Bienert Katzman Littrell Williams LLP

Of Counsel

James D. Riddet is Of Counsel at Bienert Katzman Littrell Williams LLP in San Clemente, California, where his practice focuses on white collar criminal and regulatory defense, internal investigations, complex civil litigation, and whistleblower claims. He has over 50 years of experience defending criminal cases in state and federal court and has tried more than 75 cases to a jury. He has been licensed to practice law in California since 1967.

For the past 35 years, the emphasis of his practice has been defending individuals charged in federal court. He represents individuals charged with federal offenses or under investigation by agencies including the FBI, SEC, DEA, IRS, and United States Secret Service. He regularly appears before the United States Attorney's Offices in Orange County and Los Angeles and has handled federal matters throughout California—including San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno, San Diego, and Riverside—as well as in New York, Chicago, Phoenix, Seattle, and other major cities.

Jim has been recognized with numerous honors throughout his career. He has been listed in Best Lawyers in America every year since 1987 and was named "Lawyer of the Year" for Criminal Defense: White-Collar in Orange County in 2012. He has been selected to the Super Lawyers list annually from 2004 through 2023 and named to the Top 50 Orange County Super Lawyers list from 2004 to 2012. He was also selected by Los Angeles Magazine as a Super Lawyer and named one of "America's Top 100" Criminal Defense Attorneys for Southern California in 2018.

He has served as a guest speaker at various organizations and colleges, including St. John's Law School, where he spoke alongside the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals.

Representative matters:

• Defense of business executives, doctors, and lawyers on federal charges ranging from mail fraud, wire fraud, securities fraud, bank fraud, to bribery and corruption of public officials.

• Orange County Bar Association, Board of Governors

• California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, Board of Directors

• Federal Bar Association, Board of Directors

• CJA Panel, Chair

• Southern Division CJA Panel, U.S. District Court, Committee Member

• Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, Lawyer Delegate, Chair, 1989-2000

• Magistrate’s Selection Committee, U.S. District Court, Committee Member

• Indiana University School of Law, Bloomington, Indiana, J.D. 

• Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, B.S. in Business