Described in Benchmark Litigation as one of the “brightest litigators across the US” and in Chambers as “incredibly smart” and “tenacious, engaging and hard charging,” Vicki Chou is an accomplished trial lawyer and a key member of both Hueston Hennigan’s Trials and White Collar and Investigations teams. She has successfully tried over 11 federal cases as lead counsel and won every one of her appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Repeatedly recognized among the “Top White Collar Lawyers” in California by the Daily Journal, Ms. Chou leverages her public-sector experience to develop unique strategies that solve the most complex business issues. Her wins include securing a unique plea agreement for one of the highest-profile criminal defendants in the “Varsity Blues” college admissions case; obtaining a favorable plea agreement, including a sentencing recommendation from the government of probation, for the former dean of USC’s School of Social Work on federal corruption charges in an alleged bribery scheme involving a public official; and securing a declination for Southern California Edison in a criminal investigation of deaths caused by the California wildfires.
Ms. Chou also obtained a favorable settlement, after a week of trial, for Synchrony Financial (formerly GE Capital) in a lawsuit involving breach of contract, fraudulent misrepresentation and alter ego claims, as well as a settlement for Palantir Technologies on the eve of trial in a tortious interference action, among many other victories.
As an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, Ms. Chou represented the United States in hundreds of criminal cases involving computer and internet fraud, intellectual property, money laundering, bank fraud, tax fraud, and racketeering offenses. Many of her matters included high level international coordination, including a case in which she successfully negotiated a first-of-its-kind joint investigative agreement with a European country.
In addition to her recognition among the Daily Journal’s “Top White Collar Lawyers,” Ms. Chou is ranked in “Litigation: White Collar Crime & Government Investigations (California)” by Chambers, and has been recognized on the “40 & Under List” and as a “Future Star” by Benchmark Litigation. Among many other accolades, she was also one of 20 lawyers recognized in the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association’s (NAPABA) 2020 “Best Under 40,” a significant accomplishment as the field includes those in all areas of law, including the judiciary, academia, and politics.
Ms. Chou is a fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, the preeminent organization of trial lawyers in North America.
Updated Sep 2024
