School of Law to Host USDA General Counsel

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. –Marc L. Kesselman, general counsel of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will visit the National Agricultural Law Center at the University of Arkansas School of Law on Tuesday, April 1. He will make a public presentation at 1:15 p.m. in the E.J. Ball Courtroom at the Leflar Law Center. The event is free and open to the public.

In addition, Kesselman will meet with the center’s staff, students enrolled in the school’s agricultural law graduate program, student editors of theJournal of Food Law and Policy, law students and faculty.

As the USDA’s top lawyer, Kesselman will discuss his perspectives on regulatory reform and agriculture in a period of evolving challenges. He will talk about a range of issues including the ongoing farm bill debate, climate change and environmental law issues associated with agriculture.

Harrison Pittman, director of the National Agricultural Law Center, said Kesselman is integrally involved with many defining issues in agriculture, particularly the myriad issues associated with the current farm bill debate, and his insight is valuable to everyone.

“Mr. Kesselman’s visit is an important and timely event for the center and the university community,” Pittman said. “Whether you’re a consumer, farmer, researcher, policy maker or otherwise, the issues he deals with are of great significance to the nation.”

As USDA general counsel, Kesselman advises the Secretary of Agriculture and directs all legal activity for the department, including litigation, counseling and regulatory development. 

Before joining USDA in 2006, Kesselman served as deputy general counsel at the Office of Management and Budget, served as senior counsel in the Office of Legal Policy at the Department of Justice and worked as a trial attorney in Justice´s Federal Programs Branch. Kesselman also worked as an attorney at the Washington, D.C., law firm of Ropes & Gray, focusing on litigation, employment law, intellectual property and white-collar defense.

Kesselman graduated with high honors from Cornell University and with honors from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He served as a law clerk for the Honorable Julia S. Gibbons, then the chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.

“Mr. Kesselman is a well respected attorney throughout the nation, and it is an honor to have him here at the School of Law,” Pittman said. “His presentation will be a unique opportunity to hear from a leading agricultural official who is at the heart of the important issues facing the country.”

The National Agricultural Law Center is the nation’s leading resource for agricultural and food law research and information. Created by Congress in 1987, the center complements the School of Law’s graduate program in agricultural law and the Journal of Food Law and Policy.

Visit http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org to learn more about the National Agricultural Law Center.