WilmerHale announced today that former US Attorney for the District of Colorado John Walsh has joined the firm as a partner in its Denver office. Walsh, a highly skilled litigator, will lead the office's litigation practice, including its government investigations, crisis management, securities litigation and white-collar criminal litigation work.
"We are pleased to welcome John to WilmerHale, and look forward to adding his highly regarded litigation and advocacy expertise to our firm," said Susan Murley, co-managing partner of WilmerHale. "John's professional and personal connections in Colorado and California run deep, and his national experience representing the US Department of Justice strengthens our firm's government investigations, crisis management and white-collar criminal litigation practices throughout the nation."
Walsh was one of the longest serving US Attorneys in Colorado history, serving from August 2010 to August 2016. During that time, he was the chief federal law enforcement official in Colorado, and played key national leadership roles for the Department of Justice. As US Attorney for Colorado, Walsh managed an office of 160 Assistant US Attorneys and staff in three locations as they conducted a wide variety of investigations into and prosecutions of sophisticated financial crimes—including investor and securities fraud, terrorism, international drug trafficking rings, healthcare fraud, human trafficking, and violent crimes. In a national capacity, he served as Chair of the Attorney General's Advisory Committee of US Attorneys, as Co-Chair of its subcommittee on white collar crime, and as Co-Chair of the Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities Fraud Working Group.
Walsh grew up in Denver, and prior to being appointed US Attorney was a partner in private practice in Denver, where he handled internal and government investigations and litigated securities, class action and commercial litigation matters across the United States. Earlier in his career, he served as Chief of the Major Frauds Section and as Assistant US Attorney for eight years in the US Attorney's Office in Los Angeles.
"I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with many WilmerHale attorneys over the course of my career, and I have been impressed with their intelligence, innovation, creativity and strength of character," said Walsh. "The firm's commitment to its litigation practice is significant—as evidenced by the recent addition of former Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas—and I look forward to helping increase its visibility and success in Colorado, the Rocky Mountain West, and nationally."
In addition to his focus in the Denver area, Walsh will devote considerable time to the firm's successful and growing team and capabilities in California. He will work closely with Mayorkas, who served as US Attorney for the Central District of California from 1998 to 2001. Together with WilmerHale partners in Los Angeles and Palo Alto, Walsh will be integral to the firm's formidable strength in criminal litigation, internal investigations and crisis management that reaches across the nation.
Walsh earned his JD from Stanford Law School (Order of the Coif and with honors), where he served as the senior notes editor of the Stanford Law Review and president of the Stanford Public Interest Law Foundation. He earned his BA (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) in Political Science from Williams College, and he is a graduate of Cherry Creek High School in Englewood, CO.
Walsh is an active member of Denver's business and philanthropic communities. He is a member of the Colorado Chief Justice's Commission on the Legal Profession, and has served on the boards of directors of Invest in Kids, Colorado Lawyers Committee, Faculty of Federal Advocates, Leadership Denver Alumni Association and the United States-Mexico Law Institute. He also has served on committees of the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Democratic Party and other organizations.