Washington DC, October 13, 2020 – Davis Polk today announced that Uzo Asonye, a seasoned trial lawyer with more than a decade of experience prosecuting complex financial crimes and public corruption offenses, will join the firm as a partner in its White Collar Defense and Investigations Group in Washington DC. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Uzo to the firm,” said Neil Barr, Davis Polk’s Managing Partner. “He is a gifted trial lawyer, with deep experience in insider trading, market manipulation, public corruption, and other key areas of cross-border financial fraud. Uzo is an important addition to our preeminent white collar team and top-tier criminal and civil trial practices.” 

Since 2019, Mr. Asonye has served as Acting Chief of the Financial Crimes and Public Corruption Unit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. He previously served as Deputy Chief of the Unit. Mr. Asonye joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2010 after several years in private practice defending companies and individuals in a wide range of congressional and other government investigations.

During his tenure at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Asonye prosecuted some of the biggest financial fraud and public corruption cases of the last decade and tried numerous multi-defendant, complex cases to guilty verdicts before juries. He oversaw the prosecution of a range of offenses, including corporate, securities, healthcare, bank and financial fraud, anti-money laundering, procurement and tax fraud. He has handled significant Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters, including an $850 million corporate resolution, and oversaw a $9 billion federal procurement investigation. 

In 2018, Mr. Asonye joined the Office of Special Counsel Robert Mueller to investigate Russian government efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election and related matters. He was a key member of the trial team in the successful prosecution of Paul Manafort in the Eastern District of Virginia. 

“Uzo is an incredibly talented and well-respected prosecutor with whom I had the privilege to work while serving as U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District,” said Neil MacBride, co-head of Davis Polk’s White Collar Defense and Investigations Group. “He has remarkable judgment and an exceptional work ethic – on top of outstanding people skills – and will be a tremendous asset to our clients and our firm.” 

Uzo Asonye said, “I have been fortunate throughout my career to work very closely with several members of Davis Polk’s formidable white collar group, both at the U.S. Attorney’s Office and in the Special Counsel’s Office, and am excited to join this fantastic group of colleagues as we help clients tackle some of their most critical issues.” 

Mr. Asonye is a recipient of the 2016 Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys Director’s Award for Superior Performance, and the FBI recognized him numerous times for his outstanding prosecution skills. He received a J.D. from Yale Law School, where he served as Production and Case Notes Editor of the Yale Law & Policy Review, and a B.S., with honors, from Cornell University.

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