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Christian Ford

Christian Ford

Partner

Litigation - White Collar, Investigations, and Government Enforcement

Chair, Space Exploration and Innovation practice

About

Christian Ford's practice is dedicated to government investigations, export control regulations, economic and trade sanctions, and national security matters, offering clients strategic guidance in navigating complex regulatory landscapes and enforcement actions.  He defends US and global clients in high-stakes government investigations and enforcement involving economic sanctions and export controls, anti-money laundering (AML), and other regulatory issues. He also counsels companies operating in heavily regulated industries on regulatory compliance and national security matters, including chemicals, technology, life sciences, SaaS, energy, aerospace and defense, blockchain and financial services.  

Prior to joining DLA Piper, Christian served as a federal prosecutor in the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, overseeing investigations and prosecutions focused on export controls, sanctions, money laundering, and other matters affecting US national security and foreign relations. During this time, Christian worked closely with a wide range of federal law enforcement agencies and key regulatory and enforcement bodies, including the Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and the Intelligence Community.  This unique background and understanding of the interplay between civil, administrative and criminal investigations and enforcement – particularly involving the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA), Export Administration Regulations (EAR), International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), and economic sanctions regulations – enables Christian to provide keen insights and counsel to his clients.

Christian later served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General, where he advised the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, and Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy on critical national security regulatory and law enforcement matters, shaping high-level strategies and policies in these areas. 

Christian is a veteran and former Navy SEAL. He maintains an active pro bono practice advocating on behalf of military veterans.

 
Bar admissionsCaliforniaDistrict of ColumbiaTexas

EXPERIENCE

Select Government Experience

  • Lead national security prosecutor in the seizure and forfeiture of the Wise Honest, a North Korean cargo vessel connected to sanctions violations. 
  • Lead prosecutor in the investigation and prosecution of foreign nationals and foreign companies indicted for violating IEEPA, sanctions regulations and money laundering.  
  • Oversaw criminal case involving more than two dozen foreign bankers accused of orchestrating an international money laundering scheme of over $2.5 billion, in violation of US sanctions.
  • Prosecuted an arms trafficker convicted of conspiring to use and transfer missiles designed to destroy aircraft, money laundering, and ITAR violations.
  • Trained US and foreign law enforcement and custom agents in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe on investigative techniques and enforcement of export controls, economic sanctions, smuggling, and anti-money laundering.

Representative Experience

  • Represent clients from startups to global corporations facing state, federal, civil and criminal investigations involving BIS, OFAC, Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Homeland Security, military law enforcement agencies, the Environmental Protection Agency, and state prosecutors.
  • Draft sanctions, export control policies, and export classifications for global energy, industrial, chemical, technology, and space companies, and advise on the implementation of compliance procedures.
  • Develop and implement law enforcement (“dawn raid”) response protocols, including policy creation, procedural documentation, and staff training programs for multinational corporations.  Lead hands-on training sessions to prepare teams for law enforcement visits.
  • Oversee voluntary disclosures to BIS, OFAC, and DOJ for US and multinational corporations.
  • Provide training to senior executives and corporations on sanctions and export control investigations and enforcement, compliance, responding to government inquiries and legal-investigative process, national security and related management of data.
  • Conduct risk assessments of companies’ customers, supply chains, intermediaries, and counterparties.
 
Education
  • J.D., University of California, Berkeley, School of Law
  • M.A., Political Science, University of California at Berkeley
  • M.A., International Relations, Yale University

Awards

  • The Legal 500 United States
    • Recommended, Corporate Investigations and White-Collar Criminal Defense (2022-2023)
  • Attorney General's Award for Distinguished Service
  • FBI Director's Award for Outstanding Counterintelligence Investigation
  • National Intelligence Medallion
  • Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Law Enforcement Award
  • National Security Division's Assistant Attorney General Award for Excellence (2016, 2017, 2019)

Seminars

Connect

Phone

+1 202 799 4420
(Work, Washington, DC)
+1 713 425 8420
(Work, Houston)