Principal, BGR Group
Robin Colwell is a Principal with BGR’s Commerce and Infrastructure Practice. She provides clients with strategic insights and skillful advocacy on complex telecommunications, technology, and cybersecurity policy issues. Robin’s wide-ranging experience includes key roles in the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of government as well as the private sector.
A Florida native and Florida State University alumna, Robin received her law degree from the College of William & Mary School of Law, and first came to Washington as a law clerk to Chief Judge H. Robert Mayer of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. After several years representing mass media, communications, and technology clients in Wiley, Rein & Fielding LLP’s corporate practice, she developed deep expertise and passion for the public policy framework underlying these industries as Legislative Counsel for Senate Commerce Committee members including Senators Tim Scott, Jim DeMint, and Peter G. Fitzgerald, and as Counsel to the Senate Commerce Committee for Tourism, Competitiveness, and Innovation.
Robin next served as Chief of Staff to Commissioner Michael O’Rielly at the Federal Communications Commission, and later returned to the Hill as Chief Counsel to the House Energy & Commerce Committee for Communications and Technology. As Chief Counsel, Robin collaborated with majority and minority House and Senate Committee members and staff to secure enactment of major legislation including FOSTA/SESTA, protecting victims of online trafficking, and RAY BAUM’s Act, which funded repacking of spectrum following the broadcast incentive auction and included bicameral, bipartisan priorities such as MOBILE NOW and DIG ONCE.
Most recently, Robin served at the White House National Economic Council under former President Trump as a senior advisor to Director Larry Kudlow, developing Administration policy and leading interagency implementation of priorities including 5G deployment, security, and innovative network architecture; spectrum allocation; rural broadband deployment; data privacy and security; and domestic supply chain security. She was a key White House leader in the successful 2020 initiative to make a significant allocation of prime mid-band spectrum available to be auctioned in December 2021 for rapid U.S. deployment of commercial 5G networks.
Managing Partner, Crest Hill Advisors
The founder and Managing Partner of Crest Hill Advisors, Scott Blake Harris has been a legal and policy professional in Washington, D.C. for forty-eight years, primarily focused on telecommunications, technology, and energy issues. He has deep experience both in government and in the private sector.
Prior to founding Crest Hill Advisors, Scott served as the Senior Spectrum Advisor and Director of the National Spectrum Strategy at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in the U.S. Department of Commerce. He previously served in government as General Counsel of the Department of Energy, as the first Chief of the International Bureau at the Federal Communications Commission, and as Chief Counsel for Export Administration at the Department of Commerce. While at DOE, Scott also served as Co-Chair of the Broadband Subcommittee of the White House National Science and Technology Council.
In 1998, Scott co-founded the law firm of Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP (now HWG LLP) and served as its first Managing Partner and later its first Chairman. Scott has also served as General Counsel of Neustar, Inc. and as Co-Managing Partner of Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP. Earlier in his career, he was a partner at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, where he was Chair of the Communications practice, and at Williams & Connolly, where began his career in private practice as a litigator in 1977. Scott served as a law clerk to the Hon. Gerhard A. Gesell on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia upon graduation from law school. He is a magna cum laude graduate of both Brown University and Harvard Law School.
Scott has received many honors during his career. He was named both as a “Visionary” and as one of the Top Ten Communications Lawyers by the Legal Times. He has been honored as a “Dean of the Bar” by, and received an award for Distinguished Service from, the Federal Communications Bar Association. He has also received awards for Outstanding Service from the National Association of State Energy Officials and for Special Achievement from the Chairman of the FCC. The National Association of Radio and Telecommunications Engineers presented Scott with the Marconi-Bell Award for his private sector work on unlicensed spectrum. He has also been deemed an “Eminent Practitioner” and “Senior Statesperson” by Chambers USA for his work in the telecommunications sector.
Senior Vice President & General Counsel, CTIA
Umair Javed serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. He joined CTIA in 2023 as Senior Vice President, Spectrum, where he was responsible for advancing the wireless industry’s spectrum priorities both domestically and internationally.
