Robert S. Bennett

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Robert S. Bennett (born 1939) is an American attorney best known for representing President Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky investigation. Bennett is also famous for representing Judith Miller in the Valerie Plame case, Caspar Weinberger, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, during the Iran-Contra episode of the 1980s, Clark Clifford in the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) scandal, and Paul Wolfowitz in the World Bank Scandal.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, he graduated from Brooklyn Prep in 1957. Bennett received his B.A. from Georgetown University in 1961, his LL.B. from Georgetown in 1964, and his LL.M. from Harvard University in 1965. From 1965 to 1967, he served as a clerk for Howard F. Corcoran, a judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

After graduating from law school, Bennett served as assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. He then went on to Hogan & Hartson, where he worked in the litigation department. He is a partner with the firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in Washington, D.C.

Bennett served as a member of the National Review Board for the Protection of Children & Young People, created by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, from 2002 to 2004. He is the older brother of William J. Bennett, former U.S. secretary of education for President Ronald Reagan.

He currently is defending John McCain from allegations by the The New York Times of an improper relationship with a Washington lobbyist during the 2000 presidential campaign. He is also the author of In The Ring: The Trials of a Washington Lawyer, published in 2008.