Christopher L. Irving is the Assistant Vice President of Consumer, Government, Legal Communications & Affairs for Publishers Clearing House in Port Washington, New York. In this capacity he is responsible for directing Government and Consumer Communications & Affairs for the multi-channel direct marketing company with annual sales in 2010 reported by Crain's New York to be in excess of $700 million.
The New York City Green Book confirms that Irving joined Publishers Clearing House in 1994 after 7 years with the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs where he served as Assistant General Counsel from 1984 through 1992 litigating cases under the New York City Consumer Protection Law in the areas of marketing and advertising law. In 1992 he was appointed by Commissioner Mark Green as Consumer Advocate for the City of New York in the Department and served in that capacity until 1994. From 1990 through 1994 he was the department's chief liaison to the United Nations responsible for the handling and resolution of all delegate consumer complaints. He was the Department's voting representative on the Appeals Panel of the New York City Environmental Control Board during the period of 1988 - 1999. His work on behalf of consumers in obtaining a record restitution award was highlighted in a 1991 New York Newsday profile.
The Martindale-Hubbell legal directory lists Irving as a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and the University of New Hampshire Law School. As of September 2010 he was serving as an acting member of the following organizations: Direct Marketing Association's Consumer/Government Dialogue, National Consumers League, Alliance Against Fraud in Telemarketing, National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators, Direct Marketing Association's Committee on Governmental Relations, National Fraud Information Center Task Force on Fake Check Fraud, National LifeSmarts Consumer Challenge Judge, Direct Marketing Association's Ethics Operating Committee and the NY Bar Association Committee on Consumer Affairs. Irving authored "A Critical Review of Protecting the Consumer and The Smart Consumer" for the 1996 ACI Journal of Consumer Law, Policy and Research.
According to Nielsen media, Mr. Irving has presented consumer information regarding direct marketing, advertising and consumer education on television and media outlets such as the CBS Evening News, MSNBC Internight, NBC Dateline, NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and NPR’s MarketPlace. Irving has been interviewed in over 200 national and local newspapers and magazines including The New York Times, USA Today, Miami Herald, Wall Street Journal, Newsday, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, Consumer Reports and Advertising Age.
He is a frequent speaker at consumer gatherings and seminars and has presented before groups including the Federal Trade Commission's Money Transfer Workshop, Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals, Consumer Federation of America Consumer Assembly, National Consumer League Fake Check Task Force, National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators Annual Conference, Direct Marketing Association's Business & Regulatory Dialogue Series, DMA Annual Conference, AARP Annual Conference and the Congressional Consumer Senior Forum with Representative Patrick Kennedy.
Mr. Irving currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals International (SOCAP)and acts as the Committee Chair for the SOCAP Public Relations/Corporate Communications Committee. He is Chair for the Direct Marketing Association's Committee on Ethical Opearations and serves on the legal committee for the Word of Mouth Marketing Association. He has served as a past member of the Consumer Affairs Committee's of the New York City, New York County and Nassau County Bar Associations.