James B. Moorhead

Partner

• jmoorhead@steptoe.com
• vCard
• Washington Office

Mr. Moorhead is a litigation partner in the Washington office of Steptoe & Johnson LLP, where he is a member of the Corporate, Securities and Finance practice group.  Mr. Moorhead co-chairs the Crisis Management practice group and heads the Class Action practice group.

He has provided strategic and communications advice, advocacy and crisis management to Fortune 500 and other major clients facing challenging legal, business, regulatory and political settings.  Mr. Moorhead has experience representing newsworthy clients and commenting on issues of great public interest on national and local news stations and networks. 

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Moorhead was a federal prosecutor in Baltimore and an investment banker in New York City.  He recently served as chief financial officer and general counsel of an emerging growth company.

His Crisis Management experience includes:

• Serving as national counsel to a multi-billion dollar financial services company, coordinating legal and communications strategies to address two US Senate investigations, two US Attorney investigations, several regulatory reviews and civil litigation;
• Advising the New York Times and many other leading newspapers and industry publications on the status of pending investigations and lawsuits; winning or satisfactorily resolving more than 50 civil matters, including several class actions.
• Defending Fortune 500 companies against hostile tender offers, working closely with C-suite executives and their legal and public relations teams in deploying a variety of techniques to fend off these unwanted attacks, including mobilizing hometown constituencies, obtaining favorable state legislation and undermining the credibility of the raiders through free media.
• Advising statewide, congressional and mayoral candidates on electoral and media strategies.
• Being a regular weekend CNN commentator and frequent legal commentator on CNBC, MSNBC and Court TV during the OJ Simpson trial, Paula Jones and Whitewater investigations and Clinton impeachment proceedings; guest hosted America’s Talking TV show about federal government waste.
• Giving regular updates to local TV, Washington Post and Baltimore Sun reporters about trials and investigations he handled as federal prosecutor.
• Successfully lobbying William Donald Schaefer gubernatorial administration for creation of commission on government efficiency and economy on which he served as an advisory member.  

Mr. Moorhead is a frequent television commentator on crisis management and legal and business issues.  He also has spoken and written extensively on crisis management, internal investigations, litigation prevention, and maximizing shareholder value.

Select News & Events

• Jim Moorhead to Speak on Crisis Management at WMACCA's Signature Lunch Meeting, April 28, 2011
• Jim Moorhead to Speak at The Financial Executives Networking Group's Monthly Meeting, April 19, 2011
• Jim Moorhead to Speak at The Mergis Group and Tatum's Networking Event, April 14, 2011
• Bakersfield's First Morning News Interviews Jim Moorhead on Wikileaks
• Law360 Profiles Jim Moorhead
• Jim Moorhead and Mike Miller Spoke at Martindale-Hubbell's Counsel to Counsel (C2C) Forum in New York on "Risk, Reputation, & Compliance", September 28, 2010
• Law360 Quotes Jim Moorhead on How to Structure an Airtight Class Action Deal
• Fox Business Interviews Jim Moorhead about the Impact on the Market and Economy of Extending the Bush Tax Cuts
• Fox Business Interviews Jim Moorhead on SEC FOIA Exemption in Dodd-Frank Bill
• CEO Update Quotes Jim Moorhead on Crisis Management for Associations
• Crisis Management in 140 Words or Less: Adapting Your Approach to Crises in the Social Media Age, (A Steptoe-Sponsored Event)
• Jim Moorhead Appeared on Fox News Channel to Discuss Tiger Woods and Crisis Management, December 2, 2009

Selected Publications

• How an Association Can Help Its Members Tackle a Crisis
  March 11, 2011, WMACCA E-Newsletter Alert

Professional Affiliations

• Served as an Assistant US Attorney in Maryland for three years (focused on prosecuting political and labor corruption cases)
• Member of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association