Eric L. Lewis

On October 19, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted Guantánamo detainee Asadullah Haroon Gul’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus, ruling that his detention is unlawful. The decision marks the first time a Guantánamo Bay detainee has won a habeas corpus petition in the last ten years.

One source commented, “I can’t think of an improvement to its practice. We’ve worked with several leading international law firms and in our experience when it comes to complex, high-stakes issues Lewis Baach provides unmatched value.”

The United States needs to consider carefully whether its treaty advantages and broad jurisdictional statutes should be aggressively used to bring foreign defendants to the United States when the American interest is limited and when other countries may have a greater interest in applying their own statutes, and their own penalty structures.

As the suicide of U.S. Olympics gymnastics coach John Geddert, and the sexual abuse suit against previous coach Don Peters, reverberate across the globe, it will be all too easy for governing bodies to again dismiss the abuse allegations as isolated incidents.

In a decision issued on Feb. 5, the U.K. Supreme Court quashed a notice pursuant to Section 2(3) of the 1987 Criminal Justice Act, that sought to require a U.S. corporation, KBR Inc., to produce documents located in the U.S.  The decision has important consequences for cross-border discovery and investigations, as the U.S. and the U.K. appear to be taking divergent approaches.

Over my years as a law professor and practitioner, I have read thousands of draft pleadings written by law students and junior lawyers. Their quality varies, but I would be hard-pressed to think of a more incompetent piece of advocacy than that produced by Donald Trump’s defense team.

The Five Horsepersons of the New Apocalypse — Justices Barrett, Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh — will usher in years if not decades of reactionary decision-making that could transform the United States beyond recognition

The combination of the President’s ego and Barr’s hardline Christian beliefs is uniquely dangerous

Eric Lewis is interviewed extensively in The Andorra Hustle, a documentary by Eric Merola about FinCEN's use of the USA PATRIOT Act to shut down Banca Privada d'Andorra.

There is a popular misconception that asset forfeiture is limited to the luxury cars, private jets and speedboats of drug dealers, but many well-meaning businesses and individuals are finding themselves with their assets seized under statutes that provide U.S. authorities extremely broad powers. And these seizures often occur without any warning to, or even accusation against, the owner of the assets. Once seized it can take years to obtain recovery of perfectly legal assets. In these uncertain times, as many well-meaning people seek the relative safety of the U.S. banking system, individuals and companies in many countries may innocently use money-transfer systems that exponentially increase the risk of having their assets seized. Why does this happen and how can it be avoided?

The coronavirus pandemic has not only caused untold misery, it has forced the virtual shutdown of the global economy. Everyone hopes that this crisis will pass, but events have shown there is a false choice between mitigation and resumption of economic activity. Mitigation, with testing and social distancing, must be done to avoid wave after wave of disease, which will only lead to rolling cessations of economic activity. Given the economic dislocation occasioned by this global crisis and that it is likely to continue for at least a few more months, we can anticipate that many businesses will fail, and others will require time and help to restore financial health and operations. There is little doubt that innumerable global businesses will need the protection of an organized and coordinated insolvency and reorganization process as soon as this crisis is over. The time for them to begin planning is now.

In recent weeks, the world has been engulfed by the spread of COVID-19 as governments scramble to protect their citizens and avoid the collapse of public health systems and long-term damage to their economies. The wide-ranging efforts to flatten the curve of COVID-19 has created a tidal wave of ramifications for an international business community that is today more interconnected than ever, and led to high levels of uncertainty surrounding current and future contractual obligations. At a time when government policies fluctuate daily and courts and arbitration centers are becoming increasingly inaccessible to resolve active disputes, it is difficult for a party to seek or obtain interim measures or relief. From country to country and company to company, the responses have not been uniform: some commercial parties have continued to perform their obligations, while others have argued for wholesale abdication of their responsibilities, and still others are somewhere in between. Certain trends of government action and commercial response are emerging worldwide, no less so in the hyper-connected global businesses that are found in the Middle East.

In these tough times, when clients are looking to protect assets and increase revenue, it is more important than ever to ensure that their arbitral awards are collectible. A truly successful outcome requires the ability to enforce and monetize the award that was won in the arbitration. When faced with a recalcitrant award debtor, it is imperative to think strategically and work closely with counsel and experts to enforce and identify recoverable assets.

