Three years after taking charge of the white-collar criminal defense group at Norton Rose Fulbright, Michael Edney has stepped down to rejoin his former firm, Steptoe & Johnson LLP, where he will lead a litigation team focused on challenging government regulations.

With his return to Steptoe, Edney, 43, becomes the latest in a string of Norton Rose Fulbright partners who have defected from the firm in recent years.

Last year, Abbe Lowell, a criminal defense lawyer who successfully defended U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez and former U.S. Sen. John Edwards in criminal trials, left Norton Rose Fulbright to join Winston & Strawn. Earlier in 2018, Winston & Strawn poached eight lawyers from Norton Rose Fulbright's energy and infrastructure group. Norton Rose Fulbright also saw the leader of its health care practice, Rick Robinson, decamp for Reed Smith with a half dozen other lawyers in 2018.

Michael Edney Michael Edney/courtesy photo

In his three years at Norton Rose Fulbright, Edney has led various challenges to regulations and other moves by federal agencies, including the U.S. Treasury Department's labeling of a Moscow-born American businessman as a Russian oligarch. Edney sued the Treasury Department in 2018, alleging that it had failed to take up a "serious inquiry" before including the businessman, Dr. Valentin Gapontsev, on a list of purported cronies of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Trump administration in September disavowed the decision to include him on that list, resolving a case in which the Treasury Department was accused of copying a roster of Russian billionaires that Forbes magazine published in 2017.

Edney has also led a challenge to Food and Drug Administration regulations on the cigar industry. The challenge, brought on behalf of the Cigar Association of America, is pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Edney said he was drawn to Steptoe by "old friends," including the firm's chairman, Phil West, and former chairman, Roger Warin, whom he described as a mentor. Steptoe, Edney said, also offered a larger Washington presence with expertise in contesting regulations and defending against government investigations. Steptoe has 300 lawyers in Washington.

"I do believe Steptoe has the depth in government regulation and investigations that's absolutely necessary to deal with our clients' most difficult problems in Washington. The depth of experience here is crucially important," he said.

A representative for Norton Rose Fulbright was not immediately reached for comment.

In a statement, West said Edney has built a substantial client following based on his record and reputation as an "aggressive and strategic litigator."

"His government experience has given him distinctive insight into how to win cases involving difficult regulatory issues, and he greatly complements Steptoe's strengths in government investigations and regulatory litigation," West said. "We are delighted to welcome him back to the firm."

Before his initial work at Steptoe, Edney had been of counsel at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. From 2005 to 2007, Edney served in the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel, a team that grapples with some of the weightiest legal issues facing the federal government. Edney left the office to become the National Security Council's deputy legal adviser in the final two years of George W. Bush's presidency.

Edney declined to comment on whether he plans to bring over lawyers from Norton Rose Fulbright, which he described as a "fantastic law firm." Asked when he struck up negotiations to return to Steptoe, Edney said, "We've been talking about it since the moment I left three and a half years ago."

"The reality," he said, "is I miss these guys."