Jan Lawrence Handzlik

Jan Lawrence Handzlik is a skilled and experienced investigations and trial lawyer with a national and international practice. He represents individuals and organizations in investigations, criminal prosecutions, enforcement actions and complex civil litigation in the United States and abroad. Jan also conducts corporate internal investigations and coordinates cross-border criminal and regulatory matters.

Following graduation from the UCLA School of Law, Jan served as Law Clerk to a United States District Judge. He then joined the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, where he served in the Fraud & Special Prosecutions Section. Jan conducted grand jury investigations and prosecuted federal fraud cases at trial and on appeal. An accomplished trial lawyer, Jan has conducted well over 100 jury trials and numerous bench trials to completion in U.S. federal and state courts.

In addition to extensive investigations and trial experience, Jan brings a comprehensive and nuanced understanding of the law and an appreciation for the impact investigations and prosecutions have on his clients, their livelihood and their families.

Jan specializes in white-collar criminal investigations and prosecutions and regulatory enforcement actions. He is nationally and internationally recognized as an authority on financial crimes, federal criminal prosecutions and transnational crime. Jan’s practice includes civil and criminal securities fraud, investment fraud, tax fraud, bank fraud and money laundering, commercial bribery, cybercrime, internet gambling and cryptocurrency trading issues.

Jan's expertise extends to allegations of official bribery under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), offenses under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) investigations. In addition, Jan has been involved in investigations under the United Kingdom’s Bribery Act 2010 and Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 (SAMLA).
Jan has been consistently recognized in national and international publications as a leading investigations, regulatory and business crime defense lawyer.

Jan is deeply involved in bar association activities. He served as Co-Chair of the International Bar Association’s Business Crime Committee for two years. In that position, he helped organize and present the IBA’s annual Transnational Crime Conference in Berlin, Miami Beach and Panama City, Panama and mock trials at the IBA’s Annual Conference in Dublin, Vienna and Washington, DC.

Jan served as National Chair of the American Bar Association’s National White Collar Crime Committee for two years. He was a member of the Criminal Justice Section’s Governing Council for six years and the ABA President’s Task Force on the Attorney-Client Privilege for five years. Jan participated in Criminal Justice Section working groups on the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act, as well as anti-terrorism and money laundering legislation. Jan also served as an officer of the ABA's International Law Section and Vice-Chair of the International Anti-Corruption Committee and International Criminal Law Committee.

Jan has been very active in public service projects, including service on investigative bodies formed by the Los Angeles Police Commission. He served as Counsel to the Christopher Commission for the investigation of the Rodney King police brutality incident. Jan also served as Deputy General Counsel to the Webster Commission which evaluated the law enforcement response to the Los Angeles civil disturbances. Subsequently, Jan was Deputy General Counsel to the Rampart Independent Review Panel for the investigation of police corruption and officer-involved shootings. He also served on a blue ribbon committee to evaluate the operations of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office and as a member of the Standing Committee on Attorney Discipline for the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.

Jan is a member of the U.S. Supreme Court Historical Society and the Chancery Club of Los Angeles. He also served on the Boards of two non-profit organizations, Inner City Law Center and Friends of Child Advocates.