David L. Hall

David joined Wiggin and Dana after more than two decades as a federal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). His experience investigating and prosecuting high-stakes cases makes him uniquely qualified to represent clients needing a seasoned counselor and trial lawyer.

David is a member of several of the firm’s practice groups that draw on his government experience, including International Trade Compliance; National Security; White Collar Defense, Government Investigations, and Corporate Compliance; Cybersecurity and Privacy; and Art and Museum Law.

He represents corporations and individuals in investigations and prosecutions by the DOJ and other federal and state agencies and in complex civil litigation. He conducts internal investigations and corporate compliance assessments for companies, including those in the defense, financial, and health care industries. He advises clients concerning the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the False Claims Act, CFIUS, CALEA, and cybersecurity and data privacy, including assessments of policies and procedures, as well as data breach preparation and response.

David has successfully defended individuals and companies under investigation by federal and state agencies for a wide range of suspected unlawful activity, including bank fraud, securities fraud, political corruption, unlawful sales of art and antiquities, fraud against the government, antitrust, and unlawful exports. He has successfully represented clients in civil litigation involving corporate governance, fiscal oversight, breach of contract, breach of warranty, fraud, antitrust, false claims, and other allegations.

David testified before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Western Hemisphere Subcommittee in 2019 on “Understanding Odebrecht: Lessons for Combating Corruption in the Americas”, and in 2017 on ““Examining the Effectiveness of the Kingpin Designation Act in the Western Hemisphere”.

During his 23-year career as an Assistant U.S. Attorney at the DOJ, David received the Director’s Award for Superior Performance, numerous Special Act Awards, and other awards and commendations from government agencies, including the FBI, CIA, DEA, and ATF. He has also been recognized with the DHS/ICE Excellence in Law Enforcement Award, the DHS/ICE International Achievement Award, and the SAFE Beacon Award.

His standout achievements at the Justice Department included the successful prosecution of the Armaments Corporation of South Africa (ARMSCOR), Kentron, and Fuchs Electronics for violations of the Arms Export Control Act during the apartheid era. He also successfully prosecuted Amir Ardebili, an Iranian arms procurement agent working in Shiraz, Iran to acquire components for the F4, F14, and other military aircraft, as well as microchips for use in phased array radar. That case is the subject of the book Operation Shakespeare: The True Story of an Elite International Sting, written by John Shiffman, which was featured in the CNN series Declassified.

David was also the first to prosecute a software pirate operating from China. His prosecution of Xiang Li ended an operation that sold over $100 million in cracked software products used in highly sensitive applications such as telecommunications, explosive simulation, aerospace, satellite tracking, and flight simulation. The case was chronicled in his book CRACK99: The Takedown of a $100 Million Chinese Software Pirate, which was also featured in an episode of Declassified.

David served as the special prosecutor for the FBI Art Crime Team and has extensive experience with investigations and prosecutions concerning cultural property. He negotiated the return of stolen Norman Rockwell paintings from Brazil and prosecuted Marcus Patmon, an art thief who sold stolen works by Picasso. Other cases David prosecuted resulted in the return of Mesopotamian artifacts to Iraq, a prized gold Moche monkey head (circa 300 A. D.) looted from the royal tombs in Peru, and the long-lost diary of Alfred Rosenberg, Nazi propagandist and Reich Minister for the occupied eastern territories. The Rosenberg Diary is now part of the Holocaust Museum collection.

David served as a naval intelligence officer for thirty years, active and reserve, retiring at the rank of Captain. He commanded three intelligence units and served with the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Office of Naval Intelligence, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in addition to numerous Navy commands. He was awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and numerous other personal awards, unit citations, and service awards.

He also authored The Reagan Wars: A Constitutional Perspective on War Powers and the Presidency and co-authored Stolen Cultural Property: A Risk Management Primer.

David clerked for Judge Walter K. Stapleton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.