Prominent D.C. Lawyer to Lead McDermott's Government Strategies Practice
WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 5, 2007) — The Washington, D.C. office of McDermott Will & Emery is pleased to announce that Stephen M. Ryan, a well-known lawyer with an expansive resume of government and law firm experience, has joined the Firm to head its Government Strategies Practice Group.
"With his inside-out knowledge of the government, Steve's leadership gives McDermott a top-flight government affairs practice," commented Ray Jacobsen, head of the Firm's Regulation and Government Affairs Department. "Steve has the experience and the talent to lead this practice as we continue its expansion, particularly representing clients in the new Congress on a full range of legislative matters including oversight hearings."
Mr. Ryan provides a broad range of lobbying, litigation and counseling services, often for the high-tech community, and companies in highly regulated industries. Mr. Ryan has experience in all branches of our government. He served as General Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs (GAC), chaired by the Honorable John Glenn, and participated in all aspects of the Committee's legislative and oversight activities, such as government procurement investigations, government audit activities and ethics legislation. Mr. Ryan also served as Deputy Counsel of the President’s Commission on Organized Crime, directing investigations against La Cosa Nostra and other criminals during the Reagan Administration. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Washington, D.C., prosecuting criminal cases, and as a law clerk for the Honorable Robert A. Grant, U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Indiana.
In addition to Mr. Ryan, James Edmund Datri, named five consecutive times to Roll Call's "Fabulous Fifty," a list of the 50 most influential advisers and strategists on Capitol Hill, has also joined McDermott's Washington, D.C. office as a partner in the Government Strategies Practice Group. Like Mr. Ryan, Mr. Datri advises on the development and execution of strategies that integrate legislative, communications/public relations, and business components to move government policy and advance client interests. He is the former Executive Director of the Democratic Caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives, a post he was appointed to by then-Democratic Caucus Chairman (now U.S. Senator) Bob Menendez. Among other responsibilities, Mr. Datri organized the private annual Democratic Issues Conferences, where House Democratic leaders plan their legislative and communications strategies for the year ahead. He served for more than a decade in senior positions in the U.S. Congress, including for Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney of New York City, and Congressman Sander Levin of Michigan.
"This duo is a great addition to our lobbying practice," commented Bobby Burchfield, co-partner-in-charge of the Firm's Washington, D.C. office. "Steve's skill in assisting clients in Congressional oversight committees will be invaluable to our clients."
McDermott has more than 20 years of lobbying and political consulting experience at the U.S., state and local, and international levels. Our Government Strategies Practice Group includes former Massachusetts Governor and senior Department of Justice official Bill Weld and Doug Richardson, former Executive Director of the Democratic Governors Association among other talented professionals. Our practice is comprised of lawyers and legislative professionals with experience representing clients' interests before U.S. Congress, the administration, and federal regulatory agencies and departments, to state legislatures, executive branches and regulatory bodies. Our bipartisan team of legislative lawyers and professionals includes a former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Relations, a former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Agriculture, key Republican and Democratic Counsel, and staff to the House and Senate leadership, important Congressional committees and Members of Congress.
Biographical Notes
Stephen M. Ryan represents clients in both lobbying and litigation, before the Congress, state legislatures and in federal and state courts across the United States. He has often represented companies and individual officers in their interactions with a range of law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice, agency Inspectors General and State Attorneys General. He is often called upon to help conduct internal investigations to assist management and corporate boards in addressing issues of importance. For example, American University relied on Mr. Ryan for critical work in the investigative and lobbying area, and he provided important congressional representation for a leading global technology solutions provider. In the past year, he has won a major victory for utilities damaged by Enron in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit Court, and represents the Mayo Clinic, Intuit and other significant U.S. clients.
Mr. Ryan is a leader on internet governance issues and often attends international forums addressing such issues. He is the Mid Atlantic regional Board Chairman of Operation Hope, America's premier African-American focused financial literacy group. Mr. Ryan earned his J.D. from Notre Dame Law School and his B.S. from Cornell University. He is admitted to practice in Washington, D.C.
James Edmund Datri earned a well-deserved reputation as an effective problem solver and coalition builder during his time on Capitol Hill. The National Journal reported in a June 2003, profile: "When a problem arises in the...ranks of the House Democratic Caucus, Datri is the staffer to whom [Chairman] Menendez and other lawmakers turn first," and "Datri directed a series of policy forums on economic and security issues that helped forge consensus among ideologically diverse House Democrats."
Mr. Datri, a New York City native, is an experienced public speaker and speechwriter. Among the hundreds of speeches he has written, Mr. Datri has written speeches given in prime time at the 2000 and 2004 Democratic National Conventions. He earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he served as managing editor of Harvard Law Record, and he earned his B.A. with honors from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
