January 4, 2024 - David M. Eskew
Abell Eskew Landau LLP (AEL), a boutique law firm specializing in white-collar criminal defense, government investigations, commercial litigation, and healthcare regulatory counseling, proudly announces that former Southern District of New York (SDNY) federal prosecutor Jarrod L. Schaeffer and highly regarded commercial litigator Jeffrey L. Braun have joined the firm.
Schaeffer joins AEL as a partner after serving for more than five years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) for the SDNY. As an AUSA, Schaeffer investigated and prosecuted cases involving corruption, fraud, and international money laundering. Most recently, Schaeffer served as a senior member of the SDNY’s Public Corruption Unit where he handled some of the office’s most sophisticated and sensitive matters, including high-profile investigations and prosecutions of politicians, law enforcement officers, and attorneys. Schaeffer’s hire follows AEL’s addition of Heather Suchorsky, another former federal prosecutor, last year.
“We are excited to welcome Jarrod to the firm as a partner and senior member of the team,” said David M. Eskew, one of AEL’s three founding partners and himself a former AUSA. “Jarrod is a phenomenal criminal and civil litigator, and with his addition, AEL’s ever-growing bench of talent now includes five former federal prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the District of New Jersey, further building upon our already well-recognized capability to handle the most sophisticated and difficult white collar criminal cases in this region.”
“I’m very excited to join Ken, David, Scott, and the growing team at AEL,” said Schaeffer. “In just a few short years, the firm has developed an impressive track record and I look forward to assisting clients in criminal defense and government enforcement matters, as well as in complex commercial and civil litigation.”
Eskew explained the strategic value of the move. “Our white collar criminal defense and government investigations practices have grown substantially over the past few years following some notable successes, including dismissals of charged cases in the SDNY, EDNY and DNJ. As a result, we have been consistently engaged in charged cases and investigations in each of the three big federal districts in the NY/NJ metro area. By adding Jarrod to the team, we bring in a well-respected former prosecutor from SDNY, which was a piece we were previously missing. Now, half of our attorneys are former federal prosecutors and we can boast prior government service and experience in each of the major federal districts in our area. Our firm is already well-known for its expertise in criminal and civil healthcare fraud investigations. With the addition of Jarrod this year and Heather Suchorsky last year, we are poised to expand our reach and expertise in 2024 into other complex fraud cases, including public corruption, financial fraud and money laundering cases.”
Braun, who joins AEL as Counsel, is a highly regarded litigator and counselor with broad experience handling commercial and business disputes. Before joining AEL, Braun spent most of his career as a litigation partner at two national law firms. His practice focuses on complex and often high-profile commercial, real estate, land use, and environmental matters for leading developers, corporations, and nonprofit institutions. Chambers & Co. describes him as “a great litigator with deep experience,” and he was recently ranked number 13 on the New York City and State’s Law Power 100 List honoring lawyers with the biggest impact on New York State.
“Several years ago I had the privilege of working with Jeff on a high-profile land-use case. His skill and expertise handling complex matters led to a resounding victory for our client,” said AEL founding partner Scott R. Landau. “We are thrilled that Jeff is making the jump from ‘big law’ to our boutique law practice, where he will continue to serve clients in high-stakes commercial and real estate matters and will help further grow AEL’s civil litigation practice.”
“Joining a boutique law firm is an exciting change for me, and I’m thrilled to be here,” said Braun. “I was so impressed with Scott when we worked together a few years ago. Ken and David are equally impressive, and AEL has built such a strong team that I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of it.”
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AEL was founded in 2020, just weeks before the global pandemic, by three former federal prosecutors. The firm specializes in white collar criminal defense and government investigations, with a particular focus on federal parallel criminal and civil investigations and cases in the healthcare industry in New York and New Jersey. The firm also handles complex commercial litigation and healthcare regulatory counseling. Since its launch, AEL has achieved consistent growth and has expanded to a team of ten attorneys, including five former federal prosecutors, and focuses on providing practical, no-nonsense, client-centered representation and counsel.