Overview
(September 9, 2015, London) — Steptoe & Johnson LLP is pleased to announce that John Rupp has joined the firm as a partner. A highly regarded practitioner in the fields of anti-corruption and international regulatory compliance, Mr. Rupp will be a member of the firm’s FCPA/Anti-Corruption practice and International Regulation & Compliance Group. While Mr. Rupp will be based in Steptoe’s London office, he expects to be actively engaged for clients on both sides of the Atlantic, including in the United Kingdom and on the European continent.
Mr. Rupp brings more than 40 years’ experience advising clients on compliance matters and conducting internal investigations involving trade control issues, bribery, money laundering, accounting irregularities and pharmaceutical marketing issues. He routinely interacts with senior enforcement officials in multiple jurisdictions on anti-bribery and money laundering matters. He also conducts internal investigations for clients in numerous countries, including countries in Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Asia.
Mr. Rupp has been recognized in numerous prestigious legal guides, including Chambers UK, Chambers Europe and Chambers Global. In the 2015 edition of Chambers UK, where Mr. Rupp is ranked in the financial crime category for his representation of corporate clients, market sources report that "he is extremely experienced and confident in this field," with clients noting that "he is very commercial, very practical, and he has good judgement." Mr. Rupp has also been recognized for his work handling corporate and civil fraud matters and commercial litigation in The Legal 500 UK.
“John brings strong name recognition and substantial experience in anti-corruption and anti-money laundering matters, as well as sanctions, litigation and internal investigations,” said Phil West, Steptoe chair. “Fraud and corruption cases have become increasingly multi-jurisdictional in character in recent years, and the UK is an important jurisdiction for those actions. John’s arrival will strengthen and enhance our expanding global compliance practice as well as our London office with a superb seasoned and credentialed anti-corruption and regulatory compliance lawyer.”
In Steptoe’s London office, Mr. Rupp will work closely with Jeff Cottle and Patrick Rappo, who both joined the firm as partners in 2013. Mr. Cottle joined Steptoe from BHP Billiton, the world’s largest diversified mining, oil and gas and natural resources extractives company, where for a number years, he helped manage the company’s global anti-corruption and trade compliance programs. Mr. Rappo joined Steptoe from the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO), where he had served as joint head of Bribery and Corruption and was a key participant in the efforts to introduce deferred prosecution agreements in the United Kingdom. In recent years, Steptoe’s FCPA/Anti-Corruption practice has also welcomed partner Rich Battaglia, who previously worked for BP America as a senior counsel for regulatory compliance.
Mr. Rupp commented: “Steptoe’s compliance practice has a terrific and well-deserved reputation, offers clients a depth of experience few other firms can match and has a global reach. I have long-admired Steptoe’s compliance team, have worked with both Jeff and Rich in their previous in-house positions, and have sat across the table from Patrick when he occupied a senior position at the SFO. I am also pleased to be practicing again with practice head Lucinda Low, whom I have encountered many times as a result of our work on compliance issues. I am looking forward to working with the entire Steptoe compliance team as we help clients navigate anti-corruption, fraud, anti-money laundering and trade sanctions matters.”
Mr. Rupp earned his law degree from Yale. He received his B.A., summa cum laude with special honors, Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Iowa, and was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow at Harvard.
About Steptoe
Steptoe & Johnson LLP is an international law firm widely recognized for vigorous advocacy in complex litigation and arbitration, successful representation of clients before governmental agencies, and creative and practical advice in guiding business transactions. The firm has more than 500 lawyers and other professionals in offices in Beijing, Brussels, Century City, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York, Palo Alto, Phoenix and Washington. For more information, visit www.steptoe.com.