Vincent Mekles

Before joining Ankura, Vincent served as Deputy Executive Director of the New Jersey Governor’s Office of Recovery and Rebuilding. In that role, he was responsible for developing, coordinating, and overseeing all aspects of the state’s multibillion-dollar recovery effort following Hurricane Sandy, a presidentially declared disaster and the most destructive storm in New Jersey history. Vincent’s work included developing and overseeing efforts to identify and mitigate risks of waste, fraud, and abuse, and interfacing daily with various federal and state legal and regulatory authorities regarding compliance efforts and performance metrics.

Previously, Vincent served as a litigation associate at the law firm of Latham & Watkins LLP. There, he focused on complex commercial litigations, corporate investigations, and regulatory actions. Vincent directly advised executive leadership and senior managers of various large, publicly traded and private corporations on governance matters, risk assessments, and litigation decisions. Vincent also had the honor of serving as a law clerk to Justice Jaynee LaVecchia of the New Jersey Supreme Court.

Vincent’s professional experience includes the following:

• Led the audit of a Big 4 Accounting firm’s compliance with CFIUS mandated security requirements relating to security, access control, and disposition of defined protected data.
• Managed independent oversight and reporting for a CFIUS-required third party monitorship relating to the acquisition of a global financial services firm by a China-based buyer.
• Led the independent oversight and reporting functions in connection with a court appointment to oversee a multibillion-dollar settlement of consumer class action and regulatory enforcement suits brought against a global automobile manufacturer.
• Assisted a government energy authority with development and implementation of strategic initiatives and cost savings measures in compliance with federal oversight requirements.
• Assisted a large government transportation agency with compliance requirements associated with the receipt of funding from the Federal Transportation Authority.
• Led the independent oversight and reporting functions in connection with a financial advisory entity’s compliance with requirements imposed by the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States.
• Oversaw the implementation of New Jersey’s Integrity Oversight Monitor Act, which required the state to deploy independent monitors in connection with certain Hurricane Sandy recovery and rebuilding projects.
• Developed and implemented anti-fraud measures as well as key performance indicators associated with the deployment of federal funds disbursed by multiple agencies, oversaw the development of tools to measure KPIs and facilitate the development of a transparency website, and routinely prepared reports for federal and state regulators.
• Negotiated complex agreement with the US Environmental Protection Agency and other federal and state agencies regulating clean air emissions and labor requirements.
• Represented various large financial institutions in complex commercial litigations, white-collar defense, and regulatory compliance matters.
• Represented various large private companies in business-to-business disputes, employment and insurance matters, and other disputes.