Prior to joining CTIA, Umair influenced global and domestic law and policy as Chief Counsel to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. He served as the FCC designee on President Biden’s Competition Council, led the FCC’s National Security Policy Council, and represented the agency at international treaty-writing conferences. During his time at the FCC, Umair also crafted the FCC’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative, oversaw the third-highest grossing spectrum auction in FCC history, coordinated the deployment of 5G services in the C-band, and partnered with Congress on passage and FCC implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, and Secure Equipment Act.
From October 2017 to January 2019, Umair served as Legal Advisor, Wireless and International in the Office of FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel. He joined the FCC from Wiley Rein LLP, where he was an attorney in the firm’s Telecom, Media, and Technology Group.
Umair was named to the inaugural Lawyers of Color Hot List. He is also a 2021 HTTP “Tech Innovadores” recipient and the 2023 Public Safety Communications Leadership in Regulatory Service award recipient for his service at the FCC.
Umair has a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law and a bachelor of arts in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law from the University of Virginia. He is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia and Virginia. Umair also is a volunteer firefighter in Loudoun County, Virginia.
Senior Fellow for Law, Economics, and Technology, The Heritage Foundation; Professor, Florida International University
Mario Loyola is a Senior Fellow for Law, Economics, and Technology at The Heritage Foundation.
Loyola served in the Trump Administration as Associate Director for Regulatory Reform at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. In that role, he was one of the principal drafters of the One Federal Decision policy, which helped to streamline the permitting and environmental review of large infrastructure projects. While at CEQ, he was a member of the U.S. delegation to the USMCA free trade negotiations with Mexico and Canada, as well as the United Nations conference on biodiversity on the high seas. Loyola initially joined the White House in February 2017 as a Presidential Speechwriter, employing his expertise in many areas of foreign and domestic policy.
After beginning his career in M&A and corporate finance law, Loyola served in the Bush 43 Administration as a special assistant to the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. He left that position to start writing on national defense issues in magazines such as National Review and The Weekly Standard, reporting from the front lines of the war on terrorism in Lebanon, Israel, and Iraq. He finished the Bush Administration as Foreign and Defense Counsel to the U.S. Senate Republican Policy Committee, then under the chairmanship of Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas. He subsequently moved to Texas and joined the Texas Public Policy Foundation, where he specialized in energy, environment, and federalism.
Loyola is a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, National Review, and The Atlantic, among others. He teaches environmental and administrative law at Florida International University, where he is Founding Director of the Environmental Finance and Risk Management program in FIU’s prestigious Institute of Environment. He received a bachelor’s degree in European history from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a J.D. from Washington University School of Law.
Circuit Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Michael H. Park was appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in May 2019. He earned his A.B. magna cum laude from Princeton University and his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he served as Managing Editor of the Yale Law Journal. Upon graduation from law school in 2001, Judge Park served as a law clerk to then-Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. on the Third Circuit, for whom he also clerked on the Supreme Court during the 2008 Term. Judge Park was an associate in the New York office of the Wilmer Hale law firm from 2002 to 2006, and he served as an Attorney-Adviser in the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Counsel from 2006 to 2008. Judge Park worked in the New York office of the Dechert law firm, first as counsel (2009-2011) and then as a partner (2012-2015). In 2015, Judge Park joined the law firm Consovoy McCarthy Park as a name partner, where he specialized in appellate and complex civil litigation. During that time, he also served as an adjunct professor at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University.
Principal, BGR Group
Robin Colwell is a Principal with BGR’s Commerce and Infrastructure Practice. She provides clients with strategic insights and skillful advocacy on complex telecommunications, technology, and cybersecurity policy issues. Robin’s wide-ranging experience includes key roles in the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of government as well as the private sector.
A Florida native and Florida State University alumna, Robin received her law degree from the College of William & Mary School of Law, and first came to Washington as a law clerk to Chief Judge H. Robert Mayer of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. After several years representing mass media, communications, and technology clients in Wiley, Rein & Fielding LLP’s corporate practice, she developed deep expertise and passion for the public policy framework underlying these industries as Legislative Counsel for Senate Commerce Committee members including Senators Tim Scott, Jim DeMint, and Peter G. Fitzgerald, and as Counsel to the Senate Commerce Committee for Tourism, Competitiveness, and Innovation.
