Warren Hamel co-chairs Venable's SEC and White Collar Defense Practice Group.  Mr. Hamel represents clients in white collar criminal defense and environmental criminal defense and civil enforcement matters, conducting internal investigations, general civil litigation, and commercial and contract disputes. He advises clients on compliance and internal control issues, including records management and electronic discovery, whistle-blower issues and a range of Sarbanes-Oxley related matters.
 
Mr. Hamel served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland from 1990 to 2002.  From 1997 through 2001, Mr. Hamel served as Chief of the Environmental Crimes and Enforcement Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland where he was responsible for investigation and prosecution of a broad variety of criminal cases and litigation of civil enforcement and defense cases under the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, RCRA and a range of other environmental and conservation statutes.

Representative Matters

Mr. Hamel also has extensive experience investigating, prosecuting and defending fraud and corruption cases, including cases involving mail and wire fraud, bank fraud and fraud on federally funded programs, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters and False Claims Act cases.  Recent Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, False Claims Act and other investigations have taken Mr. Hamel to locations in Europe, South and Central America, Africa and India.

Mr. Hamel has also represented various print and broadcast media in litigation matters, including libel cases, press access and reporter's privilege cases, including several press access matters in federal court.

Activities

Mr. Hamel has also represented various print and broadcast media in litigation matters, including libel cases, press access and reporter's privilege cases, including several press access matters in federal court.

Mr. Hamel serves on the Board of Trustees of the Chesapeake Bay Trust, and is currently vice-chair of the board.  He also serves on the board of The Francis D. Murnaghan, Jr. Appellate Advocacy Fellowship, and was a board member of the Community Law Center in Baltimore from 1988 to 2007. 

From time to time since 1999, Mr. Hamel has taught a seminar on criminal enforcement of environmental laws as an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland Law School and Georgetown Law Center. 

Mr. Hamel was a recipient of The Daily Record’s “Leadership in Law” Award in November of 2004.  He has been named a “Local Litigation Star” in white collar and government related litigation by Benchmark: The Definitive Guide to America’s Leading Lawyers (2008-2011); has been selected for inclusion in Maryland Super Lawyers (2008-2011); and is AV® Peer-Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell.