Justice Department anti-money laundering chief lands at Morrison & Foerster

The logo of law firm Morrison & Foerster LLP is seen at their office in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 31, 2020. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

(Reuters) – Deborah Connor, a senior anti-money laundering official at the U.S. Department of Justice, has joined Morrison & Foerster as a Washington, D.C.-based partner, the law firm said on Thursday.

Connor was most recently chief of the money laundering and asset recovery section (MLARS). She left the Justice Department on Aug. 12, according to a spokesperson for San Francisco-founded Morrison & Foerster.

She oversaw matters including prosecutions against financial institutions for Bank Secrecy Act and economic sanctions violations, and investigations involving digital currency and financial technology companies, the firm said in a statement.

Connor joins Morrison & Foerster’s investigations and white-collar defense group, which has added a batch of other former Justice Department officials and federal prosecutors in the past year and a half.

Other big law firms, including Weil, Gotshal & Manges and Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, have also brought on partners to white collar defense practice groups in the past week.

Paul Hastings in March hired Leo Tsao, who had most recently served as principal deputy chief of the MLARS.

Connor, who previously held the deputy role, worked for 16 years in the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Columbia, the firm said.

Read more:

Weil, Cadwalader pick up N.Y. white-collar leaders from rival law firms

Morrison & Foerster lures SDNY prosecutor to white collar defense team

MoFo adds ex-prosecutors in N.Y., forms state AG practice

Morrison & Foerster elects corporate leader McCrath as new firm chair

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.