FTC Chairman Joe Simons Adds to Agency’s Leadership Team

Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons has made four appointments to the agency’s senior leadership team.

“I am delighted to appoint such a stellar group of leaders to continue the FTC’s work on behalf of American consumers,” Simons said. “Each of these highly qualified professionals has the knowledge and skills to do an outstanding job, working closely with the agency’s talented career staff.”

Andrew Smith will serve as Director of the agency’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, beginning next week. He will join the agency from Covington & Burling, where he was a Partner and Co-Chair of the Financial Services Practice Group. He is the Chair of the American Bar Association's Consumer Financial Services Committee, and a Fellow of the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers. Earlier in his career, Smith was the lead FTC staffer on the agency’s successful effort to enact the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, and, after the law's enactment, he led the dozens of rulemaking and research efforts required by Congress. Smith has a B.A. in History from Williams College and a J.D. from William & Mary Law School.

D. Bruce Hoffman has been appointed Director of the Bureau of Competition, having served as Acting Director since August 2017. He previously worked for Shearman & Sterling LLP and Hunton & Williams, and served as the Bureau’s Deputy Director and Associate Director for Regional Litigation. Hoffman has a B.A. from Penn State University and a J.D. from the University of Florida College of Law.

Bruce H. Kobayashi has been appointed Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Economics. He joins the agency from the George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, where he taught law and served as Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development. Professor Kobayashi was formerly a senior economist in the FTC’s Division of Economic Policy Analysis, a senior research associate at the United States Sentencing Commission, an economist for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, and chair of the executive board of the Association of American Law Schools’ Section on Antitrust and Economic Regulation. He also served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at George Mason University. Professor Kobayashi has a Ph.D. and M.A. in Economics, and a B.S. in Economics-System Science, from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Alden Abbott, who was recently appointed as Acting General Counsel by former Acting Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen, now serves as General Counsel. Abbott rejoined the agency from the Heritage Foundation’s Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies. He served previously as deputy director of the FTC’s Office of International Affairs, associate director and assistant director of the Bureau of Competition, and attorney advisor in the Office of Policy Planning. Abbott has a B.A. from the University of Virginia, a J.D. from Harvard Law School, and an M.A. in Economics from Georgetown University.

The Commission votes approving the appointments of Hoffman, Kobayashi, and Abbott were 5-0. The Commission vote approving the appointment of Smith was 3-2. Chairman Simons issued a statement. Commissioners Chopra and Slaughter each issued separate statements.

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