Carly Bittman focuses her practice on criminal defense, complex civil litigation, and regulatory and internal investigations.  Carly has experience defending clients in connection with a wide variety of criminal investigations and charges, including wire fraud, money laundering, embezzlement, bribery, theft of trade secrets, obstruction of justice, drug offenses, and internet crimes.  Carly’s civil litigation experience includes defending clients accused of securities fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and unfair competition.  She has been recognized as a Northern California Super Lawyers Rising Star in the area of White Collar Criminal Defense every year since 2020. 

Representative matters include:

• Declination of prosecution for client investigated by DOJ for theft of trade secrets.
• Counsel for banking executive in federal securities class action and parallel shareholder derivative actions.
• Diversionary resolution for client indicted on bribery and money laundering charges.
• Counsel for large technology company and several executives in securities class action.
• Defeated motions seeking stay away orders against multiple clients and successfully defended the trial court’s orders on appeal.
• Diversionary resolution and dismissal of charges for client indicted for receipt of stolen property.
• Won orders denying restraining order against client and awarding client attorney’s fees in elder abuse proceedings.
• Represented two outside directors in securities fraud action brought by investors in private technology company.

Carly is a member of the Executive Committee of the San Francisco Bar Association’s Barristers Criminal Law & Government Investigations Section and previously served on the Executive Committee of the California Lawyer Association’s New Lawyers Section.  Beginning in January 2024, Carly will serve a three-year term as a member of the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, which assists the Governor in the judicial selection process.

Before joining Swanson & McNamara in 2019, Carly served as a law clerk to the Hon. William Alsup of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.  Prior to her clerkship, she was a litigation associate at Fenwick & West LLP, where her practice focused on complex commercial litigation, securities litigation, and internal investigations.

Recent Professional Panel Participation:

“Careers in Criminal Law” Northern District Practice Program, Criminal Law Summer Program, July 2024. Panelist.