Zachary A. Cunha

/My focus

I bring a depth of experience handling and supervising criminal and civil matters and investigations across multiple industries, including healthcare, defense, and construction contracting cases at all levels of complexity. My experience includes grand jury investigations, investigations and litigation under the federal False Claims Act and its state equivalents (including civil investigative demands), and agency administrative inquiries, among others. I also have vast litigation experience in federal court, from the pretrial stage through appeal and resolution, and have supervised—both as a Unit and Division Chief and as US Attorney—virtually every type of federal case or investigation, giving me extensive insight into what government authorities are focused on, the potential pressure points and avenues for resolution, and the effective defense of cases. I also have extensive direct experience handling challenges to federal agency action, notably under the Administrative Procedure Act.

In 2021, I was appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate to serve as US Attorney for the District of Rhode Island, where, as the state’s chief federal law enforcement officer, I supervised and led a team of dedicated federal prosecutors as they built complex prosecutions, frequently with national reach and scope. 

I also served as a leader within the US Attorney community, sitting on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, a small group of US Attorneys tapped by the Attorney General of the United States to advise Department leadership on matters of policy, and co-chairing the Steering Committee of the Department’s Opioid Epidemic Civil Litigation Task Force, where I helped devise and advance the Department’s strategy in multiple cases under the False Claims and Controlled Substances Acts. 

Before being named US Attorney for the District of Rhode Island, over the course of my DOJ career, I served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of New York, the District of Massachusetts, and the District of Rhode Island, where I handled complex, nationally significant cases and investigations, while at the same time holding leadership roles including Chief of the Civil Division in Rhode Island, and Chief of the District of Massachusetts’ nationally-prominent Affirmative Litigation Practice. There, I handled and supervised multiple groundbreaking healthcare fraud and False Claims Act matters, including as a member of the prosecution team that recovered what was, at the time, the largest healthcare fraud recovery in US history, and for which I was recognized with DOJ’s highest honor: the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Service. 

The combination of my leadership and service in three US Attorney’s offices, handling cases ranging from civil RICO to civil and criminal government procurement, regulatory challenges, and healthcare, as well as countless other types of federal litigation and enforcement from inception through trial and appeal gives me an unparalleled perspective on government enforcement that spans both multiple DOJ offices and subject matter areas.

/Representative experience

Prior Government Experience

US ATTORNEY FOR THE DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND, 2021–2025

• Led and managed a staff of federal prosecutors and paraprofessionals handling all criminal and civil litigation within the District of Rhode Island, including violent crime, cybercrime, civil rights, and opioids
• Oversaw and expanded a robust criminal and civil white-collar and healthcare fraud practice, including cases brought under the False Claims, Food Drug and Cosmetic, and Controlled Substances Acts
• Handled briefing and argument of significant cases at both the district court and circuit level
• Served as a member of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee (AGAC) as well as the AGAC’s white-collar and controlled substances subcommittees, and as co-chair of the Justice Department’s Opioid Epidemic Civil Litigation Task Force, working with senior Department leadership in coordinating enforcement efforts

CHIEF, CIVIL DIVISION, 2018–2021

• Supervised all civil litigation and appeals involving the United States in the District of Rhode Island and the First Circuit, managing a team of civil Assistant US Attorneys and support staff
• Personally handled a varied caseload of complex civil, appellate, and criminal matters, with emphasis on white-collar fraud and affirmative civil enforcement under the False Claims Act, and asset forfeiture
• Appointed to serve on the Department’s national Civil Chiefs’ Working Group

ASSISTANT US ATTORNEY, DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND, 2013–2021

ASSISTANT US ATTORNEY, DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS, CHIEF, AFFIRMATIVE LITIGATION UNIT, 2008–2013

• Responsible for the investigation and prosecution of healthcare, grant, and procurement fraud under the False Claims Act, the Food Drug & Cosmetic Act, as well as other civil and criminal matters in the District of Massachusetts and the First Circuit, both at the pre-filing investigative stage, as well as in active litigation, on trial, and appeal
• Served as Chief of the District’s nationally recognized Affirmative Litigation Unit from 2012–2013. In that capacity, responsible for supervising and reviewing all affirmative litigation and investigations conducted by the Civil Division. Served as Deputy Chief of Affirmative Litigation, 2010–2012.

ASSISTANT US ATTORNEY, EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK, 2005–2008

• Responsible for handling all aspects of affirmative and defensive civil litigation involving the United States, in the Eastern District of New York, as well as before the Second Circuit
• Extensive experience in motion, pretrial, trial, and appellate practice
• Specific areas of focus included labor and employment, affirmative civil penalty, healthcare fraud, environmental and civil RICO litigation, and defensive constitutional, policy, and immigration matters, as well as civil and criminal asset forfeiture cases

ASSISTANT CORPORATION COUNSEL, SPECIAL FEDERAL LITIGATION DIVISION

NEW YORK CITY LAW DEPARTMENT, 2001–2005

• Extensive experience of all aspects of litigation on behalf of the City of New York and its officials in the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York from inception through jury trial

/Looking ahead

Companies are currently navigating a rapidly changing regulatory landscape that will present complex challenges in multiple sectors. While the ongoing changes are myriad, we expect the current administration to continue to utilize the False Claims Act to further its priorities, particularly where the False Claims Act was flagged during the attorney general’s recent confirmation process as a continued priority.

Specifically, such a focus is likely to see extensive litigation surrounding the materiality of new contract conditions, and the FCA is also likely to provide an avenue for cases and investigations centered around recent large expenditures under the Inflation Reduction Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill, and other spending statutes. Similarly, a changing regulatory landscape is likely to give rise to direct challenges to federal rulemaking, as well as the need to navigate a rapidly changing enforcement and investigative landscape. All of this will play out across industries, with a significant impact on the healthcare, government procurement, and education sectors.

/Insights

Presentations

• Frequent speaker at conferences and CLE presentations, including for the New England Healthcare Financial Management Association and the Rhode Island Bar Association, on topics such as healthcare fraud, prosecuting corporate executives, government enforcement trends, and the False Claims Act
• Keynote Speaker: R.I. Lawyer’s Weekly Excellence in the Law Awards, Jun. 7, 2022