Alex van der Zwaan (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
In 2018, Alex van der Zwaan, a former associate at the London office of Skadden Arps, pleaded guilty to charges brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. He’d worked on the controversial report written by the firm justifying the prosecution of former Russian-aligned Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s political rivals, and was indicted for lying to investigators in the Russia probe about his communications with former Trump campaign aide Rick Gates. Facing up to six months in prison, he begged for leniency in sentencing and lucked out, serving 30 days in jail, as well as a fine of $20,000.
On top of his new criminal record, van der Zwaan lost his job at one of the most prestigious firms in the world for his gross misconduct. He’d worked at Skadden for a decade prior to getting caught up in the Mueller probe.
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But that wasn’t the end of his punishment.
After being deported from the U.S. following his time served, van der Zwaan lost his license to practice law in the U.K. in July of 2019. Without a livelihood to fall back on, we’re not sure what the former Biglaw attorney has been up to for the last year and a half, but we sure know now because he lucked out once again.
Van der Zwaan is likely celebrating, because he received a full pardon for his “process-related crime” from President Donald Trump last night. Former Rep. Trey Gowdy, a partner at Nelson Mullins, supported the pardon. George Papadopoulos, who was also taken down as a result of the Mueller probe, received a full pardon as well.
We suppose congratulations are in order for van der Zwaan, but what good is a pardon when the final nail in your career’s coffin has already been hammered in? Best of luck.
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Ex-Skadden Associate Convicted in Mueller Probe Is Among Wave of Trump Pardons [National Law Journal]
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.