Lobbying by Foreign Governments Increasingly Requires Services of Law Firms by Alan B. Nichols On a day like any other, Wiley, Rein & Fielding got a phone call from the senior official of a foreign government seeking the firmís help in gaining U.S. support for achieving membership status into an international organization. The firm agreed to take the foreign government on as a client, offering no guarantees but assuring the government that it would do everything within its power and the limits of the law to help the country achieve its objectives. This scenario is played out over and over at Washington law firms, particularly those with strong reputations for international trade practices and government affairs expertise. more... Directory of Largest Washington-Area Law Firms

Columnist Birnbaum Reflects on Lobbying Industry in Washington by Larry Luxner Jeffrey Birnbaumís office isnít on K Street, but maybe it should be. The author of "K Street Confidential"ówhich appears every other Monday in The Washington PostóBirnbaum has written about the confluence of business and politics in the nationís capital for the past 22 years. more... ICC Faces Hostile U.S. Government As It Takes On First Two Cases by David Tobenkin Itís not often that a court itself is made to be a defendant, but the fledgling International Criminal Court (ICC) continues to face a hostile, powerful U.S. government that largely opposes its existence just as it begins investigating its first two cases involving alleged war crimes. more...