Robin next served as Chief of Staff to Commissioner Michael O’Rielly at the Federal Communications Commission, and later returned to the Hill as Chief Counsel to the House Energy & Commerce Committee for Communications and Technology. As Chief Counsel, Robin collaborated with majority and minority House and Senate Committee members and staff to secure enactment of major legislation including FOSTA/SESTA, protecting victims of online trafficking, and RAY BAUM’s Act, which funded repacking of spectrum following the broadcast incentive auction and included bicameral, bipartisan priorities such as MOBILE NOW and DIG ONCE.
Most recently, Robin served at the White House National Economic Council under former President Trump as a senior advisor to Director Larry Kudlow, developing Administration policy and leading interagency implementation of priorities including 5G deployment, security, and innovative network architecture; spectrum allocation; rural broadband deployment; data privacy and security; and domestic supply chain security. She was a key White House leader in the successful 2020 initiative to make a significant allocation of prime mid-band spectrum available to be auctioned in December 2021 for rapid U.S. deployment of commercial 5G networks.
Managing Partner, Crest Hill Advisors
The founder and Managing Partner of Crest Hill Advisors, Scott Blake Harris has been a legal and policy professional in Washington, D.C. for forty-eight years, primarily focused on telecommunications, technology, and energy issues. He has deep experience both in government and in the private sector.
Prior to founding Crest Hill Advisors, Scott served as the Senior Spectrum Advisor and Director of the National Spectrum Strategy at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in the U.S. Department of Commerce. He previously served in government as General Counsel of the Department of Energy, as the first Chief of the International Bureau at the Federal Communications Commission, and as Chief Counsel for Export Administration at the Department of Commerce. While at DOE, Scott also served as Co-Chair of the Broadband Subcommittee of the White House National Science and Technology Council.
In 1998, Scott co-founded the law firm of Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP (now HWG LLP) and served as its first Managing Partner and later its first Chairman. Scott has also served as General Counsel of Neustar, Inc. and as Co-Managing Partner of Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP. Earlier in his career, he was a partner at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, where he was Chair of the Communications practice, and at Williams & Connolly, where began his career in private practice as a litigator in 1977. Scott served as a law clerk to the Hon. Gerhard A. Gesell on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia upon graduation from law school. He is a magna cum laude graduate of both Brown University and Harvard Law School.
Scott has received many honors during his career. He was named both as a “Visionary” and as one of the Top Ten Communications Lawyers by the Legal Times. He has been honored as a “Dean of the Bar” by, and received an award for Distinguished Service from, the Federal Communications Bar Association. He has also received awards for Outstanding Service from the National Association of State Energy Officials and for Special Achievement from the Chairman of the FCC. The National Association of Radio and Telecommunications Engineers presented Scott with the Marconi-Bell Award for his private sector work on unlicensed spectrum. He has also been deemed an “Eminent Practitioner” and “Senior Statesperson” by Chambers USA for his work in the telecommunications sector.
Senior Vice President & General Counsel, CTIA
Umair Javed serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. He joined CTIA in 2023 as Senior Vice President, Spectrum, where he was responsible for advancing the wireless industry’s spectrum priorities both domestically and internationally.
Prior to joining CTIA, Umair influenced global and domestic law and policy as Chief Counsel to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. He served as the FCC designee on President Biden’s Competition Council, led the FCC’s National Security Policy Council, and represented the agency at international treaty-writing conferences. During his time at the FCC, Umair also crafted the FCC’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative, oversaw the third-highest grossing spectrum auction in FCC history, coordinated the deployment of 5G services in the C-band, and partnered with Congress on passage and FCC implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, and Secure Equipment Act.
From October 2017 to January 2019, Umair served as Legal Advisor, Wireless and International in the Office of FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel. He joined the FCC from Wiley Rein LLP, where he was an attorney in the firm’s Telecom, Media, and Technology Group.
