The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

Breaking Tradition, Obama Taps Non-Lawyer to Head FCC

There's something a bit different about Tom Wheeler, nominated today by President Barack Obama to head the Federal Communications Commission.

It’s not his work as a lobbyist or venture capitalist - rather, it's that unlike practically every other chairman in the agency's 79-year history, Wheeler is not a lawyer.

To be sure, Wheeler by all accounts knows the industry well, heading two major trade groups for years. As Obama put it today in remarks at the White House, "Tom is the only member of both the cable television and the wireless industry hall of fame. So he’s like the Jim Brown of telecom… Tom knows this stuff inside and out."

Still, he lacks the law degree that has been a qualification of almost all of the FCC’s past leaders.

Benin Mogul Tied to Alleged Murder Plot Hires Arent Fox

Updated at 3:52 p.m.

While facing accusations of plotting to assassinate Benin's president and overthrow the West African nation's government, a Beninese businessman in exile in France has turned to former Senator Robert Bennett (R-Utah) and two of his Arent Fox colleagues in Washington for help.

Living in Paris since Beninese authorities accused him and three others of planning to poison President Thomas Boni Yayi in October, Patrice Talon hired Arent to promote "respect for the rule of law in Benin," according to lobbying registration report filed with Congress on Thursday. The filing adds that Bennett, along with Arent partner Gerard Leval and counsel Brett Kappel, will push for "equitable and transparent judicial procedures" for an unnamed "Benin citizen imprisoned without bail in Benin." The citizen is former Beninese minister of commerce Moudjaidou Soumanou, one of the individuals connected to the alleged assassination plot, according to Leval.

The Beninese judicial system has received criticism from the U.S. State Department. Beninese authorities frequently hold individuals indefinitely before bringing cases to a judge and sometimes make arbitrary arrests, according to a 2012 State Department report on human rights practices.

Bennett, an Arent senior policy adviser, said Benin under Yayi might be heading in the same direction as Venezuela under Hugo Chavez, who secured the removal of presidential term limits and faced criticism from human rights groups. Yayi, who has led Benin since 2006, won election to a second term in 2011 and opponents fear he might try to amend the country's constitution to run for a third term.

The Morning Wrap

The Am Law 100: "For the first time ever neither Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom nor Baker & McKenzie heads The Am Law 100’s gross revenue rankings, as DLA Piper—already the world’s largest firm by head count—claims the top spot." The 2013 Am Law 100 full report is here. Features include: Spring Awakening, and Disappearing Act. Here's a look at how an enormous contingency fee, coupled with merger integration, boosted Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton.

Silenced: Federal agents' reading of Miranda rights to Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev silenced him, officials said Thursday. In The Boston Globe, the carjack victim recounts his night riding at gunpoint with the Tsarnaev brothers. "Danny thought about his burgeoning startup and about a girl he secretly liked in New York. 'I think, ‘Oh my god, I have no chance to meet you again,’” the victim recalled, according to the Globe. Tsarnaev is now being held in a prison medical center.

Money flow: The New York Times investigates the long legal history of farmers' discrimination claims, exposing how Obama administration political appointees in the Agriculture and Justice departments engineered a "stunning" deal to commit $1.3 billion to thousands of Hispanic and female farmers who had never claimed bias in court. The Times says the deal was made over the objections of career lawyers and agency officials who said the evidence didn't support systemic discrimination.

Bryan Cave Ends Keystone XL Lobbying

Updated 4/26

Bryan Cave has ended its lobbying for the Canadian company behind the $5.3 billion Keystone XL pipeline, the law firm revealed this week.

The law firm filed a lobbying termination report with Congress on Monday, saying it finished its advocacy for TransCanada Corp. on March 31. Bryan Cave most recently monitored matters that included pipeline safety, natural gas transmission and climate change. Senior policy adviser David Russell and policy adviser Brandon Pollak were the last Bryan Cave lobbyists to advocate for TransCanada.

Shawn Howard, a TransCanada spokesman, wrote in an email that his company's resources and needs vary over time.

"Professionals from Bryan Cave were engaged for a period of time, but we recently determined that we did not need the same level of support from them," Howard wrote. "As a result, they updated their disclosure of clients and activities, in keeping with U.S. rules and regulations."

