Photo of Jason P. Criss

Jason P. Criss

For more than two decades, Jason Criss has guided clients through challenging government inquiries and complex internal reviews and investigations. He has played a leading role in many high-profile and sensitive engagements, including matters highlighted by Law360 (2018 and 2019) and the National Law Journal (2021) when those publications named Covington’s White Collar Defense and Investigations practice White Collar Group of the Year.

As a senior member of Covington’s Institutional Culture and Social Responsibility Practice Group, Jason has led significant investigations into workplace culture, DEI issues, and reports of sexual misconduct and workplace harassment. He also has co-led racial equity assessments for three of the country’s leading financial institutions.

In his White Collar Defense and Investigations practice, Jason advises clients on compliance issues, represents corporations and individuals in government investigations, and conducts internal investigations into potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other statutes.

Jason has represented a wide array of clients, including:

  • Several of the world’s largest consumer goods companies in FCPA investigations;
  • A global, publicly-traded company in a criminal antitrust investigation into its hiring practices;
  • A number of leading independent schools and other non-profit organizations in sexual misconduct and bullying investigations; and
  • Individuals in investigations conducted by the United States Department of Justice, the SEC, and other regulators.

Jason also has an active and varied pro bono practice, including his work as media counsel for several non-profit news organizations. He is one of the leaders of the firm’s Kurt Wimmer Media Freedom Pro Bono Initiative. The American Lawyer recognized the Wimmer Initiative’s work to protect and advance media freedom with its 2023 Tony Mauro Media Lawyer Award and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press will be honoring the Wimmer Initiative with its inaugural Freedom of the Press Pro Bono Service Award.

Jason is a Trustee of Temple Beth El of Northern Westchester, and a former President of the Hunter College High School Alumnae/i Association.

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In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, there has been an increase in legal challenges to race and gender-based programs and initiatives in multiple contexts, including within government contracting.  While the holding of Students for Fair Admissions did not address public contracting or disturb existing case law that considers the validity of similar government contracts programs, the decision has informed and reshaped the landscape for strict scrutiny challenges to these programs, and there has been a significant uptick in challenges to diversity-focused government procurement regulations.

Last month, in Mid-America Milling Company, LLC, et al., v. U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky temporarily enjoined the Department of Transportation (“DOT”) from mandating the use of race- and gender-based presumptions for DOT contracts impacted by Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (“DBE”) goals.  The court found, among other things, that while DOT’s DBE program intends to combat historical discrimination and its lingering effects on the ability of disadvantaged businesses to equally compete for government contracts, the plaintiff was likely to prevail on the merits of its argument that the program’s “race and gender classifications” violate the Equal Protection clause.

Although the preliminary injunction currently remains geographically constrained to Kentucky and Indiana, the case is an important development for government contractors that are impacted by DBE related contracts.  We summarize the key takeaways from the court’s holding, as well as its implications for government contractors, below.Continue Reading Federal Court Enjoins DOT Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program On Equal Protection Grounds