Robert Raben

Robert Raben’s aggressively bipartisan approach was honed during a highly respected legislative career that began on Congressman Barney Frank’s (D-MA) staff and culminated in House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde’s (R-IL) endorsement of his appointment to the Justice Department as Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs. Raben served as counsel to Congressman Frank for seven years, advising Mr. Frank on issues before the Judiciary Committee and on national civil rights policy and politics. The quality of his work soon carried him onto the Committee itself as Democratic counsel for the Subcommittee on the Constitution. He later held that position on the Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property, advising members on copyright, property and trademark law and policy, as well as the federal judiciary. Raben built a reputation for collegiality and effectiveness through his collaboration with Republican members and staff on issues including the omnibus patent reform bill, database protection standards, WIPO implementation and copyright liability for Internet service providers. His work caught the eye of the White House, and in 1999, he was appointed Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and, subsequently, Assistant Attorney General. His confirmation was endorsed by each of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Republican subcommittee chairs. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) said that Raben's confirmation would "place a proven person in a position that is critical to the cooperation of Congress and the Executive Branch." After a unanimous confirmation vote, Raben was charged with overseeing Attorney General Janet Reno's legislative initiatives and handling extensive congressional oversight of the Department. He dealt extensively with both chambers of Congress and both sides of the aisle as chief lobbyist and strategist on a range of issues, including intellectual property, federalism, tort reform and cybercrime. After graduating from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and New York University School of Law, Robert was an associate with the law firm Arnold & Porter, specializing in international trade, federal lobbying and white-collar criminal defense. Soon after, he joined the faculty of Georgetown University Law School as an adjunct professor -- a position he held until his confirmation as Assistant Attorney General. He is a past president of the Hispanic Bar Association of DC and currently heads the organization’s judicial endorsements committee. He serves on the boards of the American Constitution Society and Alliance for Justice.