Current Employment Position(s)

Vice Chair, Public Policy and Strategy Group

Lawyer Overview

Reginald J. Brown is a partner in the firm's Regulatory and Government Affairs and Litigation/Controversy Departments, and vice-chair of the Public Policy and Strategy Practice Group. Mr. Brown joined the firm in 1997, and served as special assistant to the President and associate White House Counsel from 2003 to 2005.

Practice

Mr. Brown's practice focuses on providing strategic counsel, investigation-related expertise, regulatory support and crisis management assistance to a broad range of clients confronting challenges and opportunities at the intersection of government, law and public policy. A sampling of his representative matters includes:

Investigations

• Counsel for a former member of the Hewlett-Packard Board of Directors in connection with the HP "pretexting" scandal, including corporate, congressional, SEC and DOJ inquiries.
• Counsel for former Congressman Jim Kolbe in connection with a House Ethics Committee Investigation and DOJ Preliminary Inquiry; both matters closed with no finding of wrongdoing.
• Counsel for a financial institution in connection with a TARP Special Inspector General inquiry.
• Counsel for an energy company in connection with a Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI) inquiry regarding trading activities.
• Counsel for a medical device company in connection with a House Energy and Commerce Committee inquiry regarding dual use technology and national security issues.
• Counsel for a CEO in connection with a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee inquiry regarding hedge funds and the financial markets.
• Counsel for a financial institution in connection with a PSI investigation regarding dividend tax payments.
• Counsel for a financial institution in a PSI inquiry regarding Swiss bank accounts of US tax payers.
• Counsel for a CEO in connection with a House Financial Services Committee inquiry regarding the Hope for Homeowners Act and MBS modification.
• Counsel for a financial institution in connection with an offshore tax shelter abuse investigation by the PSI and other government entities.  
• Counsel for a financial institution in connection with a AML related PSI inquiry.
• Counsel for a transportation and shipping company in connection with a House Judiciary Committee inquiry regarding corporate downsizing.
• Counsel for a financial institution in connection with a PSI inquiry regarding the tax treament of complex financial instruments.
• Counsel for a CEO in connection with a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee investigation and hearing regarding executive compensation.
• Counsel for several senior US government officials in connection with congressional and executive branch inquiries.
• Counsel for a senior foreign official in connection with US inquiries relating to the United Nations "Oil for Food" investigation.
• Counsel for automotive dealers and community banks in connection with Department of Justice Civil Rights Division investigations.
• Counsel for a financial institution in connection with DOJ Civil Rights Division and HUD inquiries.
• Counsel for a former Defense industry CEO in connection with a Department of Justice public corruption investigation.
• Counsel for a large student loan company in connection with multistate and federal investigations into lending practices.
• Additional significant recent experience representing clients before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, House Energy and Commerce Committee, House Education and Labor Committee, House Armed Services Committee, House Financial Services Committee, House International Relations Committee, Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, Senate Ethics Committee, Senate Banking Committee, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Department of Justice Public Integrity Section and the State Attorneys General for Florida and New York.

Regulatory Affairs

• Represented Lucent Technologies with respect to the CFIUS review of its merger with Alcatel, and in connection with a related Congressional inquiry.
• Represented a Deutsche Bank subsidiary with respect to the CFIUS review of its acquisition of Maher Terminals, Port of New Jersey and New York.
• Represented the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the world's largest bank, in connection with its successful application for Federal Reserve Board approval of expanded US branch operations.
• Pro Bono counsel for Charles Winters in successful application for posthumous presidential pardon.

Background

Most recently, Mr. Brown served in the White House Counsel's office, where he was the White House's principal legal liaison to the Departments of Treasury and Housing and Urban Development, as well as many independent financial services agencies. In this role, he provided counsel on a wide variety of issues. Mr. Brown also served as a counselor for the White House Office of Political Affairs, Presidential Personnel Office and the National Economic Council.

Prior to his government service, Mr. Brown served as assistant to the CEO and vice president of corporate strategy at Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, and as the deputy general counsel to Florida Governor Jeb Bush. Mr. Brown also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Federated States of Micronesia early in his professional career. While working as an associate at WilmerHale in the 1990s, Mr. Brown served as co-counsel to victims of the Oklahoma City Bombing in connection with sentencing proceedings for Terry Nichols and Michael Fortier.

Professional Activities

Mr. Brown is an active member of the Federalist Society and a participant in the American Council on Germany's Young Leaders Program. Mr. Brown has appeared on C-Span's "America and the Courts" program to discuss the Supreme Court nomination process and is also a frequent commentator regarding other legal and policy issues in Washington, DC. He was recently quoted in The American Lawyer article, "Painful Scrutiny" by Seth Hettena, in which Mr. Brown was interviewed regarding PSI investigations into the financial industry.

Areas of Practice

• Financial Institutions
• Regulatory and Government Affairs
• Public Policy and Strategy
• Defense, National Security and Government Contracts
• Litigation/Controversy
• Investigations and Criminal Litigation
• Anti-Money Laundering
• Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS)

Representative Cases

• Chicago Bridge & Iron (CB&I)
• Jim Kolbe

West Practice Categories

Banking & Finance Law, Commercial Banks, Credit Unions, Defense Contracts, Federal Contracts, Government Contracts, Insurance Law, Mortgages & Foreclosures

Bar Admissions

• District of Columbia
• Florida

Education

• Harvard Law School, 1996
  JD
  Honors: cum laude
• University of Chicago, 2003
• Yale University, 1989
  BA, Political Science
  Honors: cum laude

Published Works

• Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission Members Named, 2009
• Congress to Establish Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, 2009
• Troubled Asset Relief Program Update: Treasury Completes Major Financial Institution Commitments, 2008
• Market Crisis--New Draft Legislation, 2008
• Reacting to the Market Crisis, 2008
• PSI Report on "Tax Haven" Banks and US Tax Compliance, 2008
• Treasury Department Issues Proposed CFIUS Regulations, 2008
• Congress Asks Fortune 250 Company Boards of Directors for Executive Compensation Consultant Information by February 22, 2008, 2008
• President Issues Executive Order Concerning Foreign Investment in the United States, 2008
• Agencies Issue Final Statement on Subprime Mortgage Lending, 2007
• Agencies Issue Proposed Statement on Subprime Mortgage Lending: New Standards for Assessing Borrower Ability to Repay, Consumer Disclosures and Internal Controls?, 2007
• Whistleblowers and Internal Investigations: Plan Now to Avoid Problems Later, 2006
• FinCEN Issues Anti-Money Laundering Rules on Foreign Correspondent and Private Banking Accounts: Substantial Due Diligence Mandated for Banks, Broker-Dealers, Mutual Funds, Others, 2006
• Vague Guidance Still Invites Defensive SARs, 2006
• Financial Institutions Law Update, 2005

Address

1875 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20006

Phones

+1 202 663 6430 (Business Phone)

Faxes

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Emails

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Websites

http://www.wilmerhale.com