WASHINGTON, D.C. – Van Ness Feldman LLP is pleased to announce that Michael D. Farber, a former senior official from the U.S. Department of the Interior, has joined the firm as a partner, specializing in strategic advice, investigations, and litigation. Mr. Farber brings twenty years of experience rapidly assessing, investigating, and resolving compliance issues across a wide variety of industries. As a partner with Van Ness Feldman, Mr. Farber will collaborate across multiple practice areas, with a special focus on investigation-related matters, as well as regulatory and oversight matters and litigation, particularly those in the oil, gas, and natural resources sectors.
Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Farber served as the Senior Advisor to the Director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) at the U.S. Department of the Interior, since shortly after the Deepwater Horizon tragedy in 2010, and led significant reforms in federal government oversight of offshore oil and gas operations. Earlier in his career, Mr. Farber was a partner at two prominent Washington, DC law firms, where he focused on antitrust investigations and worked at the U.S. Department of Justice in the Antitrust Division where he conducted civil merger and non-merger investigations.
Mr. Farber joins the firm’s highly regarded litigation team which includes recently promoted Of Counsel, Patrick Daugherty, a former prosecutor, and R. Scott Nuzum, also a former Interior official, both of whom have particular knowledge of upstream oil and gas activities and litigation. In addition, drawing upon his background with antitrust issues, Mr. Farber will represent clients in federal and state antitrust investigations, litigation, and compliance issues.
In announcing Mr. Farber’s arrival, firm Chair Richard Agnew said, “The perspective and expertise that Mike brings from his time both in public service and in private practice complements and expands the firm’s capabilities representing organizations in a variety of industries. Companies and public entities face a wide array of issues in the current economic and business climate, and Mike has the legal skills and industry knowledge to help clients weather and ultimately thrive in challenging market conditions.”
Mr. Farber holds a J.D. from the George Washington University Law School and a B.S. in Finance from the Pennsylvania State University. He is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania. Mr. Farber can be reached at 202.298.1803 or via email at mfarber@vnf.com.
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