Aviation tycoon Farhad Azima, who has sued Dechert and its former London partner Neil Gerrard over allegedly helping the Middle Eastern Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah hack into his emails, has successfully secured a subpoena in federal court against a New York attorney to help pursue his claims. 

The ruling has implications for Dechert and former white-collar co-head Gerrard, as Azima added the pair as additional defendants in a U.K. countersuit in 2021, after he was initially accused of fraud and conspiracy by the Ras Al Khaimah Authority (RAKIA). He contends that Gerrard, RAKIA’s legal adviser in a separate fraud investigation, was “party to the hacking, the staged release of the data and the cover-up” and that Dechert is also liable for its former partner’s actions.