U.S. Federal Trade Commission building. October 16, 2012. Photo by Diego M. Radzinschi/THE NATIONAL LAW JOURNAL.

After more than six years at the Federal Trade Commission, Duane Pozza has joined Wiley Rein as partner in Washington, D.C.

Pozza started in Wiley's telecom, media and technology practice this week after leaving the FTC's division of financial practices, where he was assistant director, earlier this month. He was previously was partner at Jenner & Block in D.C., where he spent eight years before joining the FTC in 2012. 

Duane Pozza of Wiley Rein.

“I've spent my whole career dealing with issues that arise at the intersection of technology and the law, [and] I thought that there was really no better place to go to sort of stay on the cutting edge of legal and technology issues than Wiley,” Pozza said. “Wiley has a renowned multidisciplinary media and technology practice.”

Wiley boasts having the largest telecom, media and technology practice in the country, which it says includes more than 60 attorneys and engineers involved in disputes at the state, federal and international levels. But the group has seen changes to its leadership in recent years, with the chair of its telecommunications group and the chair of the firm's wireless group leaving for much larger DLA Piper in 2016. Pozza would not say whether others from the FTC would follow him to Wiley, which now has about 250 lawyers.

Kathleen Kirby, co-chair of Wiley's TMT practice, cited Pozza's “considerable knowledge” of fintech and related technology sectors as “an ideal complement to our multidisciplinary communications practice.” Pozza said his experience in the emerging technologies realm complements Wiley's practice strengths and will build upon the firm's work on matters involving the privacy and data security and the application of various consumer protection laws.

He said at the FTC he dealt with issues involving artificial intelligence, blockchain, data analytics and mobile payments, and he expects to continue doing so in his new practice.

Pozza is joining Wiley as the firm grows its partner ranks through lateral hires from government and internal promotions. Last month, the firm added two partners in Washington from government: Richard Sofield, who formerly oversaw the U.S. Justice Department's participation in the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, and Peter Hyun, former chief counsel to California Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

Earlier this month, Wiley announced it had elected six partners from within its own ranks to bolster several practices including telecom, media and technology; international trade; white-collar defense and government investigations; privacy & cybersecurity; government contracts; and insurance.