WRF Election Law Practice and Chair Jan W. Baran Receive Top Honors in National Rankings

June 8, 2006

Washington, DC – Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business has recognized Wiley Rein & Fielding’s Election Law & Government Ethics Practice as one of the nation’s best, and rated practice chair Jan Witold Baran as a top-tier “Leading Lawyer” in the political law arena.  Ratings are based on extensive interviews of law firms’ clients, colleagues and competitors.

The 2006 edition of the guide notes that Jan Baran is “widely recognized as ‘the leading Republican practitioner’ and hailed as ‘one of the best election lawyers in the US with the most comprehensive knowledge of the law at both state and federal level.’”  The group he heads, WRF’s Election Law & Government Ethics Practice, is described as a “dominant force in the sector.”

In placing WRF at the top of its political law rankings, Chambers comments on the group’s breadth and depth, noting that this is a “large team with the resources to provide expertise on laws passed by every state in the country.”  The group “advises clients on federal and state laws dealing with campaign finance, lobbying and ethics.  It also represents them in formal proceedings before the Federal Election Commission (FEC), House or Senate Ethics Committees, or in court when required.”  Dubbing WRF “the Republican Party’s favored firm,” Chambers observes, “Although most work is done for large corporations…its role for the Republican Party, including the Republican National Committee, is not to be underestimated.” 

In compiling the Chambers USA guide, researchers from London-based Chambers and Partners evaluate law firms and attorneys on several factors, including: technical legal ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial awareness/astuteness, diligence, commitment and other qualities most valued by clients.