Terence M. Grugan is a member of the firm's White Collar Defense/Internal Investigations, Securities Enforcement and Corporate Governance Litigation, and Anti-Money Laundering Practice Groups. In his white collar practice, Terence represents individuals and entities who are targets, subjects, or witnesses in criminal, regulatory, or administrative government investigations, including investigations conducted by the Department of Justice, Internal Revenue Service, Securities and Exchange Commission, state attorneys general, local, state, or federal inspectors general, and local law enforcement. He has defended clients from the preliminary stages of an investigation through trial in state and federal courts. As a member of the federal Criminal Justice Act appointment panel, Terence regularly represents in court individuals subject to federal criminal investigation and prosecution.
In addition, he has extensive experience conducting internal investigations for large and small entities, including investigations involving allegations of fraudulent business practices, campaign finance improprieties, tax fraud, government contracting fraud, and others.
Terence also represents financial institutions clients in matters implicating their practice under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and related Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws, including compliance program advice, internal investigations, regulatory examinations, and related civil litigation.
Terence also maintains an extensive securities enforcement and corporate governance litigation practice, representing institutional clients in complex contract disputes, shareholders disputes, internal corporate governance disputes, and professional liability matters in state and federal courts. He has also represented institutional clients in actions arising under the securities laws and involving fraud and breaches of fiduciary duties in arbitrations before FINRA and JAMS arbitration panels.
Prior to joining Ballard Spahr, Terence worked as a Special Investigator with the Philadelphia Office of the Inspector General. As a Special Investigator, he conducted criminal and administrative investigations into fraud and corruption in Philadelphia city government, including investigations into prescription drug fraud involving city health clinics, abuses in city property dispositions, government benefit fraud, and government contracting fraud.
Representative Matters
White Collar Defense/Internal Investigations
- Represented the former mayor of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in a Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General prosecution involving multiple counts of theft and corruption-related offenses
- Represented a former judge of the Philadelphia Traffic Court in a prosecution involving multiple counts under the federal mail and wire fraud statutes relating to an alleged ticket fixing scheme. The client was acquitted of all charges following a two-month trial in federal court in Philadelphia.
- Represented an individual accused of involvement in a scheme to submit false claims to the federal government
- Represented a company subject to investigation by the Pennsylvania Inspector General for fraud involving the use of disadvantaged business entities in execution of government contract
- Represented a charter school in a Pennsylvania Inspector General investigation
- Represented witnesses in federal grand jury investigations
- Represented witnesses in a NASA inspector general investigation
Commercial Litigation
- Represented a large investment firm in a three-week FINRA arbitration involving claims of unsuitable investments and professional negligence
- Represented a placement agent in a securities fraud suit in California Superior Court
- Represented a major national corporation in an antitrust class action suit in federal court in the District of New Jersey
Pro Bono
Terence has performed extensive pro bono work. He is the co-founder of the Ballard Academy for Student Entrepreneurs (BASE), a nationally-recognized student-based accelerator. Terence has also represented clients in landlord-tenant disputes in Pennsylvania state court and before Philadelphia arbitration panels. He also regularly accepts appointments to represent criminal defendants in federal court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania through the CJA Panel. Finally, he is a member of the board of directors of New Leash on Life USA, a Philadelphia prison dog-training and prisoner re-entry organization.
Judicial Clerkships
Judicial clerk, Hon. Timothy J. Savage, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania