McCarter & English’s Government Affairs group ranks third among lawyer-lobbyists firms, which according to the New Jersey Law Journal includes lobbying firms headed by lawyers, in the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission’s (ELEC) report on the most active lobbying groups based on receipts. McCarter launched its Government Affairs practice in 2019 with Guillermo Artiles at the helm, and the group quickly ascended on ELEC’s list, seeing revenue growth in 2022 despite an overall decrease in lobbying spending in the state for the year, the New Jersey Law Journal reported. The firm’s New Jersey lobbying revenue exceeded $2 million in 2022, topping most of the 15 lawyer-lobbying firms ranked by ELEC.
Artiles tells the Law Journal that he attributes the practice’s growth to a number of things, but mainly to the team’s members, who advocate for clients in a wide variety of industries. “The addition of Bill Palatucci coming over from Gibbons was huge both for me personally and as I grow the practice,” Artiles said. “I count on him every day for his good counsel. Combine that with the internal staff talent who we have been able to bring on from a servicing perspective and for their know-how in working in government.”
Other team members include Michael Maitland, a former chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross, D-New Jersey, and government affairs adviser Catherine Tung, a former associate executive director of the New Jersey Assembly Office. Artiles also told the Law Journal that he’s proud of the Government Affairs group’s commitment to diversity. ”State Street was not a diverse scene,” he said. “Our practice is the antithesis of that.”