Rebecca Roberts

Overview

Rebecca is a highly experienced attorney specializing in government investigations, internal investigations, and complex civil and criminal matters at all levels in federal and state court.  Spanning over two decades, Rebecca’s practice is a hybrid of civil and criminal.  

Rebecca has represented companies, public entities, non-profits, and individuals in criminal and civil investigations conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the California Attorney General, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, County of San Diego, and San Diego District Attorney.  These investigations have covered topics ranging from fraud, false claims, anti-kickback, to public integrity.  For example, she assisted the California Public Utilities Commission in investigations by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the California Attorney General regarding allegations of undue influence over the Commission by utility companies.  She represented the former Mayor of San Diego and the President of the City Council in an SEC investigation and as witnesses in criminal and civil cases pending in state and federal court concerning retiree benefits, the funding of the city’s pension fund, municipal law and bond offering disclosures.  She recently assisted a non-profit in an investigation by the California Attorney General’s Office concerning raffles.

Rebecca also assists companies, public entities, and non-profits with internal investigations.  She assisted the board of trustees of large public entity regarding allegations of financial improprieties and harassment by its CEO, who resigned following the investigation.  On behalf of a board special committee of popular startup company, she conducted an investigation concerning investor disclosure and government compliance issues.  Rebecca assisted a large public school district with an internal investigation regarding allegations of improper fundraising and false claims.  She also ran an internal investigation for a nonprofit mental health government contractor regarding allegations of executive financial mismanagement and conflicts of interest.

Rebecca also frequently represents companies and individuals in civil litigation and administrative proceedings.  She recently retained a temporary restraining order against a major public entity enjoining administrative proceedings against her clients. Rebecca assisted individual administrators of a renown private school in high profile negligence cases concerning allegations of child abuse by former teacher of the school.  In multifaceted litigation concerning lease to own agreements for 101 Ash / Civic Plaza Center and conflicts of interest violations, she represented the former Chief Operating Officer of the City of San Diego.  She also represented a family trust in bankruptcy proceedings initiated by Russian oil tycoons to force sale of valuable real estate co-owned in the United States.

Rebecca also served as defense counsel in the leading criminal tax case “In re M.H.” She drafted briefs submitted to Ninth Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court on the novel issue of whether the target of a criminal investigation can be compelled to produce foreign bank account records under the Required Records Exception in violation of his Fifth Amendment Right.  She co-wrote the brief with American legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky.  In other criminal proceedings, Rebecca represented an individual accused of improperly lobbying city officials and won a highly publicized motion disqualifying the prosecuting City Attorney.  Rebecca has also assisted victims with recovering restitution, including a Native American Tribe which was defrauded by its fiduciaries. 

Rebecca clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California in 2003-2004 and was identified as a San Diego Rising Star by Super Lawyers in 2015.  She is a co-presenter of the CLE Presentation “What to do When the Government Knocks on Your Door.”