Crowell & Moring's Los Angeles Office Gains Five Litigators, Partners Michael Cypers And Mark Troy Among New Hires

Washington, D.C. - November 4 , 2009: Crowell & Moring LLP's Los Angeles office has added five prominent litigators to its growing California roster. The additions include partners Michael L. Cypers, a proven trial lawyer with more than 25 years of experience from Mayer Brown LLP, and Mark R. Troy, a seasoned False Claims Act litigator who joins Crowell & Moring's nationally-recognized Government Contracts Group from McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP. They are joined by three additional talented litigators, counsel Kathleen Balderrama and associate Melanie Natasha Henry from Mayer Brown LLP, and associate Mana Elihu Lombardo from McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP.

A former head of Mayer Brown's Los Angeles litigation practice, Cypers will become the Los Angeles Chair of Crowell & Moring's Litigation Group. He focuses on complex financial litigation matters with an extensive background handling securities, private equity, partnership and fiduciary duty disputes, and class action cases. Troy's practice involves the full range of government contract-related litigation and counseling, with a special focus on defending procurement fraud actions brought by the federal government and by qui tam whistleblowers under the civil False Claims Act.

"We've built a premier, highly adept litigation bench in California to serve our clients in the full range of their litigation needs. It is a pleasure to welcome these new lawyers to Crowell & Moring to round out our civil, financial, and government contract capabilities. Their proven track records and industry experience are a tremendous asset to our clients in California and internationally," said Janet Levine, Crowell & Moring Los Angeles-based partner and chair of the firm's White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement Group.

Cypers has successfully litigated class action, professional liability, health care fraud and regulatory disputes, and he provides ongoing counsel to clients in the financial, professional services, and information technology industries. He has tried three financial/breach of fiduciary duty cases, including a trial win this summer, plus four financial statement/auditor liability cases before juries. Cypers has represented several large auditing firms, publicly traded companies, health care companies, and individuals in investigations before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Cypers' representative clients have included international audit and consulting firms, leading private equity firm Alliant Capital, real estate investor Adam Fisher, and consumer products manufacturer Obesity Research. He is an Adjunct Professor of Law at Berkeley Law School at the University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall). He received his A.B. from University of California at Berkeley and his J.D. from Boalt Hall.

"I have personally known and worked across the table from Crowell & Moring litigators for many years, and I'm delighted to be part of this team. The depth of white collar and regulatory experience is very helpful to my practice. Things that differentiate the firm are deep connections in virtually all aspects of the Washington, D.C. regulatory apparatus and a creative 'risk sharing' attitude to fee arrangements with clients," said Cypers.

In his 24 years of practice, Troy has represented most of the country's top ten defense contractors and aerospace companies, as well as numerous small businesses and recipients of federal grant funds. He has litigated cases and led internal investigations involving procurement fraud, mischarging, defective pricing, Cost Account Standards non-compliance, false testing, product defects, kickbacks and campaign contributions, and violations of environmental law s. Troy has successfully tried two qui tam cases and has won dismissals in dozens of other cases. In addition, Troy regularly provides on-the-spot counseling on compliance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), including the recent mandatory disclosure requirements, and has litigated claims by contractors seeking equitable adjustment of contract terms before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals and U.S. Court of Federal Claims. In addition to his work with defense and aviation contractors, Troy will work closely with the firm's Health Care Group on procurement fraud and false claims matters. He received his B.A. from University of California at Los Angeles and his J.D. from Loyola Law School Los Angeles.

"Crowell & Moring has built its reputation on innovation, whether in our approach to creative legal strategies or our pioneering use of client partnering arrangements. I'm proud to offer my clients an opportunity to work with one of the most experienced and highly regarded litigation and government contracts practices in the country," said Troy.

Balderrama, a counsel in the Litigation Group, focuses her practice on complex business litigation matters including securities, intellectual property, class action, and antitrust matters. In 2009, she completed a successful trial for Alliant Capital. She received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Loyola Marymount University and her J.D. from Loyola Law School Los Angeles, where she graduated as Valedictorian, following which she served as a law clerk to The Honorable William J. Rea of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Lombardo, a Litigation and Government Contracts Group associate, concentrates her practice primarily on government contracts litigation. In addition, she handles a wide range of complex civil and commercial litigation matters, including labor and employment issues, contract disputes, business torts, and environmental litigation. Lombardo has extensive experience conducting internal investigations and defending companies against False Claims Act allegations. She has counseled clients on claims relating to fraud, false testing, data rights issues, contract compliance, quality assurance standards, failure to disclose, and wrongful termination in federal False Claims Act cases. Lombardo received her B. A., with honors, from the University of California at Berkeley and her J.D. from UCLA School of Law.

Henry, a Litigation and White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement Group associate, has significant experience on a range of litigation matters including complex business litigation, white collar defense, health care matters, as well as compliance and government investigations. She has also served as senior law clerk to The Honorable Laura Taylor Swain of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. In addition, Henry was the senior executive editor of the California Law Review, articles editor on the Berkeley Technology Law Journal, and notes and comments editor on The African -American Law & Policy Report , which is published annually each year at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall). She received her B.A., Dean's List, from The University of Southern California and her J.D. from Boalt Hall.

Crowell & Moring LLP is an international law firm with more than 450 lawyers practicing in litigation, antitrust, government contracts, health care, corporate, intellectual property and a variety of other practice areas. More than two-thirds of the firm's attorneys regularly litigate disputes on behalf of domestic and international corporations, start-up businesses, and individuals. Crowell & Moring's extensive client work ranges from advising on one of the world's largest telecommunications mergers to representing governments and corporations on international arbitration matters. Based in Washington, DC, the firm also has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Orange County, Anchorage, London, and Brussels.

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