FTCWatch , an independent newsletter covering antirust, consumer protection and privacy enforcement, published a May 11, 2021, story on Washington, D.C., partner Wrede Smith’s recent move to McGuireWoods.
Smith, a former U.S. Department of Justice antitrust lawyer, joined McGuireWoods’ Antitrust, Trade & Commercial Litigation Department on April 5. In the FTCWatch piece, he discussed why he joined the firm, how he decided to focus on antitrust law and how antitrust enforcement may change under the Biden administration.
“There is a divide among the commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission about pharmaceutical mergers, and it will be interesting to see how that plays out,” he said.
Smith also described his experience serving in the Teach for America program between college and law school. He taught fourth- and fifth-graders in St. Louis for two years and called it “the most challenging job I had in some ways.” The skills he developed there helped prepare him to be a trial lawyer, he said.
“Both require the ability to take a concept and break it down so it is understandable. And I also learned that it is important when you are explaining a concept to understand where your audience is coming from,” he said.