The former director of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), Michael Leiter, has joined Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom's Washington office as a partner in the firm's national security practice.

The move for Leiter, which Skadden announced on Tuesday, marks the latest in a career that's included several years in various government roles and in high-ranking corporate positions for software and defense companies. Most recently, Leiter served as an executive at Reston, Virginia-based technology and defense company Leidos Holdings Inc., Skadden said in a statement.

Before the more recent stint in the private sector, Leiter served as the director of the NCTC, a counterterrorism and policy organization that falls under the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and was created in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Former President George W. Bush nominated Leiter for the leadership role. He received Senate confirmation in 2008 and stayed on during the Obama administration, before leaving in 2011.