Foley Hoag is pleased to announce that Hampton Dellinger, former U.S. Special Counsel, has joined the firm as partner in its Washington, D.C. office. Dellinger joins the firm’s Litigation Department, where he will draw on his decades of experience in government and private practice to guide clients on bet-the-company trial, appellate, investigation, and regulatory matters.

“We are excited to welcome Hampton to Foley Hoag,” said Managing Partner Jim Bucking. “His experience at the highest levels of government will give our clients an invaluable resource for their most important and complex disputes.”

As U.S. Special Counsel, Dellinger headed the independent federal agency responsible for deterring government misconduct, protecting whistleblowers and others in the 2.2-million-member federal work force from retaliation and other types of employment discrimination, and enforcing the Hatch Act’s prohibitions on political activity by public sector workers. 

Before his tenure as Special Counsel, Dellinger served as the United States Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy at the Department of Justice, where he oversaw the vetting process of 150 potential federal judges, including Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Dellinger has also held statewide positions in North Carolina, including Deputy Attorney General. 

Dellinger’s expertise includes the energy, healthcare, life sciences, education and high-tech industries. His practice encompasses regulatory affairs and State AG investigations, risk and compliance assessments for business transactions, and antitrust litigation.

“I’m happy to be returning to private practice and honored to be joining Foley Hoag,” said Dellinger. “I’m looking forward to working with my colleagues to grow the firm’s litigation and investigations practices.”

Dellinger also maintains an active pro bono practice. He brought a lawsuit on behalf of women’s soccer players against FIFA in connection with the 2015 World Cup, spurring key gender equity reforms. He has also led efforts to relocate confederate monuments away from prominent public spaces in North Carolina and has fought to preserve voting rights for rural Black voters. 

Dellinger’s arrival follows former White House counsel Greg Craig and life sciences attorney Jay G. Reilly, who both recently joined Foley Hoag’s Washington D.C. office, as well as former senior Health and Human Services attorney Caroline Farrell in the firm’s New York office.

Dellinger holds a B.A. from the University of Michigan, and a J.D. from Yale Law School.