Michael J. Ramos is a Partner and Senior Managing Director in the New York office, where he also serves as the firm’s Chief Risk and Compliance Officer. Michael’s distinguished legal and investigative career spans over 30 years.  As an Assistant US Attorney in the Eastern District of New York, he prosecuted fraud, money laundering, and narcotics cases, many with complex international components. As a prosecutor, Michael brought 18 cases to trial and was responsible for some of that office’s most significant multi-agency international investigations in Southeast Asia and South America.

• EXPERIENCE PRIOR TO NARDELLO & CO.

  Earlier in his career, Michael served as the law clerk for the Honorable Joan M. Azrack in the Eastern District of New York and was in private practice at a leading law firm. Before embarking on a legal career, Michael was an associate director with another international investigations firm, where he conducted pre-transaction due diligence, asset searches, and fraud investigations on behalf of Fortune 500 corporations, financial institutions, law firms, and foreign governments.

• For a financial institution, Michael led an investigation of the underwriting practices of a major mortgage lender. Michael and his teams identified and contacted hundreds of former employees located across the US. Information obtained from the employees—in some instances provided in the form of affidavits—confirmed the lender’s poor practices. Moreover, Michael developed one witness, an analyst who reported directly to executive management, who told him how he warned the lender’s executives about problematic loan portfolios and identified reports he provided those executives concerning problem loans. The reports had not been produced during discovery. With this information in hand, counsel reached a favorable settlement in the matter.
• When a public US company received an unsolicited letter from a previously unknown investor threatening a proxy fight, Michael led a team that conducted an in-depth background investigation to determine the investor’s record, identify his financial backers, and assess his bona fides. The investigation began in Monaco, where the investor was based, and expanded to Russia, the UK, Dubai, Cyprus, and the United States. Open-source research and source inquiries helped cut through the investor’s opaque corporate structure, enabling us to identify his financial backers, which included several Russian businessmen with questionable reputations. The investor, who was an avid social media user, regularly posted stock tips. An analysis of these recommendations revealed the subject was not the financial wizard he claimed to be, as his “portfolio” dramatically underperformed the major stock indices. The client used Nardello & Co.’s findings to guide discussions with the investor, who eventually backed away from the threatened proxy battle.

Education

• JD, Brooklyn Law School
• BA, History & Political Science, Rutgers University

Awards

• Chambers and Partners 2022 Litigation Support Guide: Band 2

Professional Affiliations

• American Bar Association
• New York State Bar Association
• New York City Bar Association