Abbott Drops Two Law Firms from Lobbying Roster

After splitting into two companies in January, Abbott Laboratories has pulled the plug on lobbying work that two law firms did for it in Washington, lobbyists disclosed Monday.

Foley Hoag and Williams & Jensen stopped advocating for Abbott on December 31, the day before AbbVie Inc. spun off from the North Chicago, Ill.- based pharmaceutical giant, according to lobbying termination reports filed with Congress. AbbVie sells Abbott's brand-name pharmaceuticals, leaving generic drugs to the new Abbott.

Abbott, which spent $500,000 on federal lobbying during the first quarter of this year, currently has its own staffers and lobbyists from seven firms registered with Congress to advocate for it, congressional records show. Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck and Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Matz are among the firms.

After Privacy Fix, Law Firm's Netflix Advocacy Ends

A year after Greenberg Traurig revealed that it started lobbying for Netflix Inc., the law firm's work for the video subscription service ended.

Greenberg Traurig filed a lobbying termination report with Congress last week, saying it stopped advocating for Netflix on February 28. President Barack Obama on January 10 signed into law legislation that amended the Video Privacy Protection Act, the target of Greenberg Traurig's lobbying.

Netflix hired Greenberg Traurig to push for the amendment bill, which gave the company's U.S. members the ability to use Facebook to automatically share details about movies and television shows they watch.

ABA Descends on Washington for Lobbying Push

Despite American Airlines flight cancellations, suspicious packages in a U.S. Senate office building and a series of gun control legislation votes this week, the American Bar Association's annual lobbying spree in Washington went on.

A group of 360 ABA members from all 50 states came to D.C. for the group's annual ABA Day, which included trips to Capitol Hill on Wednesday and Thursday. The lawyers urged members of Congress to quickly fill empty seats in the federal judiciary and support increased funding for federal courts and the Legal Services Corp., the largest civil legal aid provider in the United States.

Thomas Susman, the ABA's governmental affairs director, said there's "really no substitute for face to face" contact between ABA members and policymakers.

"Everyone seemed to think it went extremely well," he said.

Halliburton Picks Patton Boggs to Lobby

Patton Boggs has started lobbying for an oil services company that became a household name during the George W. Bush administration.

Halliburton Co., which made headlines for its lucrative contracts during the Iraq War and for its role in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, hired Patton to advocate for the Preserving Jobs in the Oilfield Act, according to lobbying registration paperwork filed with Congress on Wednesday.

The legislation would scrap U.S. Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration guidance that says drivers who haul sand, water and other materials at well sites can't exclude their waiting time from the maximum amount of hours they are allowed to work. Currently, only specially trained drivers who operate vehicles designed to service wells can omit waiting time from their on-duty time.

Patton partner Jeffrey Turner, public policy consultant Carolina Mederos and associate Jared Fleisher are handling the account. Turner is the chairman of Patton's public policy and administrative and regulatory department. Mederos leads the firm's transportation, infrastructure and federal funding practice.

American Heart Association Hires Olsson Frank to Lobby

The American Heart Association has called for reinforcements in its battle to decrease sodium amounts in food, turning to a Washington law firm as its first outside lobbying shop since 2008.

Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Matz is helping draft "a strategic plan to work with food companies interested in [reducing] sodium content of their products," according to lobbying registration paperwork filed with Congress on Tuesday. Firm principal Bruce Silverglade, who handles matters that include nutrition policy and food labeling, is handling the account.

Silverglade didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. Association spokeswoman Retha Sherrod didn't have an immediate comment.

Bush Lawyers to Lead Chamber of Commerce's Legal Arm

Updated at 3:26 p.m.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has turned to two George W. Bush administration lawyers to lead its legal arm.

Former U.S. Assistant Attorney General Rachel Brand and former White House Associate Counsel Kate Todd will manage the day-to-day operations of the National Chamber Litigation Center, the business advocacy group announced Tuesday.

Since 2011, Brand has served as the organization's chief regulatory litigation counsel, while Todd has been its chief appellate litigation counsel. They will report to Lily Claffee, the Chamber's chief legal officer and general counsel, who has overseen the Center for the past two years. Claffee, the group said, will "take a more direct strategic role in the organization."