CHRISTINE THAMBUSWAMY

• Serve as General Counsel to New York State public school districts, advising on disciplinary matters, contracts, and a broad range of legal mandates including the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, Dignity for all Students Act (DASA), Open Meetings Law (OML), and New York conflict of interest laws.
• Conduct comprehensive investigations into school employee misconduct, including preparing cases for litigation pursuant to Civil Service Law § 75.
• Prepare and prosecute administrative disciplinary hearings, all achieving favorable outcomes.
• Manage Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) compliance and the disclosure of sensitive information.

Public Corruption Bureau, 10/2024 to 01/2025

• Prosecuted multiple high-stakes public corruption cases including election fraud, will fraud, beneficiary fraud, and attorney misconduct, with cases drawing press and media attention.
• Mentored Assistant District Attorneys in financial crimes prosecution and investigative techniques.

Frauds Bureau, 10/2023 to 10/2024

• Directed large-scale, multi-defendant financial crime investigations and prosecutions, including multi-million-dollar embezzlement schemes, intricate Ponzi schemes, and first-degree money laundering.
• Secured indictments in complex, multi-defendant prosecutions, including an eight-defendant, 55 count insurance fraud case and a three-defendant, $2 million embezzlement scheme.
• Supervised an 18-witness embezzlement press case for trial; directed pre-trial strategy, witness preparation, and motion practice, resulting in a guilty plea.
• Managed investigative teams, including DA investigators and law enforcement partners, in gathering and analyzing case-critical evidence.
• Conducted joint investigations with federal and state agencies including The Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and NYPD’s Financial Crimes Task Force.
• Presented complex financial evidence through examinations of forensic accountants and certified fraud examiners.
• Utilized investigative tools, such as FinCEN, social media forensics, and search warrants.

Appeals Bureau, 12/2022 to 10/2023

• Successfully argued before the Second Department.
• Authored appellate briefs, C.P.L. § 440 motions and petition for writ of habeas corpus on both substantive and procedural issues, all of which were decided favorably.

Felony Trial Bureau I, 05/2021 to 12/2022

• Led investigations and prosecutions of some of the bureau’s most serious and complex felony cases including kidnappings, attempted murders, and high-profile violent crimes that received press and media coverage.
• Achieved top-count felony convictions through jury trials and skillful litigation of numerous pretrial hearings and motions.
• Successfully presented a large caseload of felony matters, including numerous complex cases, to grand juries — with all presentments returning true bills.
• Conducted expert witness examinations in DNA, ballistics, and microscopy.
• Managed a high-volume caseload of over 100 felony cases, consistently obtaining favorable plea outcomes.

Criminal Court/ Intake Bureau, 10/2018 to 06/2020

• Managed a demanding caseload of over 400 misdemeanor and felony cases.
• Drafted criminal complaints, negotiated pleas, conducted arraignments, and prepared cases for trial.