Justin L. Chretien

Justin Chretien is a senior litigator with decades of experience handling high-stakes civil litigation, regulatory investigations, and formal disciplinary proceedings. Justin served for 14 years as a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, leading teams of attorneys and experts defending the United States in complex civil litigation in federal district and circuit courts, and then as an assistant chief litigation counsel for the Securities and Exchange Commission, leading teams of attorneys, accountants, and experts prosecuting complex international securities and fraud cases.

Justin also spent a decade years serving the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, first as senior litigation counsel litigating for FINRA Enforcement and then as chief counsel and senior director. In these positions, he oversaw hundreds of cases brought against broker-dealers and associated persons involving all manner of violations of federal securities laws and rules. 

Justin combines extensive experience as a civil litigator and experience as a financial regulator to assist public companies and financial firms with enforcement and compliance matters. He has a track record of building airtight cases as a litigator. He is a recipient of both FINRA’s Premier Achievement Award and the SEC Enforcement Division Director’s Award for litigation excellence.

Prior to law school, Justin, a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy’s astronautical engineering program, served as a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot. Justin is the chair of the firm's Securities and Investment Companies Industry Group.

FINRA Experience

• Supervised enforcement attorneys bringing 50 to 80 proceedings each year against major U.S. financial institutions for violations of federal securities laws and rules of FINRA and U.S. stock exchanges.
• Directed attorneys and staff in FINRA’s most complex and lengthiest manipulation case on behalf of FINRA and 12 U.S. stock exchanges, with conduct spanning more than a decade and involving more than 100 causes of action.
• Litigated FINRA’s highest-priority matter against a firm and its CEO for fraud in the sale of promissory notes, resulting in firm expulsion and permanent bar of CEO.
• Lead counsel in a high-priority matter against a firm for money laundering violations related to Venezuelan bonds, resulting in a $100,000 fine; and against a CEO for destruction of evidence and providing false testimony regarding transactions away from the firm, resulting in a permanent bar.

SEC Experience

• Represented the SEC in litigation in federal courts. Decisively acted to freeze more than $1 million in ill-gotten assets of Russian hackers in a high-profile matter in federal district court (SDNY), returning funds into U.S. brokerage accounts; then unraveled a complex international fraud scheme and delivered judgment for SEC of more than $10 million in fines.
• Counseled SEC leadership concerning litigation risks and strategies, charging decisions, settlement negotiations, policies, and programmatic concerns. Worked closely with domestic and foreign regulators, DOJ, FBI, and U.S. attorneys.

• Represented the United States and its agencies in civil litigation for more than 10 years in U.S. district courts and U.S. courts of appeal, leading large teams of attorneys and experts to consistently successful outcomes. 

• "The New SEC Regulatory and Enforcement Landscape," 2025 IRI Annual Conference, Tampa, FL (March 27, 2025)
• “Recent SEC and FINRA Examination and Enforcement Developments,” ALI CLE Conference on Life Insurance Products, Washington, D.C. (November 8, 2024)
• "Regulatory Hot Topics Landscape," ACLI Compliance & Legal Sections Annual Meeting 2024, Fort Lauderdale, FL (July 24, 2024)
• “The SEC Regulatory Landscape: New Cases, New Rules,” 2024 IRI Annual Conference, Nashville, TN (April 3, 2024)
• "Digital Engagement Practices: Compliance and Legal Challenges," SIFMA C&L 2024 Annual Seminar, Orlando, FL (March 19, 2024)
• "A Deep Dive Into SEC v. Cutter and DOL Update," National Association for Fixed Annuities (January 10, 2024)
• "SEC v. Cutter," Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice (November 30, 2023)
• "The State of Play in Annuity Regulation," 2023 NAFA Annuity Leadership Forum, Washington, D.C. (June 20, 2023)
• “SEC Enforcement and Registered Product Developments,” Association of Life Insurance Counsel 2023 Annual Meeting (May 7–9, 2023)
• Integrity Marketing Group LLC Compliance Summit (2023)
• "BD/RIA Hot Topics," Integrity Compliance Summit (May 5–6, 2022)
• “Reg BI — Lessons Learned From Year One,” 2021 IRI Annual Conference (September 22, 2021)