Mitchell Calhoun

Experience

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  US House of Representatives - Small Business Committee

  Jan 2004 - Jun 2004

  Congressional Intern

  Researched tax, health care, and other small business issues for upcoming hearings. Wrote hearing statements. Researched constituent issues regarding taxation and federal regulations.

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  District of Columbia Superior Court

  Jun 2004 - Sept 2004

  Courtroom & Calendar Clerk

  Calendar & Courtoom Clerk for The Hon. J. Michael RyanProduced case notes for future written opinions. Explained court orders and proceedings to petitioners. Recorded courtroom proceedings. Prepared court orders for review.

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  US House of Representatives – Ways and Means Committee

  Jan 2005 - May 2005

  Congressional Intern

  Researched tax and oversight issues for hearings and representatives' statements. Created hearing materials, issue summaries, and hearing summaries.

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  Computer Geeks

  May 2005 - Jul 2006

  Intern/Technician

  Provided technical support for personal computing issues, both hardware and software. Scheduled customers' appointments with certified technicians. Provided administrative support to the technical and accounting staff.

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  Staas & Halsey LLP

  Sept 2006 - Aug 2008

  Overflow Intellectual Property Assistant

  Prepared patent applications, amendments, responses to notices of missing parts, and information disclosure statements for filing with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

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  U.S. Department of Justice - Federal Bureau of Prisons

  Jan 2009 - May 2010

  Legal Intern - Office of General Counsel

  Prepared new inmate offense regulations for implementation in federal prisons. Prepared revised regulations regarding the use of pepper spray in federal prisons in response to the federal correctional officers’ union’s requested changes to the CFR and prepared responses to the union. Reviewed inmate applications for admission to drug treatment programs and drafted orders resolving the applications.

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  The Information Economy Project

  May 2009 - Sept 2009

  Research Assistant & Operations Support

  Performed research regarding radio spectrum and private property rights. Wrote memoranda regarding experts’ research and recent telecommunications judicial decisions and FCC rulings. Credited for research assistance by Professor Thomas Hazlett in Modular Confines of Mobile Networks: Are iPhones iPhony? (2009) & U.S. Wireless License Auctions 1994-2009 (2009).

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  Federal Communications Commission - Wireline Competition Bureau

  May 2010 - Sept 2010

  Legal Intern - Telecommunications Access Policy Division

  Evaluated service providers' comments on the implementation of the National Broadband Plan and drafted orders to effectively implement the National Broadband Plan. Evaluated applicant appeals to the Universal Service Fund’s E-Rate program and drafted Bureau orders resolving the appeals.

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  DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice

  Aug 2010 - Jan 2011

  Legal Intern

  Researched DC Home Rule Act issues and drafted arguments supporting the DC Council’s authority to amend federal statutes relating to the Second Amendment and DC voting rights for future argument before the U.S. DC District Court. Researched state health insurance regulations and policy for arguments presented to the Washington, DC, Insurance Commissioner. Drafted motions and briefs for administrative actions brought before the DC Insurance Commissioner

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  Office of Commissioner Mignon Clyburn - Federal Communications Commission

  Jan 2011 - May 2011

  Legal Intern

  Prepared briefing materials, talking points, and policy recommendation summaries for Commissioner Clyburn's meetings with government officials and industry leaders on Universal Service, market regulation, and satellite interference issues. Wrote summary reports with policy recommendations on industry leaders'​ comments and arguments regarding Universal Service Fund reform. Drafted Commissioner Clyburn's opening statement to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Communications and Technology for the hearing on the FCC's Open Internet Order. Prepared briefing materials and talking points for Commissioner Clyburn's meetings with government officials and industry leaders. Show less

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  Montgomery County Circuit Court

  Aug 2011 - Aug 2012

  Judicial Law Clerk

  Law Clerk to the Hon. Sharon V. BurrellPrepared opinions for criminal cases and appeals from the District Court, including post-conviction petitions and petitions for writs of error: coram nobis. Prepared issue and argument summary memoranda for upcoming hearings and trials.

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  Welter Law Firm, P.C.

