Government Affairs and Strategic Counsel

Public Policy Advocacy and Strategic Counsel

Kasowitz’s Government Affairs and Strategic Counsel Practice Group provides public policy advocacy and strategic counsel to individuals, firms, non-profits and trade associations at the intersection of law, business and public policy.  Led by former Connecticut Attorney General and Senate Chief of Staff Clarine Nardi Riddle, and anchored by former Senator Joseph Lieberman, the practice group combines strategic counseling, substantive policy knowledge, and insiders’ experience and perspectives on Capitol Hill to support our clients.  We create strategies, identify and build alliances, develop business opportunities, advocate for legislative and regulatory policy ends, respond to investigations, and conduct strategic business planning.

As the former chairman of both the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee and the Senate Armed Services Airland Subcommittee, Senator Lieberman was involved in shaping major national security, homeland defense, and government reform decisions.  Our team also includes a former senior appointee in the Department of Army with significant experience navigating and implementing change within the Army and the Department of Defense.  We use this experience to support clients in the national security and homeland defense arenas on Capitol Hill and in the Pentagon, and the broader national security community.

Our clients include international aerospace and defense companies, energy producers, leading system integrators, banks and financial services providers, IT and cybersecurity firms, multinational automotive manufacturers, transportation and logistics companies, private equity and capital investment funds, major trade associations, homeland security technology providers, professional services firms, academic institutions, and municipal entities.

Strategy and Business Advising

With Federal, State, Congressional and executive branch experience, we offer a broad range of skills and perspectives to build and execute complex government and business strategies to help clients work with and succeed before government.  Whether conducting business, complying with or challenging a regulation, or working the halls of Congress, succeeding in government interactions requires managing complex processes, creating advocates within government, and building coalitions.  With significant public and private sector experience at pushing through legislative policy changes and government reform, we assist clients in understanding the dynamics of government, building successful governmental strategies, and fighting for desired outcomes.

With our extensive government, national security, and foreign policy experience, we also serve as trusted advisors to clients in managing and making business decisions to ensure they account for governmental, international, and security factors.

Influencing and Shaping Legislation and Regulation

Our experience with state officials and federal lawmakers aids clients advocating for legislative and policy changes that protect and expand their businesses.  We are deeply familiar with the inner workings of federal agencies, have extensive knowledge of the priorities and concerns of the executive branch, and know decision makers on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill.  We have helped shape legislation in virtually every major area of public policy, including national and homeland security, foreign policy, fiscal policy, environmental protection, human rights, health care, trade, energy, cyber security and taxes.  To that end, we fight to ensure our clients’ public policy objectives are achieved.

Navigating the Administrative Process

Navigating agency administrative and regulatory processes can be daunting and requires understanding both the requirements of the specific process and the key action and decision points during that process.  We help clients in both developing the appropriate strategy for navigating a specific process and, either working independently or with the client’s existing counsel, to manage the process and, ultimately, make necessary connections and arguments to best position a client for success.

Responding to Government Inquiries and Investigations

Our attorneys are adept at advising clients on best practices for responding to government investigations, having been involved in congressional investigations into Enron’s collapse, the federal government’s response to Hurricane Katrina, the Fort Hood mass shooting, and the deadly attack in Benghazi, Libya.

With two former state Attorneys General among our ranks, we also handle state investigations and multi-state litigation matters, and appreciate the role that state Attorneys General play today.  We guide clients in managing compliance initiatives and litigating in state and federal courts in cases filed by the government, as well as parallel civil litigation.

Government inquiries and investigations can, if not managed well, become crises.  We help clients shape their message in order to manage and avoid such crises.

Developing Business Opportunities

Despite near term federal budget pressures, opportunities for doing business with government continue to grow.  With our experience working in the legislative and executive branches of the government, we work with clients to identify business opportunities with the government, build support for and interest in the company’s capability within government, and navigate the process to do business with the government, including in the legislative authorizing, appropriations, strategic planning, and budgeting processes.