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Patton Boggs is a general practice law firm and high-powered lobby shop, associated with Qorvis Communications. In addition to their Washington DC headquarters, they maintain offices in Anchorage, Dallas, Denver, Northern Virginia, and Doha, Qatar.

History
According to it's website, "Patton Boggs was among the first national law firms to recognize that all three branches of government could serve as forums in which to achieve client goals... Founded in 1962 by James R. Patton, Jr, and joined soon after by George Blow and then Thomas Hale Boggs, Jr, we have maintained our strong concentration in international and trade law with over 200 international clients from over 70 countries. Patton Boggs, for example, has participated in the formation of every major multilateral trade agreement considered by Congress. But we have evolved beyond our roots to become a full-service firm with a national presence in every major area of legal representation, and have developed our business law expertise -- secured transactions, public offerings, financial services, and the like -- into our largest practice area today."

U.S. Work
Patton Boggs has lobbied on behalf of the dietary supplement company Metabolife International. According to Associated Press, "Patton Boggs earned millions helping project reassurances to Congress and its customers that Metabolife products were safe. Patton Boggs attorneys helped prepare carefully worded responses to regulators. Between 2001 and this year, Metabolife paid Patton Boggs $1.8 million to lobby Congress."

Patton Boggs' work for Metabolife has resulted in legal scrutiny: "One former and four current Patton Boggs attorneys were subpoenaed by a federal grand jury in San Diego, court documents say. Prosecutors allege company founder Michael Ellis lied about Metabolife's safety record in a 1998 letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which documents say Patton Boggs attorneys helped draft. ... In mid 2002, Patton Boggs lobbyist Lanny Davis wrote a senator whose subcommittee was investigating Metabolife that the company had received only 78 'unproven, anecdotal allegations' of strokes, heart attacks, seizures and deaths." Company documents released just one week later revealed that the number of health complaints actually numbered in the thousands.

In April 2002, members of congress objected to a video prepared by Patton Boggs promoting exploration for oil and gas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, hosted on the U.S. Interior Department's web site. The Department's distribution of the video was in apparent violation of a law forbidding federal agencies to engage in PR activities "designed to support or defeat legislation pending before the Congress." The Department is becoming "a cinema house for lobbyists," says Massachusetts Congressman Edward Markey. "The Interior Department should not be spreading oil company propaganda any more than the Department of Energy should be promoting Enron stock," he said. "It's not their job."

Personnel

 * Tommy Boggs
 * John Breaux
 * Mark Cowan
 * Benjamin Ginsberg

Past and Present Clients
Patton Boggs' more than 170 registered lobbyist employees serve a long and diverse list of clients. Some of its past and present clients include: (cited source applies to all preceding unmarked clients)
 * Angola
 * Cameroon
 * Costa Rica
 * Croatia
 * Haiti
 * Kuwait
 * Metabolife International
 * Pakistan
 * Peru
 * Philippines
 * Qatar
 * Saudi Arabia
 * Sri Lanka
 * Venezuela
 * Abbott Laboratories
 * Boston Scientific Corporation
 * HCR-Manor Care, Inc., Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., Omnicare, Inc. on Medicare/ Medicaid;
 * Arvesta Corporation, The Climate Council, National Grid USA, United Technologies Corporation and W. R. Grace & Company on the Superfund program;
 * Arrow Electronics, CH2M Hill, DTE Energy, FirstEnergy Corporation and Los Angeles, California's Department of Water and Power on nuclear energy;
 * Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
 * George Soros's Open Society Institute
 * Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Contact Info
Patton Boggs, LLP 2550 M St. NW Washington, DC 20037-1350

Telephone: 202-457-6000 Fax: 202-457-6315 Website: www.pattonboggs.com Email: info@pattonboggs.com