Andrew P. Young, Partner at our San Diego, Orange County, and Los Angeles law offices
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Andrew P. Young

Partner
Biography

Andrew P. Young is a partner in the firm’s Commercial Litigation group, focusing his practice on internal investigations, white-collar criminal defense, and commercial litigation. Andrew has tried more than 15 jury and bench trials throughout the country, including in California, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, Minnesota, New York, and Tennessee. In addition to representing individuals and companies facing government scrutiny, Andrew also has extensive experience representing clients in complex litigation, involving commercial, antitrust, business torts and disputes, and products liability matters.

Prior to returning to private practice in late 2020, Andrew served as an Assistant United States Attorney with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Tax Division in cases involving corporate fraud, money laundering, public corruption, RICO violations, bankruptcy fraud, and tax fraud. While at the Department of Justice, Andrew was the lead prosecutor on “Operation Trojan Shield,” an international effort coordinated by the United States Department of Justice and the FBI to combat Transnational Organized Crime through the infiltration of encrypted communication systems. In that role, he routinely worked with prosecutors and agents from Australia, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Canada, and New Zealand, and worked directly with senior members of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Office of the Deputy Attorney General (DAG), the General Counsel’s Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of International Affairs (OIA), and the Computer Crime Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS). The operation led to the arrest of more than 1,000 individuals involved in transnational criminal organizations, the seizure of nearly 100 tons of drugs and $50 million in currency and is credited with preventing nearly 150 murders.

Andrew focuses on being tactical and straightforward, making him an effective communicator. He is known for being calm and collected even under intense pressure, and for working collaboratively.

Credentials

Bar Admissions

  • California
  • Illinois
  • Kansas (inactive)


Court Admissions

  • United States District Court, Eastern District of California
  • United States District Court, Northern District of California
  • United States District Court, Southern District of California


Education

  • University of Minnesota Law School (J.D., cum laude)
    • Minnesota Journal of International Law, Editor
  • Georgetown University (B.A.)
Experience

Awards & Recognition

  • The Best Lawyers in America, Criminal Defense: White Collar (2023, 2024)
  • Led team that received FBI Director’s Award for International Operation

Previous Professional Experience

  • Barnes & Thornburg, San Diego, Partner (2020-2024)
  • United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California, Assistant United States Attorney (2015-2020)
  • United States Department of Justice, Tax Division, Trial Attorney (2010-2015)
  • United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, Special Assistant United States Attorney (2012-2015)
  • Kirkland & Ellis, Chicago, Illinois (2005-2010)
  • Schiff Hardin, Chicago, Illinois (2004-2005)

Representative Presentations and Publications

  • “Wait goes on for a U.S. Attorney Nomination for San Diego”, San Diego Tribune (August 7, 2022)
  • “How the FBI’s Encrypted Chat App Got Its Start,” Quoted, Business Insider (July 16, 2021)
  • “’We Have to Run a Good Company:’ How the FBI Sold Its Encryption Honeypot,” Quoted, VICE (July 9, 2021)
  • “Anom: The app at the heart of the FBI’s major transnational sting” The New Zealand Herald (8 June 2021)
  • “The Criminals Thought the Devices Were Secure. But the Seller Was the F.B.I.” The New York Times (June 8, 2021)
  • “Drug Rings’ Favorite New Encrypted Platform Had One Flaw: The FBI Controlled It” NPR (June 9, 2021)
  • “FBI and Australian Federal Police encrypted app trap ensnares hundreds of criminal suspects” CNN (June 9, 2021)