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Van Ness Feldman

Website:

www.vnf.com
Location:

Washington, DC
Type:

Law and Policy Firm
Founded:

1977
Co-Chairs:

Nancy Macan McNally and Doug Smith

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Van Ness Feldman is a law and policy firm focused on energy, environment, and natural resources. It has offices in Washington, D.C.; Seattle; the San Francisco Bay Area; Houston; and Baton Rouge. 1 The firm has over 100 lawyers and policy professionals, 2 39 of whom are partners, with the majority located in Washington, D.C. 3 In addition to providing counsel and litigation services, Van Ness Feldman is a registered lobbying firm. 4

In the 2022 election cycle the Van Ness Feldman PAC contributed $49,000 to federal congressional candidates, of which 72.45% went to Democrats. 5

Background

Van Ness Feldman is a law and policy firm made up of attorneys and government advocacy specialists. It was started in 1977 in Washington, D.C., as Van Ness, Feldman, Curtis, and Sutcliffe by William J. Van Ness, Jr. and three other attorneys. The firm specialized in the environment and energy and was also registered as a lobbying firm. When Curtis and Sutcliffe left the firm, the name was changed to Van Ness Feldman. Prior to founding the firm, Van Ness worked under U.S. Senator Henry “Scoop” Jackson (D-WA) as a chief counsel focused on environmental legislation. 6 His three partners, Howard Feldman, Lynn Sutcliffe, and Charlie Curtis were also former congressional and executive branch legal counsels. In 1989 the firm opened a second office in Seattle, Washington. 7

According to Firsthand, Van Ness Feldman was “one of the first firms to have major climate change and gas emission regulatory practices” and has advised Congress and White House staff in developing energy and environmental law. 8

According to National Law Review, the firm has been “involved in every major energy and environmental policy legislative or regulatory initiative, from the creation of the Department of Energy in 1977, to the policy debates affecting our nation today.” 9

According to Zippia, a data platform that supports career searches, Van Ness Feldman’s revenue in 2022 was $28.7 million. 10

Focus Areas

Van Ness Feldman provides services such as coalition development and management, counsel on legal and regulatory compliance, project development support and permitting, litigation, and legislative and policy advocacy. The firm’s practice areas are associated with energy and the environment such as climate change, oil, gas, liquified natural gas, renewable energy, public lands, water, and land use. 11

VNF Solutions is a wholly owned subsidiary that focuses on energy, the environment, and public policy, with a special focus on federal issues and advocacy outside of a traditional law firm approach. 12

According to OpenSecrets, as of June 2023, Van Ness Feldman was retained by 30 clients in 2023 for lobbying purposes, for a total amount of $720,000, 13 and VNF Solutions was retained by 10 clients in 2023 for lobbying purposes, for a total of $190,000. 14

Political Contributions

The Van Ness Feldman, LLP Political Action Committee originally registered in 1986 as Van Ness, Feldman, Sutcliffe, and Curtis Political Action Committee. In the 2022 election cycle the PAC contributed $49,000 to federal congressional candidates, of which 72.45% went to Democrats. 15 The New Democrat Coalition received the highest donation amount of all 2022 election cycle expenditures. 16 The New Democrat Coalition is made up of nearly 100 House Democrats. 17

People

Van Ness Feldman has over 100 lawyers and policy professionals, 18 39 of whom are partners, with the majority located in Washington, D.C. 19

Nancy Macan McNally was elected co-chair effective January 1, 2020. 20 She’s a member of the firm’s executive committee and a board member of subsidiary VNF Solutions. She’s co-coordinator of the firm’s Government Advocacy and Public Policy practice. 21 Previously she worked for pharmaceutical company McKesson Corporation, building its public affairs department for over 20 years. 22

Doug Smith was elected co-chair effective January 1, 2020. 23 Previously Smith served as a general counsel for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Department of Energy during the  Clinton administration. 24

Kyle Danish is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s executive committee. 25 He specializes in environmental and energy regulation and legislation and permitting under the Clean Air Act. He has published several articles, has been commissioned to publish research on climate change and energy policy, and is a frequent speaker. 26 Danish is a senior associate with the think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies. 27

