Tess Cohen
Tess Cohen is a criminal defense and civil rights attorney in New York City and of counsel to ZMO Law PLLC. Her practice focuses on defending complex fraud and narcotics cases, including health care fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud and narcotics conspiracies. She also handles wrongful convictions, and a variety of other criminal and civil matters in state and federal court.
Prior to joining ZMO Law PLLC, Ms. Cohen spent more than eight years as an assistant district attorney with the New York County District Attorney’s Office, where she was assigned to the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor. Most recently, she served as the chief of the Prescription Drug Investigation Unit where she oversaw all the office’s work on prescription-drug related crimes, particularly investigations and prosecutions of medical practitioners selling prescriptions for controlled substances and the diversion of opioids from pharmacies and hospitals.
Ms. Cohen was lead prosecutor for numerous complex cases, including a thirteen-defendant oxycodone prescription and medicaid fraud conspiracy that involved allegations of more than $25 million worth of Medicaid fraud. She also handled the prosecution of a doctor who was charged with manslaughter due to the overdose death of two of his patients. She supervised prosecutors and analysts handling a wide array of prescription drug and health care fraud related cases. She has worked directly with a variety of state and federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies, including the NYS Office of Professional Medical Conduct, NYS Department of Education, NYS Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, Office of Inspector General for Health + Hospitals, Office of the Medicaid Inspector General, NYC Human Resource’s Administration, the NYS Attorney General’s Office, New York State Insurance Fund, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as the DEA and NYPD.
As a result of her time as a prosecutor, Ms. Cohen has experience with investigative techniques used by law enforcement including wiretaps, confidential informants, and data analysis. She has conducted numerous hearings and trials, as well as complex motion practice and more than 100 grand jury presentations. She has worked extensively with individuals suffering from substance use disorder and their families. She is knowledgeable about drug treatment options offered throughout the state court system.
For her work, Ms. Cohen received the True American Hero Award from the Federal Drug Agents Foundation in 2019. She has conducted numerous trainings related to investigating prescription drug crimes and health care fraud, including delivering a CLE on Prescription Drug Investigations at the New York Prosecutors’ Training Institute in July 2020.
Ms. Cohen graduated from Columbia Law School, where she was the recipient of the Lowenstein Fellowship given to a small number of graduates each year who are dedicated to working in public interest law. She also received the Jane Marks Murphy Prize for excellence in clinical advocacy. She has worked with principal attorney Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma in a variety of professional settings for more than a decade. As a law student intern in 2010, she uncovered crucial evidence that helped lead to the exoneration of Antonio Yarbough four years later.
She is also active in criminal justice policy work at the New York City Bar Association. She is the chair of the City Bar’s Criminal Justice Operations Committee and a member of the Mass Incarceration Task Force. She was a fellow in the 2018 Women in Power program at the 92nd Street Y. Ms. Cohen’s experience as a prosecutor combined with her demonstrated devotion to the rights of those accused of crimes and sensitivity to the injustices in our criminal justice system make her an ideal complement to our team of client-focused, trial-ready criminal defense lawyers.
