The defining feature of a crisis is not disruption, it is scrutiny. Decisions are made on incomplete information, under time pressure, while multiple stakeholders evaluate the process as much as the outcome. In many matters, reputation turns on the quality of the first decisions, not just the final result.
Buchalter’s Crisis Management and Strategic Response group helps clients navigate fast-moving situations where the factual record is incomplete and the consequences are immediate. Our team includes lawyers with senior in-house crisis and risk leadership experience. We bring that operator perspective to coordinated execution across legal risk, operational realities, and stakeholder expectations.
We have standing relationships with a pre-vetted bench of outside specialists, including crisis communications and public relations advisers, investigators, forensic and incident-response teams, and public affairs advisers, and we can activate that support quickly when a matter requires it. Our lawyers also have experience managing cross-border matters and can coordinate with international advisers as needed. Where appropriate, we structure investigations and crisis-response efforts under counsel’s direction to help preserve confidentiality and privilege protections and to support candid communication.
We support boards, executive teams, and in-house legal and compliance leaders when the stakes are high and timing is tight, and we also advise high-profile and high-net-worth individuals in reputationally sensitive matters.
We begin by developing a dependable understanding of what occurred and what must be verified, then help leadership set roles, escalation paths, and a decision cadence that keeps the response moving. From the outset, we plan for what often follows, including press inquiries, disputes, remediation, and board-level oversight.
Capabilities
- Sensitive Investigations and High-Stakes Scrutiny
Launch rapid internal reviews and manage parallel inquiries, with an emphasis on early fact development, disciplined escalation, and decision support. - Cyber, Privacy, and Technology Incidents
Guide incident response involving data and systems, coordinating containment, notification obligations, and stakeholder expectations. - Workplace and Executive Issues
Handle sensitive workplace and leadership matters with an approach designed to be prompt, fair, and credible. - High-Stakes Disputes and Litigation Readiness
Position early for emergency relief and fast-moving disputes, including sequencing strategy and preparing for follow-on claims. - Board, Special Committee, and Governance Support
Support independent oversight and board-ready reporting, including clear roles, escalation paths, and documentation built to hold up under review. - Remediation, Compliance, and Readiness
Translate lessons learned into practical remediation and response protocols that reduce recurrence and support governance follow-through.
Representative matters
Among other matters, the Buchalter team has counseled clients on:
- Represented high-net worth individual in containing an international media incident with devastating reputational risk and damage. Worked with international team of investigators, public relations consultants, and technology experts to avoid financial collapse, negative press, and government investigations.
- Served as counsel to a national consumer finance company in multistate Attorney General investigations and litigation, advising on regulatory and litigation strategy, operational remediation considerations, and coordinated settlement posture in matters implicating both reputational risk and ongoing operations.
- Represented internationally renowned vocalist in government investigations managing negative press and security risks.
- Investigated financial fraud ring and reported to the Board of Directors of publicly-traded fortune 20 company while initiating recovery efforts of over $50,000,000 and working alongside federal officials.
- Assisted national closely held company with government regulatory inquiry impacting millions of dollars of lines of credit while managing significant financial risk and negative publicity and preventing regulatory enforcement action.
- Represented non-profit Board of Directors in investigating financial fraud involving $10,000,000 of government funding, managed federal investigation and created public relations strategy to address negative media publicity.
- Created financial fraud team for publicly-traded bank while partnering with national network of investigators. Initiated recovery efforts involving multi-million dollar mortgage loan portfolio through litigation and partnering with government agents and prosecutors.
- Served as national coordinating counsel for a raw mineral supplier in nationwide product liability litigation, coordinating defense strategy across jurisdictions and managing complex expert and discovery work streams under significant public and regulatory scrutiny.
The Team
Crisis work is multidisciplinary by necessity. This group brings together lawyers with experience across investigations, disputes, cybersecurity and privacy, employment, and enterprise risk management, with a structure designed to scale to the moment and keep execution coordinated.
The group includes former prosecutors, along with lawyers who have held senior in-house crisis, risk, and compliance leadership roles. The team is supported by teams across disputes, employment, and cyber and privacy matters. Meet Buchalter’s Crisis Management and Strategic Response team.
The group is co-led by Michael Kilgarriff and Kristina D. Maritczak.
If a sensitive matter is developing, or you want to strengthen readiness before one does, contact Buchalter’s Crisis Management and Strategic Response team.
