Neema Hakim is an associate in the litigation and enforcement practice group. His practice focuses on complex civil litigation and white-collar criminal defense.
Neema has represented clients in high-stakes disputes across a wide variety of areas, including commercial disputes involving allegations of breach of contract, business torts, and violations of consumer protection law; shareholder disputes involving breach of fiduciary duty actions and alleged violations of securities law; and matters involving constitutional challenges to government action. Neema has also represented clients in connection with government and internal investigations, including investigations related to the False Claims Act, criminal fraud statutes, and anti-bribery laws. In addition, Neema has advised clients navigating crisis response and related litigation exposure. Neema maintains an active pro bono practice, representing low-income individuals in housing and family law matters, veterans seeking discharge upgrades, and clients in federal impact litigation.
Previously, Neema clerked for the Honorable Denise J. Casper of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the Honorable Frank M. Gaziano of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Neema received his Juris Doctor with Honors from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was the editor-in-chief of the Chicago Journal of International Law and a Salzburg Cutler Fellow. Neema also interned at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts in the Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit.
Prior to law school, Neema worked as an aide to President Barack Obama in the White House Office of Communications and served as an assistant press secretary and spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Experience
Civil Litigation
- Represented a leading financial services company in a breach of contract action against a technology vendor involving the renewal of business-critical software.
- Represented a school committee in successfully opposing a petition for certiorari before the U.S. Supreme Court in a matter concerning school speech and the First Amendment.
- Represented national pharmacies in disputes with health insurers concerning the usual and customary pricing of prescription drugs.
- Represented a media company against parallel actions in the Delaware Court of Chancery brought by former stockholders challenging a multi-billion-dollar merger.
- Represented a life sciences company in a securities class action brought in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Government and Internal Investigations
- Representing a global aerospace and defense company in a False Claims Act investigation.
- Represented the audit committee of a pharmaceutical company in an internal investigation into the company’s accounting practices.
- Represented beverage companies in connection with a government investigation into industry sales practices.
- Represented a beverage company in an internal investigation into allegations of bribery related to operations abroad.