Seth Friedman > McDermott Will & Emery LLP > New York, United States > Lawyer Profile
McDermott Will & Emery LLP Offices
340 MADISON AVENUE
NEW YORK, NY 10173-1922
NEW YORK
United States
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Seth Friedman
Work Department
Trial
Position
Seth L. Friedman focuses his practice on the representation of US and international accounting firms and individual accountants in connection with federal and state litigation, arbitration and regulatory investigations by the US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), state licensing authorities and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. In addition to litigation and regulatory investigations, he regularly consults with major accounting firms on PCAOB registration requirements and inspection matters, internal investigations and independence-related matters, and other risk-related issues. Seth handles matters for public and private accounting firms that arise from engagements to perform attest functions (both public and private), tax advice and compliance functions, and consulting or advisory work. Seth co-heads the Firm’s accounting defense practice.
Prior to joining the Firm, Seth was co-leader of the accounting liability practice of one of the world’s largest firms. Prior to that, he served over six years in the Offices of the General Counsel of two major US accounting firms, first as an assistant general counsel with KPMG USA, and subsequently as BDO USA’s Deputy General Counsel.
Seth has significant experience representing a wide variety of businesses in post-closing disputes and other litigation and regulatory matters that involve accounting and financial statement-related issues.
Lawyer Rankings
United States > Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
McDermott Will & Emery LLP has an ‘outstanding securities litigation defense team, both in SEC regulatory and civil litigation matters’. The firm is best known for its work in class action matters in the key fora of New York, Delaware, Massachusetts, California, Illinois and Washington DC. Its client base spans a range of industries including energy, venture capital, investment banking, entertainment and accounting. Timothy Hoeffner in New York and Steven Scholes in Chicago are the lead partners. Scholes and ‘outstanding defense attorney’ Paul Helms, in Washington DC, are acting for seven former officers and directors of PG&E in a high-profile breach of fiduciary duty action originally filed as several shareholder derivative actions arising from the 2017 and 2018 wildfires in Northern California. Hoeffner achieved the dismissal of claims against accounting firm BDO in In re AmTrust Financial Services Inc., Securities Litigation. Seth Friedman is also recommended for defending accounting firms. New York’s Joel Haims joined the team from Morrison Foerster in June 2022.
Lawyer Rankings
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Media, technology and telecoms > Technology transactions
- Healthcare > Health insurers
- Healthcare > Life sciences
- Media, technology and telecoms > Outsourcing
- Healthcare > Service providers
- Tax > US taxes: contentious
- Tax > US taxes: non-contentious
Firm Rankings
- Insurance > Advice to insurers
- Labor and employment > Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: design
- Labor and employment > Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: transactional
- Energy > Energy regulation: electric power
- Tax > Financial products
- Labor and employment > Immigration
- Tax > International tax
- M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: middle-market ($500m-999m)
- Dispute resolution > Product liability, mass tort and class action - defense: toxic tort
- Energy > Renewable/alternative power
- Intellectual property > Trademarks: non-contentious (including prosecution, portfolio management and licensing)
- Media, technology and telecoms > Cyber law (including data privacy and data protection)
- Labor and employment > ERISA litigation
- Dispute resolution > General commercial disputes
- Insurance > Insurance: non-contentious
- Labor and employment > Labor-management relations
- Antitrust > Merger control
- Intellectual property > Patents: prosecution (including re-examination and post-grant proceedings)
- Real estate > Real estate finance
- International Trade > Trade remedies and trade policy
- Labor and employment > Workplace and employment counseling
- Finance > Capital markets: equity offerings
- Antitrust > Cartel
- Antitrust > Civil litigation/class actions: defense
- Energy > Energy transactions: electric power
- Energy > Energy transactions: oil and gas
- Labor and employment > Labor and employment disputes (including collective actions)
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)
- Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
- Finance > Structured finance: derivatives and structured products
- Dispute resolution > Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Private equity buyouts: large deals ($500m+)
- Real estate > Real estate
- Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate
- Investment fund formation and management > Private equity funds (including venture capital)
- Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
- Finance > Commercial lending
- Finance > Fintech
- Investment fund formation and management > Alternative/hedge funds
- Government > Government contracts