Steven Bradbury

Dechert LLP

Biography

Steven G. Bradbury is a nationally known litigation partner who focuses on antitrust and administrative law, judicial review of agency actions, Supreme Court cases and other appellate litigation, constitutional issues, national security law, and general commercial litigation. He has extensive experience representing leading companies in a wide range of litigation cases and administrative matters, at the agency, trial court, and appellate levels. 

 

Mr. Bradbury served as head of the Office of Legal Counsel (“OLC”) of the U.S. Department of Justice, where he was principal deputy assistant attorney general from 2004 to 2009 and acting assistant attorney general from 2005 to 2007. As head of OLC, Mr. Bradbury advised the President, the attorney general, and the heads of the various executive departments of the federal government on some of the most significant questions of constitutional, statutory, and administrative law and treaty interpretation, and he testified numerous times before Congress. 

 

During his tenure in the Department of Justice, Mr. Bradbury received the Edmund J. Randolph Award for outstanding service to the DOJ, the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, the National Security Agency’s Intelligence Under Law Award, the Director of National Intelligence’s 2007 Intelligence Community Legal Award (Team of the Year, FISA Modernization), and the Criminal Division’s Award for Outstanding Law Enforcement Partnerships. 

 

Before serving as head of OLC, Mr. Bradbury was a partner in the Washington office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, 1994-2004, served as a law clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court of the United States, 1992-1993, worked as an attorney-adviser in OLC, 1991-1992, clerked for Judge James L. Buckley on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, 1990-1991, and was as an associate in the Washington office of Covington & Burling LLP, 1988-1990. 

 

Significant Representations

  • Represent US Airways Group in defending merger with AMR Corp. (American Airlines) against antitrust challenge by the U.S. Department of Justice and several States — United States v. US Airways Group & AMR Corp. (D.D.C.).
  • Represent Southeastern Legal Foundation in Supreme Court case challenging EPA’s greenhouse gas rules for stationary sources under the Clean Air Act — Southeastern Legal Foundation v. EPA (U.S. Sup. Ct.).
  • Represented Polypore International, Inc., in appeal from FTC antitrust order requiring divestiture of assets acquired from Microporous Products LP — Polypore International, Inc. v. FTC (11th Cir. and U.S. Sup. Ct.).
  • Represent various financial industry associations and companies, including as amici, in judicial challenges to agency rulemakings under the Dodd-Frank Act.
  • Represent U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers as amici in various appellate cases before the Supreme Court and U.S. courts of appeals.
  • Represented the American Intellectual Property Law Association as amicus before the Supreme Court in FTC v. Actavis, Inc. (U.S. Sup. Ct. 2013), concerning antitrust analysis of “reverse payment” patent settlements.
  • Represented 215 economists as amici in appellate challenge to the federal health care reform law (11th Cir. and U.S. Sup. Ct.).
  • Represented Dean Foods Company in defending litigation brought by the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and the States of Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan challenging Dean Foods’ acquisition of milk processing plants — United States v. Dean Foods Co. (E.D. Wis.).
  • Represented third party before DOJ and FCC in connection with AT&T’s proposed acquisition of T-Mobile.
  • Represented industry stakeholders in antitrust challenge to restrictive trademark licensing practices by NCAA colleges and their exclusive licensing agent.
  • Lead counsel to Morgan Stanley in defending dozens of consolidated securities class action suits involving the allocation of shares in high-tech IPOs — In re IPO Securities Litigation (S.D.N.Y.) — and related litigation in various other courts.*
  • Lead counsel to Morgan Stanley in SEC and NASD investigations of IPO allocation practices.*
  • Lead counsel to Verizon Communications in successfully obtaining dismissal of antitrust class action against Bell companies relating to competition for local telephone service — Twombly v. Bell Atlantic Corp. (S.D.N.Y.).*
  • Lead counsel to Morgan Stanley in successfully obtaining dismissal of antitrust class action relating to the allocation of shares in IPOs — In re IPO Antitrust Litigation (S.D.N.Y.).*
  • Represented Bell Atlantic and DSC Communications Corp. in US$3.5 billion monopolization suit against AT&T and Lucent Technologies (E.D. Texas).*
  • Represented Bell Atlantic and NYNEX in challenge to AT&T’s US$19 billion acquisition of McCaw Communications (E.D.N.Y.).*
  • Lead antitrust counsel to United Air Lines in obtaining DOJ approval of code-share agreement with US Airways.*
  • Lead antitrust counsel to United Air Lines in proposed acquisition of US Airways (abandoned).*
  • Lead antitrust and regulatory counsel to GTE Corporation in its US$56 billion merger with Bell Atlantic to create Verizon.*
  • Lead counsel to GTE before DOJ, FCC, EC, and D.D.C. in successfully challenging Internet aspects of MCI-WorldCom merger.*
  • Represented AOL in defending AOL-Time Warner merger before the Competition Directorate of the European Commission.*
  • Represented Bell Atlantic in antitrust defense of US$23 billion acquisition of NYNEX.*
  • Lead counsel to Verizon Directories Corp. in Lanham Act action against Yellow Book USA, Inc. for false advertising and sales claims (E.D.N.Y.).*
  • Handled jury trial and argued appeal in magazine trademark suit between Petersen Publishing Co. and Time, Inc. (S.D.N.Y & 2d Cir.).*
  • Represented NFL football players in Supreme Court case addressing the non-statutory labor exemption to the antitrust laws — Brown v. Pro Football, Inc., 518 U.S. 231 (1996).*

 

*Matter handled prior to joining Dechert.

Education

  • Stanford University
  • B.A. 
  • University of Michigan Law School
  • J.D., magna cum laude
  • Order of the Coif
  • Article Editor of Michigan Law Review
  •  
  • Court Admissions
  • Supreme Court of the United States 
  • United States District Court for the District of Columbia 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit 
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
  • Bar Admissions/Qualifications
  • District of Columbia
  • Clerkships
  • Honorable Clarence Thomas, Supreme Court of the United States
  • Honorable James L. Buckley, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit