Michael R. Hoernlein

• Representing insurance companies and health care providers in internal investigations and government investigations into potential False Claims Act violations.
• Represented state agencies in federal grand jury investigations into alleged corruption.
• Represented for-profit educational institutions in government investigations into alleged fraud.
• Represented an individual client in a federal insider-trading investigation.
• Performed an internal money-laundering investigation for a foreign bank.
• Won full dismissal of all claims against a former corporate officer in a case alleging, among other things, fraud and breach of contract.
• Won full dismissal of all claims in a defamation case against a health care company.
• Defended a manufacturing company in a price-fixing class action/multidistrict litigation (MDL).
• Defended an accountant accused of securities fraud in a federal criminal trial. 
• Lead counsel for a manufacturer of composite race-car parts in a commercial dispute with a part-owner, securing a favorable settlement. 
• Negotiated a favorable settlement for a major insurance company in a contract dispute with a former employee.
• Negotiated a favorable settlement for an insurer in a breach of contract case arising out of a life insurance claim.
• Lead counsel for a North Carolina manufacturing company in an ownership dispute arising out of a buy-sell agreement, securing a favorable settlement.
• Represented an international bank in government investigations and customer lawsuits arising out of complex tax-related transactions. 
• Conducted an internal investigation and advised a private equity management company in a high-profile investigation by the New York State Office of the Attorney General.
• Conducted an internal investigation for a member of a distressed mortgage investment partnership arising out of fraud by other members. 
• Represented a Swiss parent company in an SEC investigation into alleged improper accounting practices by an acquired U.S. subsidiary.

Mike Hoernlein is a litigation attorney and Certified Fraud Examiner in the firm’s Litigation & Trial Practice Group. Mike represents corporations and individuals in a wide range of complex litigation matters, with a focus on the financial services and health care industries. Mike is also a seasoned investigator with a long track record of helping clients uncover the truth in complex internal investigations. Mike has counseled and defended clients before state and federal authorities (including the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission) in criminal and civil investigations involving allegations of accounting fraud, insider trading, money laundering, price fixing, and public corruption, among others. 

Before joining Alston & Bird, Mike worked for two prominent international law firms in New York and then maintained a solo business-law practice in Charlotte. 

Mike received his B.A. from Rutgers University and his J.D. from New York University School of Law. He is admitted to practice in North Carolina and New York, including all federal courts in North Carolina and the District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, as well as the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. 

Bar Admissions

• North Carolina
• New York

Education

• New York University (J.D., 2001)
• Rutgers University (B.A., 1998)

Memberships