John Joseph Pease III

With more than 30 years of experience as a federal prosecutor, defense attorney, and in-house counsel specializing in complex criminal and civil investigations and trials, John Pease represents clients in a host of white collar litigation and government investigations matters, including Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and False Claims Act (FCA) litigation. While serving as an Assistant US Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1997 to 2013, John handled many of the office’s most complex and high-profile investigations and prosecutions, including the trial conviction for corruption of a prominent Pennsylvania state senator.

Ranked for white collar crime and government investigations, Chambers USA noted that John has been described by peers as being "tough, tenacious and smart," as well as "thorough and well prepared."

While at the US Attorney’s Office, John also served as Chief of the Government and Health Care Fraud Section in the Criminal Division from 2009 to 2013, leveraging his healthcare fraud and FCA litigation experience and leading a number of nationwide investigations and prosecutions involving global pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers, defense contractors, and healthcare providers. He has far-reaching first-chair trial experience and has argued numerous times before the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Prior to joining Morgan Lewis, John was executive counsel for Teva Pharmaceuticals, where he managed global government investigations and related criminal and civil litigation (in the United States and internationally) in a variety of areas, including the FCPA; foreign criminal and regulatory statutes; the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; the Anti-Kickback Statute; and the FCA. He worked closely with Teva’s general counsel and senior executive management team, interfaced with the board and audit committee, and served as principal counsel to the global compliance officer. John has handled FCPA investigations in more than 20 countries, with significant experience in Asia, Eastern Europe (including Russia and Ukraine), Western Europe, and Latin America.

He began his career at a national law firm based in Philadelphia, where he handled both complex commercial litigation and white collar matters. John previously taught trial advocacy as an adjunct professor at the Drexel University School of Law and served as a lecturer in law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He has spoken on numerous panels regarding white collar crime, the FCPA, and healthcare fraud throughout the United States.