters. She presented and obtained federal grand jury indictments, argued at numerous legal and evidentiary hearings, successfully tried several financial fraud jury and bench trials to verdict and briefed and successfully argued appeals before the US Courts of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

Areas of FocusLitigation, Arbitration and InvestigationsAntitrust and Competition
Bar admissionsGeorgiaNew York
CourtsUnited States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh CircuitUnited States District Court for the Northern District of GeorgiaUnited States District Court for the Eastern District of New YorkUnited States District Court for the Southern District of New York

EXPERIENCE

Naana's representations include the following significant matters:
  • A global contractor in a False Claims Act investigation being conducted by the DOJ
  • A global pharmaceutical company in connection with an internal FCPA investigation
  • A professional sports team in connection with the U.S. Women’s Soccer abuse investigation
  • A global pharmaceutical company in connection with various U.S. congressional investigations
  • A global pharmaceutical company in an off-label promotion and False Claims Act investigation being conducted by the DOJ
  • A global pharmaceutical company in connection with an internal investigation concerning allegations of improper marketing practices
  • A global pharmaceutical company in connection with an electronic health record investigation conducted by the DOJ
  • The audit committee of an engineering and manufacturing company in a global FCPA investigation (in particular with respect to certain African jurisdictions)
  • An automotive manufacturer in an investigation conducted by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and numerous state attorneys general on vehicle safety concerns
  • A large defense contractor in a False Claims Act investigation being conducted by the DOJ
  • A U.S. based power company in connection with a parallel DOJ and SEC enforcement action
  • A U.S. based corporation conducting an internal investigation of its operations in Southeast Asia to assess potential FCPA exposure
  • A luxury retailer in connection with an FCPA-focused compliance assessment
  • A private equity firm in connection with allegations of race discrimination
  • A federal institution in connection with allegations of race and sex discrimination in promotion and hiring
  • An individual in connection with alleged multi-million dollar healthcare RICO scheme
  • An African government in a series of ICC arbitrations and related enforcement and set-aside proceedings
Education
  • LL.M., International Crime and Justice, University of Torino and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute
  • J.D., Yale Law School
  • B.A., Amherst College
    magna cum laude

Awards

The Legal 500 United States

  • Recommended, Corporate Investigations and White-Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Individuals (2023)

Bylines

  • Episode 5: Ethics, integrity & sustainability - Unlocking lasting value in Africa, 02 October 2022
  • Black In House Counsel 2022 Annual Report, 31 March 2022
  • Commodities trading firms face increasing risk of FCPA enforcement activity, 5 October 2021
  • Commodities News and Trends, 20 September 2021
  • Co-author, "Taking the Granston Memo to the Next Level: Early and Close Coordination with Agencies on Qui Tam Actions," Washington Legal Foundation, December 2019
  • Co-author, "Taking the Granston Memo to the Next Level: Early and Close Coordination with Agencies on Qui Tam Actions," Washington Legal Foundation, December 2019
  • Co-author, "A Brewing Anti-Corruption Enforcement Storm: Private Equity Investments in Sub-Saharan Africa," Africa Bulletin, September 2019

Seminars

  • Speaker, "Africa: Market Growth Drivers, Entry Challenges, and What it Takes to Strengthen and Monitor Compliance," ACI's Advanced Forum on FCPA & Anticorruption for the Life Sciences Industry, May 2023
  • Speaker, Women 3.0: The Icons and Ideas Shaping Africa, Forbes Woman Africa Leading Women Summit, March 2023
  • Co-chair, "New Frontiers: Redefining the Landscape of the FCA," Federal Bar Association Annual Qui Tam conference, February 2023
  • Speaker, "Ethics, Integrity & sustainability - Unlocking lasting value in Africa," DLA Piper Africa Week, October 2022
  • Best Practices for Corporate Compliance Programs, 09 March 2023
  • Speaker, "Advancing with Africa as an Export and Investment Destination," U.S. Chamber of Commerce Africa Business Center, September 2022
  • Moderator, Investing in Women and Youth – Sustainable Growth, US-Africa Business Summit in Morocco, July 2022
  • Moderator, "Increasing Anticorruption Enforcement Risk for Commodities Trading Firms," April 2022
  • Speaker, "Sharing the Secrets: Reporting on "The Secrets of Women Rainmakers - How to Become One and How to Create a Culture that Develops Them," International Bar Association May 2022
  • Moderator, "Refereeing the FCA: The View from the Bench," Federal Bar Association Annual Qui Tam conference, February 2022
  • Speaker, "Small and Big Law Synergies: Success Stories and Opportunities," Women’s White Collar Defense Association, April 2021
  • Moderator, "Insights from Successful African Entrepreneurs," Africa Webinar Series (COVID-19: Opportunity in Crisis Part Three), November 2020
  • Moderator, "General Counsel Forum," Africa Webinar Series (COVID-19: Opportunity in Crisis Part One), September 2020
  • Co-chair, "Arbitration Institute Seminar," Institute of Continuing Legal Education, 2022
  • Speaker, "Compliance and Risk Management for Legal Agreements in African Private Equity," African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, October 2019
  • Faculty, "Trial Advocacy, Persuasive Writing and Training of Trainers in Lagos, Nigeria," National Institute of Trial Advocacy, October 2019

Media Mentions

  • "DLA Piper Taps Ex-King & Spalding Atty For Global Work," Law360, July 2021
  • "Destination Africa: The Rise of Arbitration Across the Continent," Law.com International, July 2020
  • "An Interview with Naana Frimpong, J.D. Yale Law School '04," Yale and the World, October 2020
  • "Two Black Female Lawyers On The Importance of Education for All," Law.com International, October 2020

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Honorary Consul for the Republic of Botswana
  • Board of Trustees for Amherst College
  • DLA Piper's Global Scholarships Program Board
  • Vice-Chair, Yale University President’s Council on International Activities
  • Women's White Collar Defense Association
  • American Society of International Law
  • International Bar Association
  • Leadership Council on Leadership Diversity, 2019 Fellow

My latest insights

Past event

Africa in Chicago

24 October 2024 .1 minute read

Past event

Building Bridges – CLE Symposium

25 September 2024 .3 minute read

Past event

Doing Business in Africa for Franchisors

9 April 2024 .2 minute read

View All

Connect

Phone

+1 404 736 7835
(Work, Atlanta)
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