Andrew McCanse Wright

Andrew Wright is a partner at the K&L Gates' Washington, D.C. office and is a member of the public policy and law practice group. He guides clients through congressional investigations, executive branch compliance, and government enforcement actions.

Andrew rejoined K&L Gates after serving as Director of Legal Policy for the Biden-Harris Presidential Transition. He previously served as Associate Counsel to U.S. President Barack Obama and Assistant Counsel to U.S. Vice President Al Gore. In those roles, he represented and advised the White House on a variety of legal matters, with an emphasis on litigation, congressional oversight, investigations, compliance, and national security. In White House Counsel's Office, he was the primary legal liaison to the departments of Defense, Justice (DOJ), and State; Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); Office of the Director of National Intelligence; and U.S. Agency for International Development on government investigations, congressional oversight, and Freedom of Information Act matters.

In Congress, Andrew served as Staff Director of the Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. There, he led oversight investigations of national security and foreign affairs, designed subcommittee hearings, and managed staff under former committee chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) and subcommittee chairman John Tierney (D-MA).

In addition to his time in public service, Andrew is a trainer for the Carl Levin Center at Wayne State University, educating lawyers, business leaders, legislators, and public servants on oversight. Over the past four years, he has led courses for current House and Senate oversight staff from both political parties. He is a Founding Editor and Senior Fellow of the online national security forum Just Security, and is featured regularly in leading political and business news outlets.

Prior to joining the firm, Andrew was a Senior Fellow at New York University School of Law. He also taught at Savannah Law School and West Virginia University College of Law, including courses in constitutional law, criminal law, criminal procedure, presidential powers, and federal criminal law. Andrew has previous private practice experience as a litigator and white collar criminal defense lawyer. Additionally, he worked on numerous presidential and congressional election campaigns.