Tomas Elias Carbonell, who is a member of the Biden administration Environmental Protection Agency, was previously an attorney with Van Ness Feldman where he counseled clients on federal regulations and laws related to energy, the environment, and climate change. 28

References

  1. “Locations.” Van Ness Feldman LLP. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/locations
  2. “Van Ness Feldman LLP.” The National Law Review. June 21, 2023. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.natlawreview.com/organization/van-ness-feldman-llp
  3. “People.” Van Ness Feldman. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/people
  4. “Lobbying Firm Profile: Van Ness Feldman.” OpenSecrets – Lobbying. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobbying/firms/summary?id=D000029631&year=2019
  5. “Van Ness Feldman PAC Contributions to Federal Candidates.” OpenSecrets – PACs. Accessed June 20, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/van-ness-feldman/C00205369/candidate-recipients/2022
  6.  Phil Dougherty. “Van Ness, William J. “Bill” Jr. (1938-2017.)” HistoryLink.org. Posted July 20, 2011. Accessed June 20, 2023. https://www.historylink.org/File/9882
  7. “Van Ness Feldman LLP.” Vault Firsthand. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://firsthand.co/company-profiles/law/van-ness-feldman-pc
  8. “Van Ness Feldman LLP.” Vault Firsthand. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://firsthand.co/company-profiles/law/van-ness-feldman-pc
  9. “Van Ness Feldman LLP.” The National Law Review. June 21, 2023. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.natlawreview.com/organization/van-ness-feldman-llp
  10. “Van Ness Feldman Revenue.” Zippia. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.zippia.com/van-ness-feldman-careers-53186/revenue/
  11. “Practices.” Van Ness Feldman LLP. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/practices
  12. “Who We Are.” VNF Solutions. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnfsolutions.com/about.aspx
  13. “Lobbying Firm Profile: Van Ness Feldman.” OpenSecrets – Lobbying. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobbying/firms/summary?id=D000029631&year=2019
  14. “Lobbying Firm Profile: VNF Solutions.” OpenSecrets – Lobbying. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobbying/firms/summary?cycle=2023&id=D000070854
  15. “Van Ness Feldman PAC Contributions to Federal Candidates.” OpenSecrets – PACs. Accessed June 20, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/van-ness-feldman/C00205369/candidate-recipients/2022
  16. “Van Ness Feldman PAC Expenditures.” OpenSecrets – PACs. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/van-ness-feldman/C00205369/expenditures/2022
  17. “About Us.” New Democrat Coalition. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://newdemocratcoalition.house.gov/about-us
  18. [1] “Van Ness Feldman LLP.” The National Law Review. June 21, 2023. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.natlawreview.com/organization/van-ness-feldman-llp
  19. “People.” Van Ness Feldman. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/people
  20. “Richard Agnew Concludes Term as Chairman.” Van Ness Feldman LLP. January 15, 2020. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/richard-agnew-concludes-term-as-chairman-nancy-macan-mcnally-doug-smith-elected-co-chairs
  21. “Nancy Macan McNally.” The National Law Review. June 21, 2023. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.natlawreview.com/author/nancy-macan-mcnally
  22. “Nancy Macan McNally.” Van Ness Feldman LLP. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/nmcnally
  23. “Richard Agnew Concludes Term as Chairman.” Van Ness Feldman LLP. January 15, 2020. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/richard-agnew-concludes-term-as-chairman-nancy-macan-mcnally-doug-smith-elected-co-chairs
  24. LinkedIn – Douglas Smith. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglas-smith-8b72484/
  25. “Kyle W. Danish” Van Ness Feldman – People. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.vnf.com/kdanish
  26. “Kyle W. Danish.” The National Law Review. June 21, 2023. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.natlawreview.com/author/kyle-w-danish
  27. “Kyle Danish.” CSIS Center for Strategic & International Studies. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.csis.org/people/kyle-danish
  28. “EPA Welcomes Members of the Biden-Harris Leadership Team.” EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency. January 21, 2021. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-welcomes-members-biden-harris-leadership-team
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Van Ness Feldman


Washington, DC