Lippes Mathias LLP is pleased to share that attorneys Dennis C. Vacco and Scott S. Allen, Jr. successfully defended client Zubair Kazi against a motion for contempt in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah. The court ordered Kazi to show cause why he should not be held in contempt for declining to make monthly payments to an IRS treasury fund before and during the pendency of Kazi’s petition challenging a government-claimed balance of more than $19 million on a forfeited loan connected to a $511 million biofuel tax credit fraud. Vacco and Allen successfully argued that the government's delay and use of Kazi’s testimony in the fraud trial rendered contempt unjust. 

About Dennis C. Vacco 

Dennis C. Vacco is a partner at Lippes Mathias LLP and co-leader of the firm's government & corporate investigations practice team. Vacco focuses much of his legal practice on government investigations and regulatory compliance matters, working with clients to ensure that their business practices are in compliance with the complex and ever-changing laws and regulations of both state and federal governments. Much of his practice involves state attorney general investigations as well as investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Department of Homeland Security. 

Vacco was elected New York state attorney general in 1994 and served until 1999. As attorney general, he expanded the traditional role of the office by resurrecting its long-dormant criminal prosecution powers, formed the nation's first internet child pornography unit targeting online predators, appeared before the United States Supreme Court in Vacco v. Quill — successfully arguing that physician-assisted suicide was not a constitutionally protected right — and served as lead negotiator in the multi-state litigation against the tobacco industry, serving as a principal signatory to the Master Settlement Agreement. He also directed multi-state investigations including an antitrust case against Microsoft. 

In 1988, Vacco was appointed U.S. attorney for the Western District of New York by President Ronald Reagan, having previously served 10 years as an assistant district attorney in Erie County. Prior to joining Lippes Mathias, he served as president of Waste Management of New York, LLC, a subsidiary of Houston-based Waste Management Inc. 

Vacco also leads the firm's Israel-U.S. cross-border practice, which has developed a strategic partnership with a leading Israeli law firm. He has represented Israeli businesses that conduct business in the United States and has presented at seminars and made media appearances to discuss the regulatory environment for Israeli businesses in the United States. He from time to time serves as a consultant to clients with matters before state attorneys general, including advising a major international corporation that was a defendant in a lawsuit brought by the New York attorney general alleging failure to properly disclose risks to investors. 

About Scott S. Allen Jr. 

Scott S. Allen Jr. is a partner at Lippes Mathias LLP on the government & corporate investigations practice team and a former assistant U.S. attorney. Allen helps companies and executives navigate government investigations, enforcement actions, and internal matters. He represents businesses and individuals facing scrutiny from federal and state regulators, including the Department of Justice, the SEC, the New York State Attorney General's Office, and other enforcement agencies. His practice focuses on white-collar defense, internal investigations, and the litigation that follows — with attention to the intersection of legal risk with reputational and operational concerns. 

Allen regularly advises companies responding to subpoenas, search warrants, and regulatory inquiries; executives and professionals facing litigation; and organizations conducting internal investigations. His approach is practical and business-oriented: defining the risk, controlling the narrative, and executing a strategy that aligns legal outcomes with broader business objectives. 

Before private practice, Allen served as a federal prosecutor in the Western District of New York and as a prosecutor in the United States Marine Corps. He continues to serve as a lieutenant colonel in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, Judge Advocate Division. 

About Lippes Mathias LLP 

Lippes Mathias is a full-service law firm ranked among the top 200 law firms in the U.S. by size, with nearly 230 attorneys serving clients regionally, nationally, and internationally. With offices in Buffalo, Clarence, Albany, Long Island, New York, Rochester, Syracuse, and Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; Greater Toronto Area; Chicago, Ill.; Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, and West Palm Beach, Fla.; Cleveland, Ohio; San Antonio, Texas; Oklahoma City, Okla. and Washington, D.C., the firm represents publicly and privately-owned companies, private equity and venture capital firms, independent sponsors, real estate developers, financial institutions, municipalities, governmental entities, and individuals.