Government Strategies

Scarinci Hollenbeck’s Government Strategies practice group enacts a cross-discipline approach to service the needs of local, state and federal governments, as well as private-owned businesses, in numerous matters involving interaction with governmental entities of any level. Our attorneys regularly assist clients in numerous government-related matters including, but not limited to, public policy, energy and environment, budget, defense, healthcare, financial services, transportation & infrastructure, congressional investigations, oversight issues, and more.

The attorneys of the firm’s Government Strategies practice group regularly intersect their practice with the firm’s Environmental & Land Use, Litigation, Public and Business law practice groups to provide tailored legal services to each of our clients. We believe this collaborative philosophy is what enables the firm to position our clients for success in their various dealings with governmental entities.

Public Policy & Government Relations

With a unique understanding of the impact governmental entities have on policies, laws and regulations that could have a profound effect on the future of your business, our attorneys combine proven experience and effective collaboration between practice groups to provide clients with solutions to address the full range of issues impacting governmental entities and those who interact with them. Our attorneys regularly counsel clients in various issues relating to the development or dispute of public policy, legislative changes and interactions with elected officials and policy advisors.

Government Representation

We are a full-service lobbying, public policy and legal representation practice that helps companies, associations, non-profits and other organizations interpret federal government actions, solve challenges and seize opportunities through interaction with government officials. Our work includes legislative consulting, lobbying, policy development, public relations strategy, political messaging and representation in front of Congress, federal agencies and regulatory bodies. With a seasoned government relations team spread across the firm, we are able to provide comprehensive service at the federal, state and local levels throughout the country.

Congressional Oversight & Investigations

Successful representation before Congress takes a multi-faceted approach. Our Congressional Oversight & Investigations Group provides both strategic advice and legal counsel to companies and individuals involved with and connected to various stages of Congressional investigations.

We begin with the premise that both politics and criminal laws are always in play during any interaction on Capitol Hill. Navigating the politics and processes on the Hill requires both policy and legal experience. Any time someone provides information to Congress—particularly sworn testimony—it is important to understand all of the potential policy and criminal implications. Our team includes former high-level Congressional staffers and federal prosecutors who together have the necessary legal and legislative experience to anticipate and counsel on all aspects of oversight and investigations.

We represent clients who are appearing before Congressional committees conducting oversight and investigations, as well as those responding to subpoenas or other requests for information. Working with members of Congress and their staff, we negotiate the extent of document requests and testimony, prepare witnesses for testimony, and navigate the political and legal minefields associated with any appearance before Congress.

Our experience includes team members who worked for the House Committees on Oversight and Judiciary. In addition, team members have represented clients before the Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Department of Commerce.

Budget and Appropriations

With tighter federal budgets for domestic and defense activities, securing federal funding for special projects through the Congressional appropriations process is extremely competitive. In addition, a heightened state of transparency has created an environment where each funding request must exhibit a solid rationale for federal support, a thorough budget justification of how the money will be spent and an extensive collection of supporting documents and project advocates.

Our team focuses on policymakers from both the U.S. House and Senate Appropriations Committees and their 12 subcommittees. We also work with relevant federal agencies to do everything possible to help secure millions of dollars in competitive and non-competitive federal grants.

We have been extremely successful in obtaining federal appropriations because we understand the process, know where limited federal dollars may be available and recognize how requests for funding are reviewed and critiqued by federal policymakers. Our team has helped clients secure federal appropriations in the areas of education, defense, health care, workforce training, transportation, energy and conservation, economic development, criminal justice, non-profits, after-school programs, foreign affairs, science and high technology, museums and the arts.

Our services include strategic planning; developing rationales and supporting documents; federal budget research; preparation for Congressional and federal agency visits; drafting testimony and floor statements; responding to committee questions; evaluating existing political assets and targeting champions; identifying the right legislative vehicles; drafting legislative language; and counseling on the timeline and calendar of legislative activities.

Energy & Natural Resources

Today, energy and natural resource projects face complicated, uncertain and challenging reviews by both government and communities.  Our group focuses on complex matters that require a multi-disciplined approach to legal, lobbying and strategic services. Collaboratively, the group brings a unique combination of skill and previous federal experience to deliver policy outcomes, project approvals or legal decisions on matters related to energy, the environment and natural resources.

The group provides critical expertise to companies, state agencies, associations, nonprofits and other organizations in the energy, natural resources and environmental space. Areas of focus include oil and natural gas, infrastructure development, project development, public lands and permitting, environmental policy, the Endangered Species Act, energy policy, water policy, mining and Indian law.

With collective insights gathered from decades of experience working as decision makers across various federal agencies, we know how to best position clients before Congress, federal administrative agencies and the courts.

Financial Services

The reach of the Senate Banking and the House Financial Services committees extends to almost every aspect of business today.

Our team members have managed all types of financial issues in Congress for diverse businesses around the globe, whether it’s matters related to private equity, hedge funds, broader commercial banking interests, insurance, CFIUS filings, transactional transparency, regulation, wire remittance, gaming or even the technologies used by the industry to safe guard its systems.