Eric Lewis focuses on three key areas: (1) the widening of the net from sanctioned individuals to their families; (2) the application of the evasion provisions to foreign persons; (3) the bringing of new classes within existing sanctions.

We are pleased to report that on August 16, 2016, the United States Treasury Department removed the Philippines and Indonesia branch offices of our client, the International Islamic Relief Organization of Saudi Arabia (IIROSA) from the Office of Foreign Assets Control Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. The administration’s action in this matter demonstrates a clear commitment to an impartial review of the facts and its belief in IIROSA’s ability to oversee its critical global relief operations.

Authored by Eric L. Lewis, Manuel S. Varela and Cristían Francos.

Authored by Eric L. Lewis, Manuel S. Varela and Cristián Francos.

Presented by Eric L. Lewis, Manuel S. Varela & Cristián Francos.

Presentation by Eric L. Lewis & A. Katherine Toomey.

Eric L. Lewis, address to the Commercial Bar Association of England and Wales (COMBAR).

Eric L. Lewis delivered address at the Commercial Bar Association of England and Wales (COMBAR)

"We as lawyers have the obligation to make clear that these executive orders are fundamentally unjust; they are directed at all of us. It rests on us to speak out against them."

The Legal 500 US has ranked LBKM partners Eric Lewis and Aisha Bembry among Washington, DC’s “City Elite” for international litigation.

Chambers has again noted Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss PLLC (LBKM) for its expertise in Latin America.

The 2025 Chambers Global guide ranks the firm among the top international counsel for corporate crime and investigation matters arising out of Latin America. LBKM is the only boutique firm to be included in this elite list.

Attorney General Pam Bondi has issued a directive prompted by a White House executive order announcing a “fundamental change” in the U.S. Department of Justice’s investigative and prosecutorial priorities and directing all law enforcement personnel to work toward the “total elimination” of criminal drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations. A laudable goal, no doubt, but the devil is in the details.

Over more than two decades, Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba has cost US taxpayers at least $13bn to run – it currently houses 15 prisoners. Closing time is beyond due, writes Eric Lewis.

Eric Lewis looks back on how the legal profession has changed over the 40 years he’s been practicing.

Global Investigations Review has ranked LBKM as one of the world’s leading firms for cross-border investigations.

On Nov. 19, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will hear oral argument in AstraZeneca UK Ltd. v. Atchley, a case which is likely to have a significant impact on actions brought under the Anti-Terrorism Act and Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act.

Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss made its debut this year in Chambers’ annual Latin America Guide, ranking as a leading international firm in the Corporate Crime & Investigations practice area.

LBKM is the only boutique firm to be so ranked.

Eric Lewis, A. Katherine Toomey, Adam Kaufmann, and John Moscow were recognized for their market-leading expertise in the tracing and recovery of lost, misappropriated or stolen assets.

LBKM is once again ranked as a leading firm worldwide for Asset Tracing & Recovery in the 2024 edition of Chambers and Partners Litigation Support. Chambers noted the firm’s “particularly strong networks in Latin America, the Middle East and the UK,” and clients described the firm as “extremely responsive and on the ball.”

Julian Assange, charged with ten counts under the Espionage Act in a highly politicized case, won a crucial victory today that postponed his extradition to the United States. 

LBKM’s Eric Lewis advised the Assange UK defense team with respect to the law and procedure of foreign nationals asserting rights under the First Amendment as a defense in criminal trials.

Eric Lewis and Solomon Shinerock successfully petitioned OFAC to remove a vessel from the SDN list. The vessel was listed pursuant to Executive Order 14024, relating to the Russian sanctions program, due to a misidentification of ownership.

LBKM filed an amicus brief in support of the Republic of Argentina with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Petersen v. Argentina and a related appeal. LBKM represented OFEPHI, an organization of ten Argentine provinces, arguing that the district court misconstrued Argentina's expropriation law, and that complex questions of Argentine law should be left to Argentine courts.

An acid attack on Pakistan’s former anti-corruption minister outside his Hertfordshire home is a timely reminder of the risks that political dissidents can face.

Lawyers for the longest-held prisoner in the U.S. war against terrorism have begun a new legal offensive in multiple courts aimed at securing his release from Guantánamo Bay.