  Sept 2012 - Oct 2015

  • Represented employers and businesses in employment and commercial litigation and administrative agency actions in numerous federal and state jurisdictions. Advised corporate leadership on changes in federal and state labor regulations to ensure compliance. Guided clients through state and federal agency labor investigations. Advised clients and prepared issue blog posts on data security and corporate BYOD policies. Prepared client position statements in response to state and federal agency labor enforcement actions.• Represented multi-national corporation in litigation over the acquisition of a foreign entity and enforcement of the share purchase agreements.• Obtained a favorable settlement for national corporation against a $400,000 workers’ compensation retaliation claim. • Obtained favorable settlement for contractor against former employer’s breach of fiduciary duty and misappropriation of trade secrets claims.• Obtained partial dismissal and favorable settlement of remaining claims for retail corporation in multi-plaintiff discrimination claim under Title VII.• Served as second chair in a year-long arbitration action defending a Section 8A prime contractor against a subcontractor’s breach of contract claim. Show less

  • Associate Attorney

    Mar 2013 - Oct 2015

  • Of Counsel

    Sept 2012 - Mar 2013
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  Harvey & Binnall, PLLC

  Oct 2015 - Sept 2017

  Associate Attorney

  • Represent businesses and individuals as first or second chair litigation counsel in complex commercial, employment, and civil litigation matters. Direct all stages of litigation from pleadings to trial. Counsel corporate leadership on federal and state labor regulations and advise them on how to modify their operational procedures to comply with regulatory changes.• Negotiate settlements and commercial contracts. Prepare asset purchase agreements, employment, severance, non-competition and non-disclosure agreements as well as corporate governance and corporate creation documents for corporate clients.• Successfully defended an apartment complex and regional residential property management company against fair housing discrimination, personal injury and wrongful death claims where the plaintiff sought over $2,000,000 in damages plus attorney’s fees. Prepared appellee brief in plaintiff’s appeal to the Supreme Court of Virginia.• Won a commercial real estate sale dispute case at trial and obtained a $500,000 property for my client. Show less

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  Universal Service Administrative Co. (USAC)

  Sept 2017 - now

  Founding Director of USAC's Fraud Risk Group; Senior Privacy Counsel and leader of USAC's Privacy Team, lead counsel for all employment, litigation, and USF contributions matters.I currently co-lead USAC's Privacy Team in collaboration with USAC's Privacy Officer. The team addresses and manages all issues related to privacy and cybersecurity within USAC's corporate operations and administration of the USF programs and associated federal records databases. Implements privacy policies and procedural controls to ensure compliance with all Privacy Act, E-Govt. Act, FISMA, and NIST requirements and guidance. Conduct privacy assessments of USAC systems, direct privacy and cyber incident responses, and improve data security via privacy by design.Founding director of USAC's Fraud Risk Group (FRG) is a new initiative to detect, prevent, and respond to fraud in all five universal service programs. Created in 2019, FRG is a new group of attorney investigators responsible for implementing the GAO’s framework for managing fraud risks in federal programs, investigating fraud and fraud schemes within all five universal service programs, and supporting investigations by the FCC’s Office of Inspector General and the Enforcement Bureau. In the United States, all telecommunications providers are required to contribute a portion of their telecommunications revenue to the Universal Service Fund (USF). As the lead regulatory counsel for USF contributions matters, I advise USAC's contributions team on the proper application of the program's rules and decide telecommunications companies' multi-million dollar appeals contesting their obligation to contribute. Appeals usually involve evaluating complex telecommunications technologies to determine if entities must contribute.In addition to the above, I am continuing my duties as labor and employment counsel and lead litigation counsel as indicated in the Assistant General Counsel description below. Show less My work focuses primarily on labor and employment, telecommunications regulation, specifically the Schools and Libraries (E-rate) program on universal service, law enforcement, and litigation.Labor & EmploymentLead labor and employment counsel for USAC, a non-profit corporation of 500 employees and 200+ contractors responsible for administering the federal Universal Service Fund under the supervision of the Federal Communications Commission. • Re-wrote USAC’s employee handbook in collaboration with the Human Resources Department to clarify USAC policies and close policy gaps.• Created a new suite of Human Resources policies to close policy gaps, reduce resource waste, and create greater efficiency and structure in USAC’s Human Resources processes.• Identified and corrected legal risks in USAC's employee relations procedures • Partnered with Human Resources to create a new management training system and improved investigation training for HR staff.• Represent USAC before the DC Office of Human Rights, the EEOC, and in employment litigation matters.Telecommunication Regulatory Legal Practice• Advise USAC's Schools and Libraries Division on E-rate regulatory precedent and provide guidance on novel legal issues. Legal matters often involve complex multi-year telecommunications contracts and millions of dollars of stakeholder funds.• Prepare administrative legal opinions resolving applications for millions of dollars in federal support for telecommunications services to individual school districts and state departments of education.Law Enforcement/Fraud Investigations• Managed and coordinated USAC's law enforcement investigation efforts in coordination with and support of the FCC's Office of Inspector General and the Enforcement Bureau.• Investigated whistleblower complaints, interviewing witnesses and preparing summary reports and referrals to the FCC. Show less

  • Director - Associate General Counsel

    Sept 2023 - now

  • Associate General Counsel

    Aug 2019 - Sept 2023

  • Assistant General Counsel

    Sept 2017 - Aug 2019