Umair was named to the inaugural Lawyers of Color Hot List. He is also a 2021 HTTP “Tech Innovadores” recipient and the 2023 Public Safety Communications Leadership in Regulatory Service award recipient for his service at the FCC.
Umair has a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law and a bachelor of arts in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law from the University of Virginia. He is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia and Virginia. Umair also is a volunteer firefighter in Loudoun County, Virginia.
Senior Fellow for Law, Economics, and Technology, The Heritage Foundation; Professor, Florida International University
Mario Loyola is a Senior Fellow for Law, Economics, and Technology at The Heritage Foundation.
Loyola served in the Trump Administration as Associate Director for Regulatory Reform at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. In that role, he was one of the principal drafters of the One Federal Decision policy, which helped to streamline the permitting and environmental review of large infrastructure projects. While at CEQ, he was a member of the U.S. delegation to the USMCA free trade negotiations with Mexico and Canada, as well as the United Nations conference on biodiversity on the high seas. Loyola initially joined the White House in February 2017 as a Presidential Speechwriter, employing his expertise in many areas of foreign and domestic policy.
After beginning his career in M&A and corporate finance law, Loyola served in the Bush 43 Administration as a special assistant to the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy. He left that position to start writing on national defense issues in magazines such as National Review and The Weekly Standard, reporting from the front lines of the war on terrorism in Lebanon, Israel, and Iraq. He finished the Bush Administration as Foreign and Defense Counsel to the U.S. Senate Republican Policy Committee, then under the chairmanship of Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas. He subsequently moved to Texas and joined the Texas Public Policy Foundation, where he specialized in energy, environment, and federalism.
Loyola is a frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, National Review, and The Atlantic, among others. He teaches environmental and administrative law at Florida International University, where he is Founding Director of the Environmental Finance and Risk Management program in FIU’s prestigious Institute of Environment. He received a bachelor’s degree in European history from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a J.D. from Washington University School of Law.
Circuit Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Michael H. Park was appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in May 2019. He earned his A.B. magna cum laude from Princeton University and his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he served as Managing Editor of the Yale Law Journal. Upon graduation from law school in 2001, Judge Park served as a law clerk to then-Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. on the Third Circuit, for whom he also clerked on the Supreme Court during the 2008 Term. Judge Park was an associate in the New York office of the Wilmer Hale law firm from 2002 to 2006, and he served as an Attorney-Adviser in the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Counsel from 2006 to 2008. Judge Park worked in the New York office of the Dechert law firm, first as counsel (2009-2011) and then as a partner (2012-2015). In 2015, Judge Park joined the law firm Consovoy McCarthy Park as a name partner, where he specialized in appellate and complex civil litigation. During that time, he also served as an adjunct professor at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University.
Senior Vice President & General Counsel, CTIA
Umair Javed serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. He joined CTIA in 2023 as Senior Vice President, Spectrum, where he was responsible for advancing the wireless industry’s spectrum priorities both domestically and internationally.
Prior to joining CTIA, Umair influenced global and domestic law and policy as Chief Counsel to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. He served as the FCC designee on President Biden’s Competition Council, led the FCC’s National Security Policy Council, and represented the agency at international treaty-writing conferences. During his time at the FCC, Umair also crafted the FCC’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative, oversaw the third-highest grossing spectrum auction in FCC history, coordinated the deployment of 5G services in the C-band, and partnered with Congress on passage and FCC implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, and Secure Equipment Act.
From October 2017 to January 2019, Umair served as Legal Advisor, Wireless and International in the Office of FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel. He joined the FCC from Wiley Rein LLP, where he was an attorney in the firm’s Telecom, Media, and Technology Group.
Umair was named to the inaugural Lawyers of Color Hot List. He is also a 2021 HTTP “Tech Innovadores” recipient and the 2023 Public Safety Communications Leadership in Regulatory Service award recipient for his service at the FCC.
Umair has a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law and a bachelor of arts in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law from the University of Virginia. He is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia and Virginia. Umair also is a volunteer firefighter in Loudoun County, Virginia.
President and Founder, JKC Consulting LLC
John Kneuer is the President and Founder of JKC Consulting LLC. He sits on multiple public and private company boards.