Chambers Litigation Support 2023, a guide to leading litigation professionals, has again ranked Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss in its Global-Wide Asset Tracing & Recovery category.

In a recent wide-sweeping decision, Twitter v. Taamneh, the United States Supreme Court dramatically reshaped liability under the 2016 Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (“JASTA”), which imposes secondary, civil liability under the Anti-Terrorism Act (“ATA”) on persons who aid and abet or conspire to commit acts of international terrorism.

LBKM’s Middle East team is featured in The Legal 500 Private Practice Powerlist 2023 for Arbitration (Middle East). The publication is designed to highlight the region's leading arbitration counsel to Legal 500's broad international readership of private practice lawyers, in-house counsel, and expert witnesses.

The United States Supreme Court decided for the first time that foreign sovereigns and foreign-owned entities are subject to criminal prosecution in United States courts, rejecting the contentions of a Turkish state-owned bank that it was immune from prosecution under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (“FSIA”).  

On March 2, 2023, the US government published a multi-agency notice setting forth red flags and warning of enhanced enforcement efforts related to third-party intermediary evasion of US Russia-related sanctions and export controls.  The Financial Times subsequently reported that a senior Treasury official stated that the UAE was a “country of focus” for US investigators.

Eric Lewis, a lawyer and expert on extraditions, said that Bankman-Fried’s decision to go along with extradition might have been due to his not wanting to spend months in a Bahamian jail, where conditions are notoriously bad. While Bankman-Fried has the legal right to challenge the extradition, prosecutors might view that negatively “when it comes time to look at both bail and a potential sentence.”

Who's Who Legal has recognized four Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss lawyers as leading asset recovery practitioners in its 2022 guide. 

Chambers Litigation Support 2022, a guide to leading litigation professionals, has ranked Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss in its Global-Wide Asset Tracing & Recovery category. 

The justice was targeted during her Supreme Court hearings for supposedly helping ‘terrorists’. As someone who has done the same kind of work — and proudly — I find it sad that she felt she had to minimize what she did

Sweden and Switzerland understand that neutrality is no longer an option in an interconnected world. Qatar has stepped up to try to make up the shortfall in global energy markets. Even China has sounded an uncertain trumpet

When I first began working on behalf of Guantanamo detainees in 2002, I would never have believed that twenty years after the first detainees arrived on January 11, 2002, there would still be 39 men at the prison, 28 of whom have never been charged with anything. Nearly 800 men have processed through the prison over the last 20 years, some there for a few years, many more for decades.

On December 9, 2021, the Biden administration published the first-ever United States Strategy on Countering Corruption. This Strategy sets forth a “whole-of-government” approach to combating corruption in the United States and around the world. Individuals and entities should expect an increase in sanctions and scrutiny of activities that present high corruption-related risk. As such, companies and individuals should immediately review current business activities to ensure that they understand their exposure to corruption-related risk and have in place commensurate controls to deter and detect potential problems. A proactive approach to corruption risk now will provide material future benefits if the expected increase in regulatory and law enforcement scrutiny results in a corruption-related inquiry.

A federal judge has found that a former Afghan militant has been held unlawfully at the Guantánamo Bay detention camp, the first time in 10 years that a detainee has won such a case against the U.S. government, his lawyers said.

A federal judge has ruled that the United States has no legal basis for holding an Afghan man at Guantánamo Bay.

A US federal court has ruled that a detainee at the Guantanamo Bay detention centre has been unlawfully kept there, several days after he was cleared to be transferred out of the military prison.

The US court granted the petition for a writ of habeas corpus for Asadullah Haroon Gul, who has been detained without charge by the US since 2007. The decision marks the first time in a decade a Guantanamo detainee's imprisonment has been ruled unlawful.

Who's Who Legal recognized four Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss lawyers as leading asset recovery practitioners for 2021. 

Eric Lewis was quoted in a Wall Street Journal article on the shifting culture of American gymnastics in the wake of abuse allegations and criminal charges.

Back in 2009, Eric Lewis warned In These Times readers that closing Gitmo was not enough — that if the United States wants to reaffirm the rule of law, it must ensure that all of its prisoners are given due process. 

