Nickles
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Law firm Covington & Burling LLP announced last week that former District of Columbia Attorney General Peter Nickles has rejoined the firm as senior counsel.
In a statement on Thursday, the firm said Nickles "will provide strategic legal advice to clients on internal investigations, high-profile litigation and contested corporate transactions. He will be resident in Covington's Washington office."
Prior to his tenure as attorney general, he served as general counsel and senior advisor to Mayor Adrian Fenty.
Nickles announced in September -- following Fenty's loss in the Democratic primary election for mayor -- his plans to resign the attorney general post. Nickles said he would not work for D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray.
Gray, in June, called for the removal of Nickles, saying he betrayed the public's trust. He claimed Nickles "inappropriately politicized his role and facilitated the Mayor's cronyism."
Fenty, in a statement, had only glowing remarks for Nickles.
"Peter was my go-to-guy on crisis issues facing the city. Whether the issue was schools, public safety, or commercial development, I could always rely on his wise counsel and judgment," he said.
Prior to his public service career, Nickles handled a variety of high-stakes cases at Covington, including major lawsuits involving antitrust, corporate control, insurance coverage, securities fraud and toxic tort claims; jury and non-jury trials, as well as Supreme Court and other appellate arguments; and international arbitral proceedings, according to the law firm.
Nickles also served as a close adviser to a number of corporations, providing counsel on numerous strategic and business issues, often outside the litigation context, the law firm said.
Nickles is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School.
From Legal Newsline: Reach Jessica Karmasek by e-mail at jessica@legalnewsline.com.