Prior to starting Kneuer LLC, Mr. Kneuer served as the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information. In this capacity Mr. Kneuer was the principal advisor to the President of the United States on telecommunications policy and the Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration ("NTIA").In addition to representing the Executive Branch in domestic and international telecommunications and information policy activities, NTIA also manages the federal use of spectrum; performs cutting edge telecommunications research and engineering, including resolving technical telecommunications issues for the federal government and private sector; and administers infrastructure and public telecommunications facilities grants.
Prior to his service at NTIA, Mr. Kneuer served as a Senior Associate at the law firm of Piper Rudnick in Washington, D.C., providing regulatory and legislative representation to corporate clients in the telecommunications, defense, and transportation industries. Earlier in his career, Mr. Kneuer served as the Executive Director for Government Relations at the Industrial Telecommunications Association, and prior to that served as an Attorney-Advisor in the Commercial Wireless Division of the Federal Communications Commission's Wireless Bureau. Mr. Kneuer received B.A. and J.D. degrees from the Catholic University of America.
Partner, Cooley
Rob McDowell advises telecommunications, media and technology clients on their most significant regulatory, legal and business matters. As a former commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and a highly regarded industry leader, Rob has been at the forefront of the most complex and groundbreaking issues facing telecommunications.
Mr. McDowell was first appointed to the FCC by President George W. Bush in 2006 and again by President Obama in 2009. He was unanimously confirmed both times by the US Senate. During his tenure, Mr. McDowell led efforts to expand consumer access to spectrum through his work on the two largest wireless auctions in US history at the time, played a key role in the 2009 digital television transition and led efforts to establish the first federal civil rights rule in a generation by creating a ban on racially discriminatory practices in broadcast advertising. He also worked extensively on several large and complex mergers, including Sirius/XM and Comcast/NBC-Universal.
He is an advocate for internet freedom, serving on the US delegation to the 2012 World Conference on International Telecommunications and exposing an international bid to regulate vital aspects of the Internet through multilateral treaty-based organizations. Mr. McDowell authored an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal opposing multilateral internet regulation that led to a resolution passed unanimously in the House and Senate, as well as the ultimate defeat of the international bid at a treaty negation in Dubai later that year.
Prior to the FCC, Mr. McDowell was senior vice president for CompTel, the Competitive Telecommunications Association, where he led advocacy efforts before several government agencies, the White House and Congress.
Mr. McDowell is often called upon for speaking engagements and frequently appears on TV and radio. He has written opinion pieces for many high-profile publications, including the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post.
Vice President, Technology Policy & Regulation, Lockheed Martin Government Affairs
Jennifer A. Warren is currently Vice President, Global Regulatory Affairs & Public Policy for Lockheed Martin Corporation. In this capacity, she is responsible for leading the corporate team’s engagement and strategy across the Executive Branch, Independent Agencies and Intergovernmental Bodies across a broad business, regulatory and public policy portfolio.
Her responsibilities also include leading corporate relationships with Intergovernmental Bodies, such as ITU, CITEL, ICAO, UN Office of Outer Space Affairs, and major trade associations; Ms. Warren is the former Chair (twice) of the Satellite Industry Association (SIA), and currently serves on the Boards of the SIA, US ITU Association, and the Professional Services Corporation, and as the co-chair of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Telecommunications and E-Commerce Committee. She also participates on the ITI Space Enterprise Council and the US Chamber Space Council.
Ms. Warren has broad private sector engagement across government, having been a member of the Department of Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (CSMAC), FAA Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee, Department of State International Telecommunications Advisory Committee (now International Digital Economy & Telecommunications Advisory Committee), and NASA Advisory Committee/Regulatory Policy Committee, as well as served on the FCC’s WRC Advisory Committee.
From 1991-1996, Ms. Warren held several senior roles in the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, including as Assistant Chief in the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Senior Legal Advisor in the International Bureau. In 1991, she graduated from Georgetown University Law Center (J.D.), where she subsequently served as an Adjunct Professor in International Communications Regulation and Policy for close to 20 years. She is also a graduate of Georgetown University (B.S. in Languages), and a member of the Illinois State and D.C. Bars, the Federal Communications Bar Association, and American Bar Association. Her civic activities include the Boards of the George Washington Legacy Foundation and Gadsby Tavern Museum Society in Old Town Alexandria, and the Foundation of the National Archives & Records Administration.