Eric Lewis appeared on Corporate Counsel Business Journal's daily podcast, In House Warrior, to discuss extradition, OFAC sanctions, and what to expect from the Biden administration.

Eric Lewis, a Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss PLLC partner, told Law360 that the Civil Division is likely the branch of the DOJ most in need of a morale boost.

"It's overwhelmingly staffed by career people who have really suffered through the last four years, and they've lost a lot of good people too," he said. "These are people who just want to do their job and not impose any ideology."

A lawyer for Mohamed Soltan, a US citizen who has filed a lawsuit alleging torture in Egyptian custody, said that plain-clothes officers raided the homes of six family members Sunday, detaining two cousins.

"Now the Egyptian regime is arresting his relatives to try to intimidate him into silence. Such tactics have no place in the international community," said Eric Lewis, a lawyer for Soltan.

"Now the Egyptian regime is arresting his relatives to try to intimidate him into silence," said Soltan's lawyer Eric Lewis. "Such tactics have no place in the international community. Egypt cannot seek the benefits of membership in that community while denigrating human rights and behaving with impunity and lawlessness."

Law360's Aebra Coe interviewed leaders at three law firms, including LBKM's Eric Lewis, on the changing ways that associates can demonstrate their value and engage with those in power in a pandemic-era work environment.

Eric Lewis was quoted in Law360 on President-elect Joe Biden's selection of Merrick Garland as the next attorney general.

A British judge rejected the US' request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, saying that Assange would be at greater risk of suicide in the American prison system. Eric Lewis told the British court that Assange, if extradited, would face a "best-case scenario" of 20 years in prison. 

The International Academy of Financial Crime Litigators is comprised of academics and litigation professionals committed to vigorously pursuing their clients’ interest while aspiring to the highest ethical standards in criminal and civil actions in cases of economic crime. Fellowship is extended only by invitation, after careful research, to experienced individuals who have litigated cases related to economic crimes. 

Two Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss professionals have been recognized as Global Leaders in Who’s Who Legal: Asset Recovery 2020.  Who’s Who Legal is one of the world’s leading directories of legal practitioners.

The Times of London reported on the extradition hearing of Julian Assange, quoting senior partner Eric Lewis' expert testimony.

Bloomberg reported on the extradition hearing of Julian Assange, quoting senior partner Eric Lewis' expert testimony.

Senior Partner Eric Lewis was quoted in AP on the extradition hearing of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

'Looking forward from this improbable ninth week of shutdown, I believe that litigation is about to enter another sea change,' writes Eric Lewis, a senior partner at litigation boutique Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss.

Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss PLLC is pleased to announce that three of its lawyers have been named to the 2020 Washington, DC Super Lawyers list. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in each state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor. 

The business of law is personal, and the human interaction cannot be fully replaced by technology, particularly for those that practice on an international scale. Lewis Baach senior partner Eric Lewis, who usually travels the globe to meet with clients, offers his personal take on how he and his firm are coping during the pandemic.

This article sets out the basic process for obtaining extradition to the United States and reviews certain recent cases that suggest that the United States is trying to leverage its political power to bring defendants to the United States either to fulfill political agendas or where the United States’ interest is tangential at best in view of the demonstrable interest of other countries.

Six LBKM professionals have been selected to the 2019 New York and Washington, DC Super Lawyers lists - an honor limited to 5 percent of the lawyers in each state. In addition, one LBKM professional has been selected to the 2019 New York Rising Stars list. 

Four Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss professionals have been recognized as Global Leaders in Who’s Who Legal: Asset Recovery 2019. Who’s Who Legal is one of the world’s leading directories of legal practitioners.

Bolton may be guilty of serious errors of judgment and defects of character. But he refused to play Trump's game — and now he might be the country's most valuable savior

Eric Lewis was quoted in The Washington Post on the allegations in the whistleblower complaint recently filed against President Trump.

Law360 asked Eric Lewis and other law firm leaders about the most common career blunders they see new attorneys make.

Founding partner Eric Lewis was asked, as part of Law360's ongoing interview series, “What one trait is most important for a law firm partner?”

An amended complaint filed in Miami-Dade County alleges that Amicorp, an international trust services company, actively participated in a multi-million-dollar real estate fraud which victimized many Latin American families. 

