Gil M. Soffer is managing partner of Katten's Chicago office and national co-head of the White Collar Defense, Internal Investigations and Compliance practice. He also serves as hiring partner in the Chicago office. A former federal prosecutor, Gil provides experienced counsel to individuals and companies under investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and other government regulators.

Gil's practice runs the gamut of white collar criminal and civil fraud matters, with particular emphasis on health care fraud, securities fraud and fraud involving government programs. Among other recent engagements, Gil successfully defended two former executives of a high-profile mortgage lending company in a fraud investigation by the SEC, convincing the agency not to pursue charges against either client; conducted internal investigations for two leading providers of higher education; represented a multi-state health care provider accused by the Department of Justice of anti-kickback violations and Medicare fraud; and defended Japanese and American executives in two separate antitrust investigations by the Department of Justice involving the Japanese automobile industry. Gil has also counseled corporations and their boards in connection with derivative class action litigation arising from allegations of fraud.

Before joining Katten, Gil was an Assistant US Attorney (AUSA) in Chicago. As an AUSA, he prosecuted cases ranging from corruption to health care fraud, earning the Director's Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant US Attorney from then Attorney General Janet Reno. Later, while at Katten, Gil accepted a position as Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General and was soon thereafter appointed Associate Deputy Attorney General. In this position, he played an integral role in drafting the Department of Justice’s Corporate Monitor Principles (the Morford Memo) and Corporate Charging Principles. He provided training on those policies to US Attorneys’ offices nationwide. He also managed the President’s Corporate Fraud Task Force and briefed members of Congress about criminal matters within the DOJ. After completing his service in 2009, Gil returned to the firm.

Gil is frequently sought out by local and national media to speak on criminal law matters and serves as legal analyst for WLS-Channel 7, the Chicago affiliate of ABC. He has also testified before the US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law regarding the use and selection of corporate monitors in criminal cases.

In his tradition of public service, in December 2009, Gil was appointed by Illinois Governor Quinn to serve as a Commissioner on the Illinois Executive Ethics Commission. The nine-member commission was formed to promote ethics in the executive branch of public service and to ensure that state business is conducted with fairness and integrity. Toward that end, the commission adjudicates alleged violations of the Illinois Ethics Act and provides guidance to the state’s ethics officers. Gil currently serves as chair of the commission.
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