AUSA Deputy Chief of White Plains Division Transitions to Private Practice in Westchester County
White Plains, NY (February 11, 2019) – White Plains, New York-based law firm Yankwitt LLP announced today that former Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) of the Southern District of New York, Benjamin R. Allee, has joined the firm as a partner in its White Collar Crime practice. He also will represent clients in breach of contract cases, employment litigation, shareholder disputes and fraud investigations.
“We are thrilled to have Ben join the firm,” said Russell Yankwitt, managing partner of Yankwitt LLP. “He is a skilled trial attorney with a reputation as the go-to criminal defense attorney for complex criminal cases. Not only has he appeared before every federal judge in Westchester County, but the perspective and insight he has developed over the past 10 years as a trial attorney will add tremendous value to the firm and to our clients.”
“He is a natural fit for Yankwitt LLP,” added Yankwitt. “Like Ben, many of our senior attorneys started their careers clerking for federal judges and/or federal prosecutors before transitioning to private practice with Am Law 100 law firms.”
Allee spent more than a decade as a federal prosecutor, most recently as deputy chief of the White Plains division, overseeing a team of 20 AUSAs that handled all federal criminal prosecutions in Westchester, Rockland, Orange, Putnam, Dutchess, and Sullivan counties.
While working in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Allee handled a variety of cases, including prosecutions of defendants for public corruption, fraud, cybercrime, money laundering, murder, racketeering, obstruction of justice, and other offenses. He tried 10 cases to verdict, second-sat and supervised numerous additional trials, and argued 12 appeals in the Second Circuit.
Recognized for his outstanding public service, Allee received the Assistant Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service, the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation’s Prosecutor of the Year Award and the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General’s Collaboration Award.
Following law school, Allee clerked for the late Honorable Peter K. Leisure, United States District Judge of the Southern District of New York, and the Honorable Pierre N. Leval, United States Circuit Judge of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. He then was an associate with New York City law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, where his practice focused on complex civil litigation, including large multidistrict securities fraud cases and a multibillion-dollar contract dispute.
Valedictorian of his class, Allee graduated with a J.D. degree from Fordham University School of Law, where he served as editor in chief of the Fordham Law Review.
About Yankwitt LLP
Founded in 2009, Yankwitt LLP is an elite trial and litigation firm based in White Plains, New York. With one of the largest litigation teams in Westchester County, Yankwitt LLP represents businesses and high-net-worth individuals in their litigation across a broad range of matters. The firm routinely handles complex cases in Westchester on behalf of national law firms and often serves as trial counsel for other local law firms on their high-stakes matters. Yankwitt LLP also holds the distinction of being the only law firm in New York with attorneys who have clerked for every federal district court judge in Westchester County.