She has broad experience in complex litigation and regulatory and compliance counseling and risk assessment, internal investigations and government enforcement actions, with an emphasis on federal procurement (government contracts) and nonprocurement (grants and cooperative agreements).

Ms. Droubi’s clients include individuals and U.S. and non-U.S. companies operating in the fields of aerospace and defense, engineering, aviation, cybersecurity, technology, telecommunications, manufacturing, real estate, health care, life sciences and management services, as well as nonprofit organizations and professionals providing humanitarian and development aid.

Regulatory and Compliance Experience

Ms. Droubi assists clients with a wide range of regulatory compliance and business concerns, particularly in the areas of federal government contracting and federal grants and cooperative agreements. Issues include small business size and socioeconomic regulations and pass-through limitations, misappropriation of government funds, misuse of business assets, domestic preference and country of origin requirements (e.g., Buy American Act and Trade Agreements Act), defective pricing (TINA), personal and organizational conflicts of interest (OCI), kickbacks, product substitution, quality assurance, cybersecurity, data privacy and retention, accounting irregularities, procurement integrity, cross-border transactions and operations, foreign bribery and corruption, sanctions, retaliation and obstruction.

Counseling and Risk Assessment

Providing clients with tailored guidance and training, Ms. Droubi works with gatekeepers to identify, assess and manage companies’ regulatory and compliance risk profiles. She also assists clients in designing and revising  corporate compliance and ethics programs and with corporate due diligence during mergers and acquisitions.

Internal Investigations

Ms. Droubi routinely conducts internal investigations regarding alleged regulatory misconduct, financial fraud, false statements and false claims, and supply chain issues. In doing so, she prepares clients to defend against potential government enforcement actions. This includes assisting clients with responding to whistleblowers, submitting voluntary disclosures to the government, updating corporate compliance programs and engaging with civilian and defense government agencies (e.g., USAID, the General Services Administration (GSA), the Department of State, the Department of Transportation, NASA, the Army and the Air Force).

Government Enforcement Actions

Ms. Droubi handles white collar and complex civil litigation matters involving the False Claims Act (FCA) and parallel criminal investigations and administrative actions (suspension and debarment). She assists clients in responding to grand jury and civil subpoenas and other document demands and government inquires. This includes engaging with government counsel and investigators, preparing witnesses for testimony, gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses, and making presentations to boards of directors, audit committees, independent auditors, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Offices of the U.S. Attorneys and Inspectors General and state and federal agencies. She has also litigated against allegations of misconduct, negotiated settlements and administrative agreements, and assisted clients with managing reputational damage.

Complex Litigation

Ms. Droubi is an experienced litigator. She has appeared on behalf of clients in federal and state courts at the trial and appellate levels, and she has represented clients in negotiations, mediations and arbitrations. Ms. Droubi provides prelitigation advice to help clients avoid or mitigate litigation risks. When litigation is necessary to achieve the client’s best interests and goals, Ms. Droubi assists clients with all phases of litigation.

In addition, Ms. Droubi assists government contractors with pre- and post-award bid protest litigation before the Government Accountability Office (GAO), U.S. Court of Federal Claims, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and state and federal agencies.

Pro Bono and Clerkship

In her pro bono practice, Ms. Droubi assists military veterans with discharge upgrade matters. She also worked as part of a collaborative pro bono effort to help members of the Afghan Female Tactical Platoon (FTP), who served alongside U.S. special operations forces and were forced to leave Afghanistan after the Taliban regained control in August 2021, seek asylum in the United States. Ms. Droubi has been recognized by Vedder Price’s Pro Bono Committee for her commitment to pro bono work.

Prior to joining Vedder Price, Ms. Droubi served as a law clerk to The Honorable Mary Ellen Coster Williams at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

Recognitions

Ms. Droubi has been recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for Government Relations Practice since 2021 and for Administrative/Regulatory Law since 2024.