Mike McKay

The Seattle office of global law firm K&L Gates LLP announced on June 15, 2017, that  NAFUSA Foundation President and former NAFUSA President Michael D. McKay will join the firm’s investigations, enforcement, and white collar practice, effective July 1. McKay will join K&L Gates from McKay Chadwell PLLC, of which McKay was a founding partner.

Prior to establishing his highly successful namesake litigation boutique in 1995, McKay served as United States Attorney for the Western District of Washington under President George H.W. Bush. During his time as federal prosecutor, he oversaw several prominent suits involving the government, including the charging decision in the first flag burning case in the U.S. The longtime litigator began his career in the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s office, where he handled cases in the civil, fraud, juvenile, and criminal divisions; played a role in the implementation of the Washington State Juvenile Justice Act; and represented the Kingdome in major litigation with the Seattle Mariners.

McKay focuses his practice on white collar criminal defense, commercial litigation, and corporate and government internal investigations. He represents high-profile companies and individuals across a variety of industries facing federal, state, and local inquiries as well as civil litigation issues.

“We are delighted to welcome Mike to K&L Gates,” said Pallavi Mehta Wahi, administrative partner of K&L Gates’ Seattle office. “His public and private practice experience will be a perfect fit for clients served through both our Seattle office and around the world, and our firm will greatly benefit from Mike’s leadership and ability to develop both individuals and teams.”

An active and prominent member of the Seattle legal and political community, McKay was appointed by U.S. Senators Slade Gorton and Patty Murray in the late 1990s as the first co-chair of Washington’s Judicial Selection Committee (a bipartisan committee of six individuals who select federal court judicial nominees on behalf of Washington’s two senators and the President of the United States), a role he has held for nearly 20 years. Together with his brother John, he is a recipient of the Legal Foundation of Washington’s prestigious Charles A. Goldmark Award for Distinguished Service (2008) for his contributions to equal access to justice.

K&L Gates’ leading investigations, enforcement, and white collar practice has more than 100 lawyers globally and includes former U.S. and state attorneys general, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) staff, assistant United States attorneys, state securities regulators, deputy state attorneys general, and staff lawyers from FINRA, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), bank regulatory agencies, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Justice in Hong Kong, and numerous other law enforcement agencies.