| Robert Barnett | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 26, 1946 Waukegan, Illinois |
| Nationality | United States |
| Alma mater | University of Chicago Law School University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Employer | Williams & Connolly |
Robert B. Barnett (August 26, 1946[1])is an American lawyer who is a partner at the law firm Williams & Connolly LLP. Barnett is married to Rita Braver, born April 1948, a correspondent with CBS News.
Barnett was born in Waukegan, Illinois. He obtained a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1968 and a law degree from the University of Chicago in 1971. He was comment editor for the University of Chicago Law Review and later clerked for John Minor Wisdom and later Byron White on the Supreme Court. An aide to Walter Mondale, he joined the law firm of Williams & Connolly in 1975.[2]
He was ranked by Washingtonian magazine as the #1 Washington, D.C. area lawyer in 2004 and number 10 in 2007.
He has represented many influential people including Bob Woodward, Tim Russert, James Patterson, Barbra Streisand, James Carville, Mary Matalin, William Bennett, Benazir Bhutto, Dan Quayle, Madeline Albright, Larry Summers, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, Laura Bush, Dick Cheney, Lynne Cheney, James Baker, Paul Wolfowitz, Karl Rove, Alan Greenspan, Queen Noor, Sarah Palin, Tony Blair and Barack Obama.[3]
He also served as a practice debate opponent for many Democratic Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates.[4]