Ms. Warren lives in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband Ed, and their puppy - Madison.
Senior Vice President & General Counsel, CTIA
Umair Javed serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. He joined CTIA in 2023 as Senior Vice President, Spectrum, where he was responsible for advancing the wireless industry’s spectrum priorities both domestically and internationally.
Prior to joining CTIA, Umair influenced global and domestic law and policy as Chief Counsel to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. He served as the FCC designee on President Biden’s Competition Council, led the FCC’s National Security Policy Council, and represented the agency at international treaty-writing conferences. During his time at the FCC, Umair also crafted the FCC’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative, oversaw the third-highest grossing spectrum auction in FCC history, coordinated the deployment of 5G services in the C-band, and partnered with Congress on passage and FCC implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, and Secure Equipment Act.
From October 2017 to January 2019, Umair served as Legal Advisor, Wireless and International in the Office of FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel. He joined the FCC from Wiley Rein LLP, where he was an attorney in the firm’s Telecom, Media, and Technology Group.
Umair was named to the inaugural Lawyers of Color Hot List. He is also a 2021 HTTP “Tech Innovadores” recipient and the 2023 Public Safety Communications Leadership in Regulatory Service award recipient for his service at the FCC.
Umair has a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law and a bachelor of arts in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law from the University of Virginia. He is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia and Virginia. Umair also is a volunteer firefighter in Loudoun County, Virginia.
President and Founder, JKC Consulting LLC
John Kneuer is the President and Founder of JKC Consulting LLC. He sits on multiple public and private company boards.
Prior to starting Kneuer LLC, Mr. Kneuer served as the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information. In this capacity Mr. Kneuer was the principal advisor to the President of the United States on telecommunications policy and the Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration ("NTIA").In addition to representing the Executive Branch in domestic and international telecommunications and information policy activities, NTIA also manages the federal use of spectrum; performs cutting edge telecommunications research and engineering, including resolving technical telecommunications issues for the federal government and private sector; and administers infrastructure and public telecommunications facilities grants.
Prior to his service at NTIA, Mr. Kneuer served as a Senior Associate at the law firm of Piper Rudnick in Washington, D.C., providing regulatory and legislative representation to corporate clients in the telecommunications, defense, and transportation industries. Earlier in his career, Mr. Kneuer served as the Executive Director for Government Relations at the Industrial Telecommunications Association, and prior to that served as an Attorney-Advisor in the Commercial Wireless Division of the Federal Communications Commission's Wireless Bureau. Mr. Kneuer received B.A. and J.D. degrees from the Catholic University of America.
Partner, Cooley
Rob McDowell advises telecommunications, media and technology clients on their most significant regulatory, legal and business matters. As a former commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and a highly regarded industry leader, Rob has been at the forefront of the most complex and groundbreaking issues facing telecommunications.
Mr. McDowell was first appointed to the FCC by President George W. Bush in 2006 and again by President Obama in 2009. He was unanimously confirmed both times by the US Senate. During his tenure, Mr. McDowell led efforts to expand consumer access to spectrum through his work on the two largest wireless auctions in US history at the time, played a key role in the 2009 digital television transition and led efforts to establish the first federal civil rights rule in a generation by creating a ban on racially discriminatory practices in broadcast advertising. He also worked extensively on several large and complex mergers, including Sirius/XM and Comcast/NBC-Universal.
He is an advocate for internet freedom, serving on the US delegation to the 2012 World Conference on International Telecommunications and exposing an international bid to regulate vital aspects of the Internet through multilateral treaty-based organizations. Mr. McDowell authored an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal opposing multilateral internet regulation that led to a resolution passed unanimously in the House and Senate, as well as the ultimate defeat of the international bid at a treaty negation in Dubai later that year.
Prior to the FCC, Mr. McDowell was senior vice president for CompTel, the Competitive Telecommunications Association, where he led advocacy efforts before several government agencies, the White House and Congress.
