Former CFTC Director Gregory Mocek Joins McDermott Will & Emery
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 9, 2008) — International law firm McDermott Will & Emery is delighted to announce that Gregory Mocek, the former Director of Enforcement for the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), will join the Firm in September, as partner in the Washington, D.C. office. He will be a member of the Energy Derivatives Markets Practice Group as well as the Regulation & Government Affairs Department.
"We warmly welcome Gregory to the Firm," commented Harvey W. Freishtat, Chairman of McDermott Will & Emery. "Gregory's business insight and deep experience working on investigations and regulatory matters with federal, state and international government agencies will be a tremendous asset to our broad range of U.S. and international clients."
The commodities trading industry is entering an era of increased scrutiny. Geopolitical events, market cycles, and advances in trading have fueled an incredible growth in futures trading. This profound growth in both volume and prices is creating an atmosphere in which clients now and in the future will be faced with investigations by numerous regulatory bodies both in the U.S. and abroad.
Raymond A. Jacobsen, head of the Firm's Regulation & Government Affairs Department, and Paul Pantano, head of the Energy Derivatives Markets Practice Group, commented, "Gregory builds our market-leading commodity and energy enforcement defense practice with the ability to represent clients in investigations conducted by the CFTC, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ). Having Gregory lead our existing commodity and energy enforcement defense team will help ensure that our clients have state-of-the-art compliance programs and top-flight representation in government enforcement matters."
"Gregory, a highly skilled practitioner and a recognized leader in the energy sector, will be a significant addition to our extensive service offerings in the commodity and energy sectors," commented Bobby R. Burchfield, co-partner-in-charge of the Firm's Washington, D.C. office. "Gregory's experience will be of immediate benefit to our clients. We are confident that he will make an outstanding contribution to McDermott's commodity and energy regulatory practice."
Mr. Mocek was appointed Director of the CFTC's Enforcement Division in 2002. While serving as Director of Enforcement, Mr. Mocek managed more than 150 attorneys and investigators and the Commission's investigations and enforcement litigation nationwide. The Commission's jurisdiction includes markets such as foreign currency, financial futures contracts, agricultural commodities, metals and energy commodities.
Prior to his appointment as the Director of Enforcement, Mr. Mocek served as Special Counsel to CFTC Chairman James E. Newsome for Enforcement matters and was a Senior Trial Attorney in the CFTC's Division of Enforcement.
Mr. Mocek earned his J.D. from Tulane University, his LL.M. from the Morin Center for Banking Law Studies at Boston University and his B.S. from the University of Louisiana. He is admitted to the State Bar of Louisiana.
McDermott represents clients in all facets of the U.S. and global energy, commodities and derivatives markets. The Energy Practice Group includes 70+ lawyers across the Firm. Many members of our Energy and Derivatives Markets Practice Group practiced with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) or State Public Utility Commissions, enabling us to provide informed advice and insights about the scope of agency jurisdiction, current regulatory focus and initiatives, compliance policies and procedures, and dealing with government investigations. Our energy enforcement defense team adds to the Firm's outstanding criminal defense group. McDermott has 16 former senior prosecutors from U.S. Attorney's Offices across the country and from the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.; and 15 other attorneys from the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Internal Revenue Service, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Review and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Since its opening in 1978 with two lawyers, our Washington, D.C. office has become a full-service location with more than 240 lawyers practicing in a host of practice areas. Originally known for representing clients before government agencies, congressional committees, the executive branch, the legislative branch, and before federal and state courts, our Washington, D.C. lawyers now advise clients on matters ranging from corporate mergers and acquisitions to intellectual property litigation and protection.
