1. Home
  2. |Professionals
  3. |James Bair

James Bair

Partner
Partner
amJhaXJAY3Jvd2VsbC5jb20=
VCard
VCard

Areas of Focus

Overview

Jamie Bair is a partner in Crowell's White Collar and Regulatory Enforcement Group, where he leads the firm's Congressional Investigations Practice. He brings more than a decade of experience handling high-profile congressional oversight matters as in-house counsel to a Fortune 10 technology company, a senior congressional investigator, a federal executive branch attorney, and at a major international law firm. He has cutting-edge experience on issues ranging from artificial intelligence and national security to global elections integrity and online content moderation, as well as a sophisticated understanding of the legal, political, and media landscape both in the U.S. and abroad. Jamie advises companies, civil society organizations, and other institutions on responding to congressional investigations as well as risk management, helping clients navigate some of the most politically charged and reputationally consequential legal threats they can face.

Prior to joining Crowell, Jamie served as Regulatory Affairs Counsel for Global Legislative Oversight at Google/Alphabet. Before Google/Alphabet, he was Senior Counsel for Oversight and Investigations at the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where he spearheaded the committee's oversight and investigations of U.S. foreign policy, military assistance, foreign aid, public diplomacy, and war powers for the 116th Congress.

Earlier, as an attorney-adviser at the U.S. Department of State's Office of the Legal Adviser, Jamie directed the State Department's legal response to major congressional investigations, including those related to the Benghazi attacks, personal email use by government officials, and embassy security, while also serving as lead counsel in over 100 Freedom of Information Act suits in federal court. He also served in the Office of Treaty Affairs, where he advised on a wide range of international legal issues.

Jamie began his legal career at an international law firm, where he focused on white collar defense and government investigations, conducting internal investigations under the Foreign Corrupt Practices and False Claims Acts, designing corporate compliance programs, and responding to complex DOJ, SEC, and congressional investigations. He also served as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University Law Center, where he designed and co-taught an innovative practicum course on the use of international mechanisms to redress atrocities.

Career & Education

    • United States House of Representatives
      • Senior Counsel for Oversight and Investigations; Committee on Foreign Affairs, Washington, D.C., 2019–2021
    • Department of State Office of the Legal Advisor
      • Attorney-Adviser, Washington, D.C., 2014–2019
    • United States House of Representatives
      • Senior Counsel for Oversight and Investigations; Committee on Foreign Affairs, Washington, D.C., 2019–2021
    • Department of State Office of the Legal Advisor
      • Attorney-Adviser, Washington, D.C., 2014–2019

    • Counsel, Regulatory Affairs, Global Legislative Oversight; Google, Inc. (Alphabet), Washington, D.C., 2021–2026
    • Litigation Attorney; Brown Rudnick LLP, Washington, D.C., 2010–2014
    • Counsel, Regulatory Affairs, Global Legislative Oversight; Google, Inc. (Alphabet), Washington, D.C., 2021–2026
    • Litigation Attorney; Brown Rudnick LLP, Washington, D.C., 2010–2014

    • Northeastern University School of Law, J.D., 2009
    • Brandeis University, B.A., magna cum laude, history and english; minor in education, 2003
    • Northeastern University School of Law, J.D., 2009
    • Brandeis University, B.A., magna cum laude, history and english; minor in education, 2003

    • District of Columbia
    • Massachusetts
    • Ontario, Canada
    • District of Columbia
    • Massachusetts
    • Ontario, Canada

    • Law Clerk to the Honorable Barbara A. Lenk, Massachusetts Appeals Court, Boston, MA, 2009–2010
    • Law Clerk to the Honorable Barbara A. Lenk, Massachusetts Appeals Court, Boston, MA, 2009–2010

Representative Matters

Congressional Investigations Defense

  • Directed and implemented the State Department’s legal response to major congressional investigations, including those related to the Benghazi attacks, official and personal email use, embassy security, and the release of Sergeant Bergdahl by the Taliban.

Congressional Committee—Government Experience

  • Served as lead oversight counsel to the House Foreign Affairs Committee during the 116th Congress, directing investigations into serious abuses of power by senior Executive Branch officials. Issued subpoenas, conducted depositions, drafted correspondence and reports. Prepared nationally televised committee hearings with investigative witnesses.
  • Investigated the firing of the State Department Inspector General, the misuse of resources by a sitting Secretary of State, and potential war crimes in the context of overseas weapons sales.
  • Investigated politicized mistreatment of career professionals at the State Department and the U.S. Agency for Global Media.
  • Designed and implemented protocols for handling whistleblower complaints; drafted and advised on legislation to strengthen the State Department's Inspector General.

Executive Branch—U.S. Department of State

  • Served as lead counsel in more than 100 Freedom of Information Act suits in federal court, including high-profile litigation concerning the email practices of a former Secretary of State.
  • Negotiated and drafted international agreements on counterterrorism, defense cooperation, and cultural affairs; advised on aspects of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, NAFTA/USMCA, and finalized the accession of Montenegro to NATO.

Private Practice

  • Conducted internal investigations under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and False Claims Act; designed corporate compliance programs; and successfully responded to complex DOJ, SEC, and congressional investigations on behalf of clients across multiple industries.

Recognition

  • Recipient of the Superior Honor Award, and Meritorious Honor Award at the U.S. Department of State.