Press Release

KATHRYN DONOVAN JOINS PILLSBURY'S POLITICAL LAW TEAM
Noted political law advisor returns to Pillsbury's Sacramento office

1/9/2012
San Francisco—Pillsbury today announced that Kathryn Donovan has joined the firm's Sacramento office as counsel in its Political Law group. Donovan arrives after serving as Chief Counsel to the California State Assembly's Legislative Ethics Committee, where she advised Assembly members and staff on compliance with state ethics laws, among other duties.

The move is a homecoming for Donovan, who practiced at Pillsbury from 1991 to 2006 in Sacramento, advising a wide range of stakeholders on regulations affecting campaigns, lobbying, government ethics, and open meeting requirements.

Resuming her work with clients, Donovan brings extensive insight from her work in California's state legislature, as well as her past experience serving as General Counsel to the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC), the state agency charged with interpretation and administration of laws regulating state and local election campaigns, state lobbying, and ethics for state and local public officials in California.

Fred Lowell, leader of Pillsbury's Political Law group, called Donovan "an exceptional resource in counseling clients on compliance with the ever-increasing maze of federal, state and local laws regulating political activity."

Donovan holds a BA from Occidental College and received her JD from UCLA’s School of Law.

Pillsbury’s Political Law group advises corporations, trade associations, initiative campaigns, candidates for public office and officeholders on laws regulating political activity. The group has many years of experience in creating political law compliance programs for large organizations. In addition, its members represent the firm's clients before regulatory agencies such as the Federal Election Commission, California's Fair Political Practices Commission and local agencies such as the San Francisco Ethics Commission. The group has also been involved in successful litigation against over-broad laws, which threaten to deprive clients of their right to participate in the political process.

About Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
Pillsbury is a full-service law firm with a keen industry focus on energy & natural resources, financial services, real estate & construction, and technology.  Based in the world's major financial, technology and energy centers, Pillsbury counsels clients on global regulatory, litigation and corporate matters. We work in multidisciplinary teams that allow us to anticipate trends and bring a 360-degree perspective to complex business and legal issues—helping clients to take greater advantage of new opportunities and better mitigate risk. This collaborative work style helps produce the results our clients seek.