Milbank LLP is pleased to announce that Nola Heller, a market-leading white collar and investigations partner and former unit chief at the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, has joined Milbank’s New York office, where she will assume the role of co-head of that office’s White Collar Defense & Investigations practice.
“Nola is widely regarded as a brilliant white collar defense lawyer, and we are thrilled to welcome her to Milbank,” said Milbank Chairman Scott A. Edelman. “Her arrival will further deepen our roster of talented, seasoned litigators and enhance our ability to provide top-tier counsel to clients on their large-scale white collar and securities regulatory matters.”
Ms. Heller has nearly 20 years of experience as a former federal prosecutor and defense attorney. She regularly serves as lead counsel on behalf of global financial institutions, multinational companies, boards and individuals in high-stakes investigations and multimillion-dollar criminal and regulatory enforcement matters. Ms. Heller specializes in representing institutional clients in enforcement-related matters and has significant experience appearing before federal and state regulators, including the Department of Justice, Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Federal Reserve, New York Department of Financial Services, FINRA and State Attorneys General. She also frequently leads sensitive internal investigations on behalf of institutional clients and has a successful track record defending individuals in major federal criminal matters. Ms. Heller has particular expertise in leading communications recordkeeping matters, both as a compliance advisor and in regulatory probes. She also has significant experience handling cryptocurrency matters, and frequently represents individuals and institutions in cryptocurrency-related criminal and regulatory probes.
“Nola exemplifies the qualities that we most prize in a lawyer and colleague: vast experience in her field, creativity, team spirit and total dedication to the client’s interests,” said Litigation & Arbitration Group Chair George S. Canellos. “Nola will be immediately joining longtime friends in our efforts to offer clients a unique combination of criminal and regulatory expertise and market knowledge.”
“Milbank is known for its elite New York white collar practice, and I am excited to join this premier team of litigators and help clients navigate their most sensitive, critical matters,” said Ms. Heller.
Ms. Heller joins Milbank from another major New York law firm, where she spent six years as a partner. Prior to that, Ms. Heller served as an Assistant US Attorney in the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York for 11 years, where she held several leadership positions, including Chief of the Violent and Organized Crime Unit and Chief of the General Crimes Unit, and prosecuted and supervised cases involving all manner of federal crimes, including those involving charges of racketeering (RICO), securities fraud, money laundering, bank and wire fraud, tax fraud, healthcare fraud and cybercrime, among other offenses. Ms. Heller received significant recognition for her public service, including the Attorney General's David Margolis Award for Exceptional Service, the Department of Justice's highest award. She also received the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation's Prosecutor of the Year Award and twice earned Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force Awards of Excellence.
Before joining the US Attorney’s Office, Ms. Heller clerked for the Honorable Reena Raggi of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the Honorable Michael B. Mukasey of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Ms. Heller received her JD from Yale Law School, where she was Managing Editor of The Yale Law Journal.