Mr. Lewis reflecting on what he looks forward to each day in his job:  "One of the things I like about our firm and a firm our size is the continuity and trust of the people I work with, most of whom I've worked with for a long time. I think all of us buy into the concept we have here, which is being very public spirited, very flexible, very supportive, and trying to use our skills not only on commercial matters but also trying to do some good as well.”

Eric Lewis is quoted saying, “The ability to understand a case, price a case, look at a case honestly and evaluate its strengths and weaknesses becomes more important.”

Woodsford Litigation Funding, one of the leading global third party funders, has announced a funding facility agreement with Lewis Baach which ensures the firm can offer clients an expedited, one-stop arrangement for the financing of high value litigation and arbitration.

"The ability to understand a case, price a case and look at a case honestly — to evaluate its strengths and weaknesses — becomes more important," said Eric Lewis of  Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss PLLC. "I spend more time on strategy than I did 10 to 15 years ago. I spend more time talking to clients as cases go along."

Eric Lewis of Lewis Baach Kaufmann Middlemiss writes: Good lawyers don't get stuck in boxes. They are problem solvers who bring judgment and experience to their clients' issues, whoever those clients may be. They try to prevent economic interests from affecting their service to clients. They earn trust. Satisfaction in the law can be, and should be, measured in more than one way.

On April 18, 2017, the International Islamic Relief Organization of Saudi Arabia (“IIROSA”) launched a major humanitarian distribution of food and other necessities in refugee camps in Juba, South Sudan to alleviate the plight of the South Sudanese affected by the famine. The distribution of the approximately $250,000 worth of much needed aid from IIROSA – including food items such as flour, sugar, corn, oil, and dried milk, as well as other basic goods – was made in conjunction with the South Sudanese Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and a local charity partner.

As the market continues to pound out a separation between the niche players and the global elites, major legal consumers are increasingly turning to boutique firms for some of their more challenging work. Between their dexterity, fee flexibility, and, depending on the size of the boutique, deeper resources, we are seeing a growing interest in boutiques and niche firms in the legal market.

For two years, stock traders and the attorneys who represent them said the law surrounding insider trading was a muddle, with no one knowing what exactly is or isn’t legal.
The U.S. Supreme Court Dec. 6 said it had ‘‘easily’’ settled the question (Salman v. United States, 2016 BL 404795, U.S., No. 15-628, 12/6/16).

‘‘Going forward, even remote tippees of inside information are at risk if the government can demonstrate that the defendant knew he was trading on inside information and the chain of disclosure is sufficiently close, even if no money changes hands.’’ Eric Lewis, Lewis Baach PLLC

Both the speed and the unanimity of the decision sent a strong message re-affirming existing insider trading prosecutions, according to Eric Lewis, a partner at Lewis Baach, a Washington DC law firm specializing in financial crimes.

"It was somewhat surprising that the Supreme Court took this case," Lewis told ValueWalk, noting that it had been two decades since the high court took up an insider trading case.

Eric Lewis got a phone call from an old friend’s sister shortly after he wrote an op-ed in The New York Times in 2013 detailing his time playing under a high school football coach who was also a serial sexual predator.

That call ultimately led Lewis to take a turn this week as a journalist—a departure from his busy career as a prominent lawyer handling international fraud disputes, including representing Bernie Madoff’s investment firm in its liquidation—at his nearly 40-lawyer firm Lewis Baach in Washington, D.C.

The Appellate Division, First Department, recently affirmed the dismissal of various claims brought by New Greenwich Litigation Trustee, successor to the claims of two feeder funds in the Bernard Madoff affair, against various third-party fund administrators, accountants and auditors.

Mr. Lewis said that “there is no there there” on the allegations of any Saudi government role in the attacks, given the kingdom’s long history of being at war with Al Qaeda.

“The notion that senior Saudi officials or the Saudi government had an interest in supporting Sept. 11 and the attack on the World Trade Center is patently absurd,” he said.

Fayez Al Kandari was released from Guantanamo today to the custody of the Government of Kuwait who transported him today to his home country of Kuwait.

In March, the U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network imposed a corporate death sentence on Banca Privada d'Andorra by designating it as a foreign financial institution of primary money laundering concern under Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act.