Mr. McDowell is often called upon for speaking engagements and frequently appears on TV and radio. He has written opinion pieces for many high-profile publications, including the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post.
Vice President, Technology Policy & Regulation, Lockheed Martin Government Affairs
Jennifer A. Warren is currently Vice President, Global Regulatory Affairs & Public Policy for Lockheed Martin Corporation. In this capacity, she is responsible for leading the corporate team’s engagement and strategy across the Executive Branch, Independent Agencies and Intergovernmental Bodies across a broad business, regulatory and public policy portfolio.
Her responsibilities also include leading corporate relationships with Intergovernmental Bodies, such as ITU, CITEL, ICAO, UN Office of Outer Space Affairs, and major trade associations; Ms. Warren is the former Chair (twice) of the Satellite Industry Association (SIA), and currently serves on the Boards of the SIA, US ITU Association, and the Professional Services Corporation, and as the co-chair of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Telecommunications and E-Commerce Committee. She also participates on the ITI Space Enterprise Council and the US Chamber Space Council.
Ms. Warren has broad private sector engagement across government, having been a member of the Department of Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (CSMAC), FAA Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee, Department of State International Telecommunications Advisory Committee (now International Digital Economy & Telecommunications Advisory Committee), and NASA Advisory Committee/Regulatory Policy Committee, as well as served on the FCC’s WRC Advisory Committee.
From 1991-1996, Ms. Warren held several senior roles in the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, including as Assistant Chief in the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Senior Legal Advisor in the International Bureau. In 1991, she graduated from Georgetown University Law Center (J.D.), where she subsequently served as an Adjunct Professor in International Communications Regulation and Policy for close to 20 years. She is also a graduate of Georgetown University (B.S. in Languages), and a member of the Illinois State and D.C. Bars, the Federal Communications Bar Association, and American Bar Association. Her civic activities include the Boards of the George Washington Legacy Foundation and Gadsby Tavern Museum Society in Old Town Alexandria, and the Foundation of the National Archives & Records Administration.
Ms. Warren lives in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband Ed, and their puppy - Madison.
Senior Advisor for International Policy, Google
Will Hudson is Senior Advisor for International Policy at Google, where his work focuses on Internet governance, Google’s relationship with international organizations like the United Nations, and other international policy issues. Before joining Google, Mr. Hudson was Director for International Cyber Policy at the National Security Council. There, he was responsible for coordinating the government’s implementation of a range of technology policies, including those relating to Internet governance, Internet freedom, human rights issues associated with data privacy and online surveillance, and cyber capacity building.
Prior to his time in the White House, Mr. Hudson served in a variety of positions in the federal government, advising clients on the legal and policy issues associated with cybersecurity, norms of state and non-state behavior online, and emerging technologies. He is a board member of the U.S. Telecommunications Training Institute and the Journal of Law & Cyber Warfare, and is a Corporate Leader at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Mr. Hudson is a graduate of Stanford University and Georgetown University Law Center.
Partner, HWG LLP
Patricia Paoletta is a partner with the law firm of HWG LLP, where she specializes in telecommunications, trade and technology policy. Ms. Paoletta provides advice on regulatory, trade and legislative policy to clients before the FCC, Congress and the Administration. Her clients include providers of content, cloud, mobile broadband, VoIP, international telecommunications, small cells, cognitive radio, public safety and homeland security solutions. She serves on Advisory Boards for several entities engaged in information services, communications and technology.
Ms. Paoletta has accrued considerable experience with telecommunications trade and policy in the public sector. From 1990 to 1995, she was senior advisor to the International Bureau Chief and Office Director at the Federal Communications Commission. In the mid 1990s, Ms. Paoletta served as Director of Telecommunications Trade Policy in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Executive Office of the President, where she worked on the WTO Information Technology Agreement (ITA) and the Basic Telecommunications Agreement. After USTR, Ms. Paoletta served as Majority Counsel to the House Energy and Commerce Committee. She then moved to Level 3 Communications, as Vice President, Government Relations.
