Kristin Graham Koehler

Kristin Graham Koehler is the managing partner of Sidley Austin’s Washington D.C. office and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. She is consistently recognized as a leading lawyer for white collar crime, government investigations, and litigation.

Kristin has handled numerous United States Department of Justice (DOJ) criminal investigations involving healthcare fraud, procurement fraud, public corruption, antitrust, securities fraud and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). She also has significant experience representing clients in DOJ civil qui tam investigations, state attorney general investigations and congressional investigations, and she has negotiated numerous Corporate Integrity Agreements with the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG). Kristin routinely conducts sensitive internal investigations on behalf of corporations and individuals. She also regularly counsels clients on the creation, enhancement, implementation and assessment of compliance programs. Kristin has participated in jury trials in a number of federal district courts and appeals in a number of appellate courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.

Kristin’s work representing clients has earned her acknowledgment in numerous industry publications, including Chambers USA, Benchmark Litigation, Washingtonian magazine, LMG Life Sciences and Best Lawyers.

• Chambers USA 2021 highlights Kristin’s “substantial expertise in handling a variety of investigations and criminal proceedings, particularly those involving alleged healthcare fraud and FCPA violations.” Chambers praises Kristin as “very knowledgeable on substantive law,” and “very well respected by the DOJ.”
• Chambers USA 2021 DC White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations Guide includes the following client comments: Kristin “really gets to the heart of the issue, and then manages the entire caseload so you don’t need to worry.” “She is the right person to have in a tempest; she is unflappable, and truly delivers.”
• Chambers USA 2021 Nationwide FCPA Guide highlights Kristin for her significant FCPA experience in major cross-border corporate investigations, as well as individual representations, and includes the following client comments: Kristin “is phenomenal; not only is she extremely knowledgeable but she is also very responsive and easy to work with, and she understands our business.” “She is able to think on her feet and doesn’t get rattled in high-risk situations.” “She is very precise, focused and pragmatic.”
• According to Global Investigations Review (2021), Kristin “is described by her peers as a force to be reckoned having risen through the ranks and emerged as a distinguished lawyer in the white-collar space.”
• Kristin also has been named one of the “Top 250 Women in Litigation” (2017–2021), a “Local Litigation Star” in Washington, D.C. (2015–2018, 2020, 2021), and a “National Practice Area Star,” White Collar Crime (2021) by Benchmark Litigation. Washingtonian magazine has included Kristin in its roster of “Washington, D.C.’s Best Lawyers” for Criminal Defense — White Collar (2015–2019). The Corporate Crime Reporter also recognized Kristin as one of the top 150 Women in White Collar (2016).

Prior to joining Sidley, Kristin served as a law clerk to the Honorable David G. Larimer, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York. She graduated with honors from the University at Buffalo, State University of New York, where she was the assistant executive editor of the Law Review and a member of the National Trial Advocacy Team. While at the University at Buffalo, Kristin was the recipient of the Justice Phillip Halpern Award for Excellence in Writing on the Law Review and the Law Faculty Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Law School.