Bert W. Rein

Bert, a founding partner of the firm, is widely recognized as a leading antitrust and commercial litigator and international law expert. He has been recognized by Legal Times as a “Visionary” and Washington's “Leading Food and Drug Lawyer,” and named by Corporate Counsel as one of the “Best Lawyers in America” for excellence in business and commercial litigation, communications, and antitrust law.

Representative Matters

• Successfully represented petitioner Abigail Fisher in Fisher v. University of Texas, a constitutional challenge to the university's race-based admission policies that was argued before the Supreme Court of the United States in 2012.
• Successfully represented Shelby County, Ala in its challenge to the constitutionality of the renewal of the preclearance provisions of the Voting Rights Act that was argued before the Supreme Court of the United States in 2013.
• Longstanding Washington and antitrust counsel to world's largest airline trade association.
• Longstanding counsel to world's leading international satellite services provider.
• Representing major airline in antitrust civil litigation and merger investigations.
• Leading tort reform initiative for major pharmaceutical companies.
• Representing physicians group in successful effort to overturn U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Pediatric Rule.
• Constitutional litigation including First Amendment and Preemption challenges to regulatory initiatives and tort law expansions.
• Representing insurers and reinsurers in complex coverage litigation and arbitration.

Professional Experience

• Director, National Chamber Litigation Center (1992-Present)
• Director, U.S. Chamber of Commerce (1990-1994)
• Reagan Administration Transition Teams for the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission (1981)
• Special Assistant to the Under Secretary of State (1969-1970) and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs (1970-1973), U.S. Department of State
• General Counsel, Community Learning & Information Network (1998-Present)
• Key Issues Committee, Richard M. Nixon Presidential Campaign (1968)

Affiliations

• Advisory Committee to U.S. Sentencing Commission, Administrative Committee
• American Bar Association (ABA), Section of Antitrust Law
• The American Law Institute (ALI)
• President, International Trade Commission Trial Lawyers Association (ITCTLA) (1990-1991)
• Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), Administrative Committee on Procedural Reform
• Board Member, National Chamber Litigation Center (NCLC) (1990-Present)
• National Committee on Tourism (1971-1973)
• Chairman, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Law Council (1987-1990)
• Board of Visitors and Governors, Washington College, Chestertown, MD (2014-Present)

Recognitions

• Named a Legal Times “Visionary,” one of a select group of lawyers “whose business foresight or legal acumen has expanded their firms, advanced the law, or improved government” (2012)
• Named the Washington, DC Administrative/Regulatory Law “Lawyer of the Year” by The Best Lawyers in America directory (2013)
• Named by The Legal 500 US a “recommended lawyer” in Appellate Law (2017-2018), Litigation: Supreme Court and Appellate (2014), Telecom and Broadcast Transactional Law (2013), and Antitrust Law (2009)
• Named the Washington DC area's “Leading Food and Drug Lawyer” by Legal Times (2005)
• Named one of DC's “Super Lawyers” for Antitrust Litigation (2007-2012) and Business Litigation (2013-2020) by Super Lawyers magazine
• Named by Lawdragon as one of “3000 Leading Lawyers” (2007, 2010-2011)
• Included in The Best Lawyers in America directory (1993-2025)
• AV Peer Review Rating, Martindale-Hubbell's highest ranking by peers for general ethical standards and legal ability