Overview
Fred Heather is a partner in Glaser Weil’s Litigation Department and co-chair of the Firm’s Investigations, Compliance and Strategic Response practice. Fred focuses his practice on complex civil litigation and white collar criminal defense. He has served as chief trial/litigation counsel in a wide variety of complex civil and white collar criminal cases.
A highlight reel of Fred’s career spans decades. One of these highlights includes serving as a member of the trial team named a finalist for the Public Justice Trial Lawyer of the Year Award. Fred and his team successfully convinced a federal three-judge panel to order California to reduce its prison population by over 40,000 prisoners within two years. According to legal experts, the order won in the consolidated cases was the largest state prison reduction ever imposed by a federal court over the objection of state officials.
Fred served as assistant U.S. attorney with the Criminal Division of the Central District of Los Angeles, where he prosecuted a number of high-profile cases involving political corruption, fraud against the government and other complex business crimes.
Fred is sought after for:
- High-stakes corporate business disputes
- White collar criminal defense
- Government contract litigation
- Securities fraud matters
- Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters
- Copyright litigation
Fred’s clients have included numerous aerospace companies and their senior executives in defense of False Claims Act (“qui tam”) actions, a major tobacco company in more than 10 individual smoker cases, a major sports manufacturing company in a products liability case tried to a jury, and senior executives of an investment banking firm in parallel criminal, civil and SEC matters in New York and Los Angeles, all of which resulted in complete defense outcomes.
The substantive areas of his cases have ranged from government contracts and securities fraud to environmental regulation, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, copyright, products liability and antitrust, as well as numerous high-stakes corporate business disputes. While many of these cases have been in state and federal courts in Los Angeles, Fred has also handled complex cases in all other jurisdictions in California, the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, and other jurisdictions around the country. Fred has also argued many cases before appellate courts.
The District Court recently reappointed Fred as a Criminal Justice Act (CJA) panel attorney. These are private attorneys appointed by the court to represent indigent defendants the Federal Defender’s Office cannot. The appointment is vetted by all the judges before whom Fred has appeared, as well as the federal public defender.
Fred was an army intelligence officer from 1967 to 1969. He was awarded a Bronze Star and Air Medal for service in Vietnam. He received his undergraduate degree from Bucknell University and his master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University. He received his law degree from Hofstra University School of Law and also served as the editor-in-chief of Hofstra Law Review.
Results
Fred’s notable experience includes:
- His representation of W. Lawrence Patrick, a receiver appointed by the United States District Court who was authorized to sell three radio stations to fulfill a $1.2 million judgment, in a significant victory in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. After he defeated the judgment debtor’s attempt to terminate the receivership based on the debtor’s claim that funds were available to satisfy the debt, the debtor filed an appeal to the Ninth Circuit. In a published opinion, the Ninth Circuit resolved that appeal in favor of Patrick, upholding the district court’s decision to refuse the termination of the receiver until the debtor pays the amended judgment along with all post-judgment costs, including attorneys’ fees. The opinion provides needed clarity regarding the discretion courts have in deciding the scope and duration of receiverships.
- Serving as a member of the trial team named a finalist for the Public Justice Trial Lawyer of the Year Award. Fred and his team successfully convinced a federal three-judge panel to order California to reduce its prison population by over 40,000 prisoners within two years. According to legal experts, the order won in the consolidated cases of Coleman v. Schwarzenegger and Plata v. Schwarzenegger is the largest state prison reduction ever imposed by a federal court over the objection of state officials. The Harvard Law Review published a case study on the decision that California’s prison population was unconstitutionally overcrowded.
Results
Insights
News
Speaking Engagements
Hot Topics
Thought Leadership
Awards and Recognition
Awards and Recognition
“500 Leading Litigators in America,” Lawdragon, 2022, 2024, 2025
Southern California Super Lawyers, multiple years
Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Peer Rated
Public Justice 2010 Trial Lawyer of the Year Award, finalist
Related links
Education
Hofstra University School of Law, J.D.
Columbia University, M.A., International Affairs
Bucknell University, B.A., Psychology
Admissions
- California
- New York
