Jenna Dabbs is a partner at Hecker Fink LLP, bringing extensive experience as a trial and appellate attorney focused on government and internal investigations, white collar criminal defense, complex civil litigation, and regulatory compliance. As a former federal prosecutor, she has substantial trial and investigative expertise in both public and private sectors.
Jenna utilizes her background to represent individuals and corporations during internal inquiries and a variety of government investigations conducted by the DOJ, SEC, CFTC, FINRA, and other regulatory bodies. Her work includes handling cases involving securities fraud, insider trading, market manipulation, money laundering, tax fraud, prescription drug diversion, and public corruption. Additionally, she represents clients in complex contract and employment disputes and other crisis situations, including a Fortune 500 government contractor, a large mutual insurance company, and global financial institutions.
Some of Jenna’s recent representations include:
- Representing the audit committee of a mutual insurance company in an internal investigation into allegations of inaccurate financial reporting by senior executives.
- Defending a former executive of a cryptocurrency exchange in a criminal case involving violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.
- Assisting AECOM in defending against claims under the False Claims Act, leading to the government’s decision not to intervene in the case.
- Representing the founder and former CEO of a brand management company in a criminal fraud case set for retrial.
- Advising a financial technology company on investigations related to blockchain and cryptocurrency by multiple agencies.
- Defending a former analyst in SEC and DOJ investigations into market manipulation and securities fraud.
- Representing several partners of a global consulting firm in DOJ and state attorney general investigations.
- Serving as an Independent Compliance Consultant for a financial institution during an SEC resolution over recordkeeping violations.
- Representing a global financial institution in a CFTC investigation regarding recordkeeping issues.
- Defending executives of an industrial chemicals company in SEC and DOJ investigations into accounting fraud.
- Representing the former CFO of a medical device company in an SEC and DOJ investigation concerning accounting fraud.
- Assisting a former commodities trader in a DOJ investigation into market manipulation.
- Leading a team that secured a temporary restraining order restoring legal visitation rights at the Metropolitan Detention Center in 2019.
Jenna served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York from 2006 to 2014, where she was part of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. She investigated and prosecuted various federal securities and commodities fraud cases and coordinated civil enforcement actions with regulatory agencies. As a member of the Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit, she led high-profile investigations into terrorism, international money laundering, and global narcotics trafficking, collaborating with U.S. and foreign law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
With extensive experience in federal criminal trials involving charges like bank fraud, money laundering, and narcotics trafficking, Jenna has supervised numerous investigations in various areas. She has also briefed and argued many criminal appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Prior to joining Hecker Fink, Jenna was Senior Counsel at Pershing Square Capital Management, where she managed litigation and regulatory compliance matters and was the only woman on the investment team, focusing on legal and regulatory risks. Before her government service, she was a litigation associate at Covington & Burling LLP and clerked for Honorable Denise Cote of the SDNY.
Jenna has earned acclaim in her field, with Chambers recognizing her as one of New York’s top litigators in white collar crime and government investigations. She has been praised for her intelligence, strategy, and credibility, and was named in the Global Investigations Review 2021 Women in Investigations survey. Other recognitions include Lawdragon’s lists for leading plaintiff employment and civil rights lawyers, being highlighted as a “Litigation Star” by Benchmark Litigation, and being named among Crain’s New York’s “Most Notable Women in Law.”
Alongside her commercial practice, Jenna is dedicated to pro bono work, serving as appointed counsel for indigent defendants in the SDNY under the Criminal Justice Act. She is involved with the New York City Bar’s White Collar Committee and serves on the Board of Directors for the Legal Aid Society and the Board of Trustees for the Caedmon School.
Jenna received her J.D. from Columbia Law School, where she was a senior editor of the Law Review and a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. She holds a B.A. with high honors from Wesleyan University.