In addition to representing financial services clients before Congress, we have lobbied the Executive Branch and relevant financial services regulatory agencies. We also have helped clients establish related trade associations and assisted them with developing materials for media campaigns. We collaborate with the firm’s corporate attorneys to provide counsel and advice on mergers and acquisitions and other business combinations, institutional investment, securitization and other lending transactions, as well as general government enforcement matters. Members of both our Financial Services and Litigation groups also assist clients that are subject to Congressional investigation.

Health Policy

In the midst of a global pandemic, public health response efforts are dominating the policy agenda for Congress, within federal agencies, and at the state and local levels. At the same time, a range of other initiatives—related to health care coverage, access and disparities, quality improvement, and underlying costs in the system—have the potential to profoundly impact the sector over the next decade. Health care stakeholders of all types must remain sharply attuned to how the myriad, ongoing policy changes will change the way they do business.

Recognized for our experience in legislative and public policy matters affecting a wide range of health care and related entities, we advise on the full array of issues related to federal and state health care systems and health care payment and delivery mechanisms. We also have an active federal funding practice that has succeeded in securing funding for our clients around numerous initiatives.

Our team assists major players across the health care system, including drug and biologics companies, medical device and technology manufacturers, hospitals and health care systems, physician groups and specialty associations, and patient advocacy groups. On their behalf, our team develops advocacy strategies and effective alliances to advance their interests before Congress and federal agencies, key advisory bodies, and other policy influencers. We also are skilled at identifying and building markets for clients through legislative and regulatory advocacy to influence policy developments.

Homeland Security

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the result of the largest federal Government reorganization in over 50 years. In total, 22 agencies are focused on domestic security, public safety and domestic preparedness were placed under one umbrella with a cabinet level executive. Navigating DHS is a complex and constantly changing endeavor as the department focuses on its internal processes and procedures between federal, state and local initiatives, and establishes its role within the nation’s security and preparedness activities.

Our group leverages real-world experience to help clients maximize their dealings with the DHS. Further, our strategists have practical experience working with all of the agencies that were once separate but now exist under the DHS umbrella. Our policy advisors understand how to synthesize, manage, distill and advocate the business and political issues that cut across DHS—and ready our clients for major policy shifts, funding reallocations and emerging opportunities.

We understand where and how DHS decisions are made, and how current events and future plans will impact its function, composition and direction. Many DHS initiatives are actually developed and managed at the local and state level, and members of our group also have significant experience with security and public safety programs at these levels.

International Trade

Doing business internationally in the 21st century poses a multitude of challenges for companies striving to comply with various U.S. and foreign international trade- and national security-based regulatory restrictions and requirements.  Our team understands the intricacies of these challenges, and can help you quickly and cost-effectively navigate these complex regulatory regimes.  Our lawyers have represented multinational corporations in some of the most legally complex and politically sensitive international trade cases in recent years.

Lawyers in the practice group assist both U.S. and international clients on a wide variety of trade-related matters, including:

• Antidumping and countervailing duties: import relief
• Customs
• Economic and trade sanctions
• Export controls
• Transnational business and foreign direct investment controls (CFIUS)
• Trade litigation and agency representation
• Trade and investment policy
• World Trade Organization (WTO) and other foreign sovereign claims
• National security

Due to the increasing complexities attendant on doing business internationally, and to ensure the comprehensive representation of your needs, our international trade lawyers work closely with experienced attorneys from the firm’s corporate transactions & business as well as litigation practice groups. For example, with the continued expansion of U.S. businesses into transitional economies where government corruption continues to be a reality, familiarity with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is crucial.

In coordination with our securities and white-collar litigation practices, the International Trade group often advises U.S. multinational companies and their representatives abroad on various anti-corruption and anti-terrorist financing compliance matters, including FCPA issues relating to sales agents, joint ventures, acquisitions and competition for foreign government contracts.  We also advise on structuring compliance training programs to conform with FCPA prohibitions and securities law requirements.  Our international trade lawyers also work very closely with the firm’s anti-money laundering practitioners to provide advice on anti-money laundering compliance and representation in connection with financial institution regulatory enforcement actions and examinations. We are well known for acting as compliance monitors and/or in advising those monitors.  We also advise on EU and individual European country compliance and enforcement matters.

Transportation & Infrastructure

Working at the intersection of business, law and politics allows Scarinci Hollenbeck to combine practice area expertise with federal, state and local government relations teams to bring projects to life. Our firm’s fully integrated, multidisciplinary team of infrastructure group lawyers work closely with our top-ranked government relations professionals to provide strategic, actionable policy and legal guidance throughout the life cycle of projects, from planning through operations. We develop strategies to navigate complex political, regulatory and legal issues to deliver national-caliber, efficient and effective results for our clients. We work with project sponsors, investors and funds, contractors, governments and financial institutions.

Strategic Advisory Services

Where business goals meet policy and politics, our firm’s strategic advisory professionals are known as “difference makers.” We believe in building strategic partnerships with our clients, listening closely to their needs and goals in order to build an innovative, big picture strategy to solve political and policy problems. Our approach includes developing an effective roadmap with requisite benchmarks to determine progress. Our advisors offer the shrewd ability to identify and discern nuances that may arise in meetings at the highest levels of government.

Led by strategic advisory professionals, our team guarantees a bipartisan perspective integrating extensive knowledge and proven advocacy tactics. Our team combines sophisticated high-level strategic thinking with real world experience across all three branches of government with a complete package of robust ground-level relationships established over decades.