W.S. Wilson Leung

Profile

Based in San Francisco, Wilson is a former federal prosecutor, experienced trial attorney, and compliance leader in Murphy Pearson’s White Collar Defense & Investigations and Litigation groups. Prior to joining Murphy Pearson, Wilson held senior positions in the compliance and litigation teams at several prominent technology companies, including one company working toward a widely-anticipated IPO. In this capacity, he led each companies’ engagement with governmental regulators – including the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Senate, and the Securities and Exchange Commission – to address their investigations and regulatory inquiries. Wilson also supervised the investigations and compliance teams at these companies, which were responsible for developing and implementing each companies’ employee code of conduct, conducting risk assessments, and fostering a culture of integrity.

Prior to his in-house work, Wilson served as a federal prosecutor for almost 15 years. As an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York and the Northern District of California, he investigated and prosecuted a variety of federal crimes, such as fraud, money laundering, bribery, tax evasion, and computer trespass, as well as violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Bank Secrecy Act. Wilson served as the Deputy Chief of the Organized Crime Strike Force in the Northern District of California, and initiated the first crypto-currency investigation in the district. In an innovative application of federal racketeering laws, he also charged more than three dozen defendants engaged in the diversion of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of pharmaceuticals under RICO. Wilson tried 19 cases to verdict in federal district court, and briefed and argued numerous appeals before the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the Ninth Circuit. For his work as an Assistant United States Attorney, Wilson received the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award in 2012, as well as the Director’s Award of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys in 2016. In 2011, the San Francisco Recorder named Wilson one of its “Attorneys of the Year.”

Prior to serving as an Assistant United States Attorney, Wilson also worked as a litigation associate at a prominent international law firm in New York City and as an Honor Program Trial Attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. Wilson also served as a law clerk for the Honorable Chester J. Straub of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

In addition to Murphy Pearson, since February 2025, Wilson has served as a mayoral appointee to the seven-member San Francisco Police Commission. As a Police Commissioner, Wilson is responsible for setting policies and procedures for the San Francisco Police Department, supervising the San Francisco Department of Police Accountability, and conducting evidentiary hearings and adjudicating allegations of misconduct against police officers.