Biography
Andrew Barras is a former federal prosecutor with extensive civil and criminal litigation experience, who practices in the areas of complex commercial litigation, False Claims Act (qui tam) litigation, and white-collar criminal defense. Andrew helps clients manage and reduce litigation risk and litigation costs. When litigation arises, he handles and coordinates cases on a national, regional, and local basis. Andrew has handled a wide variety of civil litigation matters, including complex commercial, contract disputes, healthcare fraud, product liability, antitrust, intellectual property, real estate, corporate governance, securities, and white-collar criminal defense. He has significant trial experience in state and federal courts throughout the United States.
Prior to joining KMK Law, Andrew served as an Assistant Chief for the United States Department of Justice, Criminal Division. As an Assistant Chief in the Fraud Section, Andrew was responsible for running a DOJ “Strike Force,” supervising a team of federal prosecutors tasked with identifying, investigating, and prosecuting cases involving significant health care fraud primarily through the enforcement of health care fraud statutes, wire fraud statutes, the Controlled Substances Act, the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute, and False Claims Act. Andrew worked extensively with and directed federal law enforcement, including the FBI, DEA, and OIG-HHS, as part of investigating and prosecuting complex health care fraud schemes involving tens of millions of dollars fraudulently obtained from the United States, as well as cases involving violations of the Controlled Substances Act. Andrew worked closely with a wide variety of federal and state investigative regulatory authorities, building a reputation as a respected, hands-on investigator and advocate.
Earlier in his career, Andrew was a deputy district attorney with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Andrew was assigned to the elite Hardcore Gang Unit, which exclusively prosecutes notorious criminal gang members and handles over 90% of Los Angeles County murders. Andrew was also assigned to the Victims Impact Program unit, specializing in cases dealing with sexual assault, child molestation, and domestic violence. Andrew was selected May 2010 District Attorney of the Month in an office with over 1,000 prosecutors, for the murder conviction in People v. Santiago Sencion, LA058186.
Andrew additionally has broad experience in all aspects of civil litigation, where he has successfully represented a wide-array of clients, including financial institutions, local county governments and municipalities, hospital networks, and international consumer goods manufacturers.
Throughout Andrew’s extensive litigation career, he has conducted forty-nine jury trials in the first-chair capacity, as well as dozens of bench trials and adjudications, in both the civil and criminal context. Andrew additionally handled the preliminary hearings, grand jury proceedings, and motion practice which accompanied those matters.