Butler Snow attorney Jim Letten was recently appointed by order of the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia to serve as Special Master to the Court in the matter of Lee v. Islamic Republic of Iran. Letten will serve as Special Master alongside former Butler Snow attorney, Professor Frank Rosenblatt, supported by two of the firm’s paralegals, Karen Evans and Jennifer Thomas. In this role, Letten will be responsible for carefully reviewing and analyzing evidence of injuries, damages (including, in some cases, severe and debilitating physical and other injuries) to U.S. service members, and solatium claims of relatives of deceased servicemembers killed or injured as a direct result of explosive devices developed, engineered, funded and produced by the Republic of Iran, which was found liable in U.S. District Court suits. As neutral Special Master, he has the task of making recommendations to the presiding Judge regarding damage awards to plaintiffs which are supported by evidence in the record (including medical records, expert testimony, bomb construction, efficacy and effects (physical, mental and emotional); plaintiff and witness testimony; controlling and relevant judicial precedent and dicta; and other probative evidence and data.
At Butler Snow, Jim Letten is a member of the Commercial Litigation Practice Group and concentrates his work on Corporate Compliance, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Anti-Money Laundering/Bank Secrecy Act; Internal Investigations; Corporate Immigration and Trial Advocacy, Government Regulatory Liaison and Anti-Corruption Warranties in Mergers and Acquisitions. Prior to joining the firm, Jim served continuously as the longest-serving United States Attorney in the nation at the time of his retirement, with almost 12 years of continuous service. In all, he served 30 years with the Department of Justice prosecuting virtually every type of federal White Collar, Narcotics and Corruption offense (including extensive experience with RICO prosecutions).
Letten’s impressive career includes an extensive list of accolades and well-deserved honors. He is AV®-Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell® along with the distinction of AV®-Preeminent™ Attorney – Judicial and Top 1%. He previously received the Torch of Liberty Award from the Anti-Defamation League, the Superintendent’s Special Achievement Award from the New Orleans Police Department, and the Champion Award from the New Orleans Family Justice Center. He has also been recognized by the United States Coast Guard, receiving the Commandant’s Meritorious Public Service Award and has been named previously as a City Business Leader in Law. Jim Letten has authored countless papers and presented in many public forums on various aspects of his legal work. His work with Butler Snow on international anti-corruption policies has included presentations and publications in China in and most recently in the E.U.
Alongside these distinctions, Letten is currently serving as has previously served as a Co-Chair of the American Bar Association’s Criminal Justice Section and as Disciplinary Board Committee Chair of the Louisiana State Bar Association. He is an active board member of the Boys Scouts of America (Southeast Louisiana Council), having previously served as President and an Executive Board Member for the organization. Prior to these recent leadership roles, among others, he has served as a Board Member of the Center for Law and Civic Education, a board member of the Military Order of Foreign Wars, Executive Board Vice Chair of the New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission; (current) Executive Board Member and Secretary-Treasurer of the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation, and Executive Board/past Co-Chair for New Orleans Crimestoppers. He is also a newly elected member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Former United States Attorneys (NAFUSA).
Jim Letten obtained his bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of New Orleans and his Juris Doctor from Tulane University, and is a retired Commander and credentialled NCIS Agent in the U.S. Navy Reserve (20 years).
