Thomas Green managed Sidley’s federal and state investigation and white collar defense practice group in Washington, D.C. He is a nationally known and highly regarded trial lawyer who has tried countless complex criminal and civil cases. In June of 2009, Chambers and Partners selected Tom for its USA Award for Excellence in the field of White Collar Criminal Defense and Government Investigations. He is among a very few trial lawyers in the United States who are ranked in Chambers’ Top Tier. Tom also has been recognized by Chambers Global in Litigation: Trial Lawyers (USA) (2010–2023).
Tom has been featured in the National Law Journal as one of 11 “Winning” litigators in the United States, and named by Ethisphere Magazine to its Hall of Fame honoring “Attorneys Who Matter” in the United States. He has been selected by his peers over 45 successive years for inclusion in the top tier of “Best Lawyers in America,” and was named Best Lawyers‘ 2011 Washington, D.C. White Collar Lawyer of the Year. Tom is recognized as a Litigation Star in the United States in the 2014 and 2015 editions of Benchmark Litigation and included in Washingtonian magazine’s 2013 list of Washington’s Best Lawyers as one of the region’s “best legal minds” in the area of Criminal Defense, White Collar. Tom’s victory for Tyson Foods in a criminal case was selected by the National Law Journal in March 2004 as the most significant defense verdict in the year 2003.
For many years, Tom has represented members of Congress and other public officials in responding to some of the most well-known and significant federal and Congressional investigations of official misconduct. He represented former Assistant Attorney General Robert Mardian during the trial of the Watergate case and former Maryland Governor Marvin Mandel in a criminal case against him and several others. Tom also defended several government officials during the “Whitewater” Independent Counsel investigations. During the Iran-Contra investigation, Tom represented Retired Major General Richard V. Secord. Senator Donald W. Riegle, Jr. retained Tom in connection with the Senate Ethics Committee’s inquiry relating to Charles Keating. Tom has also represented former Assistant Secretary of State Elizabeth Tamposi in connection with various investigations into the State Department’s handling of former President Clinton’s passport records, as well as Senator David Durenburger against criminal charges filed by the Department of Justice. Tom also represented former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Dennis Hastert in connection with federal criminal charges filed in the Northern District of Illinois.
Tom is lead counsel for a large multinational company in a criminal proceeding pending in New York federal court.
Tom is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia and has practiced law in Washington, D.C., for more than 50 years. Throughout his career, he has taught civil and criminal trial practice at clinical programs sponsored by law schools, bar associations, and the National Institute of Trial Advocacy. Tom is a frequent lecturer and panelist at professional programs for lawyers conducted by organizations such as the American Bar Association and the American Law Institute. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and a past president of the Assistant United States Attorneys Association of Washington, D.C. He also served as the initial Chairman of the Committee on Environmental Crime of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Tom is a former U.S. Army Captain and artillery battery commander and was attached to the 1st Air Cavalry Division in Vietnam.