Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM

Two longtime members of the U.S. House of Representatives—Lamar Smith of Texas and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida—have joined Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld's public law and policy practice in Washington, D.C.

Both former Republican representatives did not seek re-election in 2018, and started work on Monday at Akin Gump.

Smith, who served more than three decades as a representative from San Antonio, joined Akin Gump as a senior consultant. Ros-Lehtinen, who served 36 years and was the first Hispanic woman to serve in the Florida House of Representatives, the Florida Senate and the U.S. Congress, has joined as a senior adviser.

Kim Koopersmith, chairperson of Akin Gump, said Ros-Lehtinen and Smith are great additions to the firm's top-tier policy practice.

“As a firm that operates at the intersection of business, law and policy, we recognize the valuable skills, knowledge and perspectives that Reps. Ros-Lehtinen and Smith bring to our clients,” Koopersmith wrote in a statement about the hiring.

“These two long-serving members of Congress, with their lengthy tenures as chairs of their respective committees, will reinforce the strengths of Akin Gump as a top destination in Washington for policy work,” G. Hunter Bates, a co-head of the firm's public law and policy practice, said in a statement.

Ros-Lethinen, the first Cuban-American elected to Congress, and Smith each said they became very familiar with Akin Gump and its lawyers while in Congress.

“I've always been on the Foreign Affairs Committee and I've had the folks from Akin Gump come to The Hill in one capacity or another. I've known the firm, known of its global platform,” Ros-Lehtinen said.

She said she likes Akin Gump's global reach, and she expects to help the firm with its Latin America and Middle East work because of her congressional experience. While in Congress, she chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee—the only woman to have ever done so—and the subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa. She also said the Florida district she represented is home to many multinational corporations, which provides opportunity for Akin Gump.

“It's a good fit,” Ros-Lehtinen said.

Being from Texas, Smith said he has friends at Akin Gump, which was founded in Dallas, and has been impressed by the firm's “sterling” reputation.

While in Congress, Smith chaired the Science, Space and Technology Committee, which has jurisdiction over agencies including NASA, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He also chaired the Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction over intellectual property, administrative law and immigration. And he was a senior member of the Homeland Security Committee.

Because of that experience, Smith expects to work in the areas of technology, IP, space, energy and the environment and national security.

“I consider Akin Gump to have the largest and best public policy law practice in the country,” Smith said.

Further Reading:

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Hired by Texas Law Firm Akin Gump