Akin Gump adds Holder advisor to ‘crown jewel’ practice

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld has hired a former Justice Department official to be a partner in the firm’s “crown jewel” white collar defense practice.

{mosads}Steven F. Reich, former the associate deputy attorney general, acted as a senior advisor to Attorney General Eric Holder and Deputy Attorney General James Cole. He managed the congressional oversight investigations of the Aaron Schwartz case and the “Fast and Furious” gun-tracking scandal before leaving the Justice Department in April.

Reich said in statement that he is “thrilled” to be joining Akin Gump.

“The firm is a global litigation powerhouse,” he said, “with an amazingly deep and talented roster of white collar defense lawyers who serve an impressive array of sophisticated and cutting-edge clients, including in growth areas such as energy.”

Based in the firm’s New York office, Reich will represent people and companies involved in congressional and internal investigations, including “significant matters” resulting in civil or criminal suits.

“Our white collar practice is one of the crown jewels of Akin Gump, and Steve represents a formidable addition to our already-strong team,” said the firm’s chairwoman, chairperson Kim Koopersmith, in a statement. “His broad experience in both the private and public sectors gives him a unique ability to assist the firm’s clients with their most complex problems.”

Reich joined DOJ in 2011, leaving Manatt Phelps & Phillips’s white collar investigations team. Before that, he was a senior counsel to President Bill Clinton and worked for former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and the minority members of the House Judiciary Committee.