Vanessa Roberts Avery, former US Attorney for the District of Connecticut, has returned to the firm as a partner in the Hartford office. Vanessa spoke with the Connecticut Law Tribune about the transition and referred to her service as “the honor of a lifetime.” She said, “I think some people might think this is a move away from public work or community engagement, but when I started my career in the private sector, I was very fortunate to work with partners who understood our responsibility to the community. McCarter & English’s Hartford office in particular has a very long history of engagement with Hartford’s public schools. I was involved as a young associate with our peer mediation program and with the Innocence Project. They’ve done just a ton of work.”
Vanessa brings experience from both the US Attorney’s Office and the state Attorney General’s office, where she served as an associate attorney general and chief of the Division of Enforcement and Public Protection. Vanessa’s litigation work will be varied, with clients in business, criminal and civil litigation matters, including trial and appellate work. She will also defend clients against government enforcement actions such as False Claims Act investigations, and matters involving corporate compliance and responsibility. “There are great people here, and it’s a great culture—very down to earth and collaborative,” she said. “At the same time, we have a very sophisticated and innovative litigation practice with a national reach.”