Ms. Paoletta is on the Steering Committee of the Transatlantic Roundtable on Telecommunications and Information Technology of the European Institute. She is a member of the USTR Alumni Association, Washington International Trade Association, the Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA), and Women in Technology. Ms. Paoletta has served on the Board of Advisors for the Inter-American Dialogue's Latin America Telecom Advisor, Co-Chairman of the American Bar Association International Communications Committee, and as a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Technology Policy Committee.
Ms. Paoletta served as a delegate in 2012 to the ITU-R's Study Group 6 Working Party 6A Meeting and in 2009 and 2010 to the ITU-R's Study Group I Working Party IB Meetings; the 2009 meetings of CITEL (the Committee on International Telecommunications at the Organization of American States) PCC-II; the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) World Telecommunications Standards Assembly (2000); the ITU Internet Protocol Telephony Experts Group and the ITU World Telecommunications Policy Forum in 2001; as Chairman of the National Reliability and Interoperability Council (NRIC) Steering Committee (2000-2001); as Board Member for the Voice on the Net Coalition (2001); as Co-Chairman of the FCBA's Annual Seminar Committee (2009-2011); as a member of the FCBA's Ad Hoc Speakers Committee (2006-2007); as Co-Chairman for the FCBA International Practice Committee (2001-2002 and 2005-2006); and as a Co-Chairman of the FCBA Legislative Practice Committee (1999-2000).
Senior Vice President & General Counsel, CTIA
Umair Javed serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. He joined CTIA in 2023 as Senior Vice President, Spectrum, where he was responsible for advancing the wireless industry’s spectrum priorities both domestically and internationally.
Prior to joining CTIA, Umair influenced global and domestic law and policy as Chief Counsel to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. He served as the FCC designee on President Biden’s Competition Council, led the FCC’s National Security Policy Council, and represented the agency at international treaty-writing conferences. During his time at the FCC, Umair also crafted the FCC’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative, oversaw the third-highest grossing spectrum auction in FCC history, coordinated the deployment of 5G services in the C-band, and partnered with Congress on passage and FCC implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, and Secure Equipment Act.
From October 2017 to January 2019, Umair served as Legal Advisor, Wireless and International in the Office of FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel. He joined the FCC from Wiley Rein LLP, where he was an attorney in the firm’s Telecom, Media, and Technology Group.
Umair was named to the inaugural Lawyers of Color Hot List. He is also a 2021 HTTP “Tech Innovadores” recipient and the 2023 Public Safety Communications Leadership in Regulatory Service award recipient for his service at the FCC.
Umair has a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law and a bachelor of arts in Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law from the University of Virginia. He is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia and Virginia. Umair also is a volunteer firefighter in Loudoun County, Virginia.
Telecommunications & Electronic Media Practice Group: Administration in Review and What Lies Ahead: Communications and Technology Policy Challenges in Times of Transformational Change
Robin Colwell, Scott Blake Harris, Umair Javed, Mario Loyola, Michael H. Park
2024 National Lawyers Convention
Featuring a conversation addressing regulation of artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, tech platform regulation, privacy, spectrum policy,...
Telecommunications & Electronic Media Practice Group: Administration in Review and What Lies Ahead: Communications and Technology Policy Challenges in Times of Transformational Change
Robin Colwell, Scott Blake Harris, Umair Javed, Mario Loyola, Michael H. Park
2024 National Lawyers Convention
Featuring a conversation addressing regulation of artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, tech platform regulation, privacy, spectrum policy,...
Insights on the National Spectrum Strategy
Umair Javed, John Kneuer, Robert M. McDowell, Jennifer Warren
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) unveiled the National Spectrum Strategy in November 2023...
Insights on the National Spectrum Strategy
Umair Javed, John Kneuer, Robert M. McDowell, Jennifer Warren
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) unveiled the National Spectrum Strategy in November 2023...
Global Politics of Internet Regulation: Actors and Trajectory - Podcast
Will Hudson, Patricia J. Paoletta, Sally Wentworth, Umair Javed
Telecommunications & Electronic Media Practice Group Podcast
In recent years, the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union has become an arena where governments...