Maureen Ohlhausen

Maureen Ohlhausen
Name	Maureen Ohlhausen
Birth date	1962
Occupation	Lawyer, academic, regulator
Known for	Federal Trade Commission Commissioner, antitrust law, privacy policy

Maureen Ohlhausen is an American attorney, regulator, and academic known for her work in antitrust law, consumer protection, and privacy policy. She served as a Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission and as Acting Chair of the Federal Trade Commission before returning to private practice and teaching. Her career spans service in federal agencies, private law firms, and think tanks with engagement on Sherman Antitrust Act and Federal Trade Commission Act matters.

Early life and education

Ohlhausen was born in 1962 and raised in a family that encouraged public service and scholarly pursuits, which influenced her pursuit of legal studies at institutions associated with prominent figures like Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. and Louis Brandeis. She earned a Bachelor of Science from a university that counts alumni such as John F. Kennedy and Theodore Roosevelt before receiving a Juris Doctor from a law school connected historically with jurists including Antonin Scalia and William Rehnquist. During law school she clerked in environments shaped by the precedents of Marbury v. Madison and the administrative jurisprudence influenced by Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc..

Legal and private sector career

After law school, Ohlhausen practiced at law firms where colleagues worked on matters involving entities like Microsoft Corporation, AT&T Inc., and Google LLC, and she litigated alongside attorneys experienced with statutes such as the Clayton Antitrust Act and the Lanham Act. She later joined private sector legal teams that advised clients operating in industries regulated by agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice Antitrust Division. Her private practice included counseling corporations on compliance with rulings from courts including the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and the United States Supreme Court.

Federal Trade Commission tenure

Ohlhausen joined the Federal Trade Commission as a staff attorney and rose through roles that interfaced with Commissioners appointed by Presidents like George W. Bush and Barack Obama. She was nominated to the Commission by Barack Obama and confirmed amid deliberations involving Senators from chambers such as the United States Senate Judiciary Committee and the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. During her tenure she participated in enforcement actions and policy initiatives related to landmark matters including investigations touching Facebook, Equifax, Apple Inc., and Google LLC, and she worked on rulemaking and guidance influenced by precedents such as decisions from the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She served as Acting Chair of the Federal Trade Commission during a transition between Presidential administrations and coordinated with agencies like the Department of Justice on interagency antitrust reviews.

Litigation and policy positions

As a policymaker and litigator, Ohlhausen articulated positions on antitrust enforcement, privacy regulation, and administrative law that referenced authorities such as the Administrative Procedure Act, the Sherman Antitrust Act, and landmark cases like Brown v. Board of Education only as analogies in broader regulatory debates. She dissented or concurred in Commission votes involving consent decrees with corporations such as Theranos-era subjects and technology firms like Twitter and Microsoft Corporation, emphasizing interpretations consistent with precedents from the United States Supreme Court and scholarly work from contributors to journals associated with Harvard Law School and Yale Law School. Her written opinions cited competition theories debated in literature connected to economists at institutions like Stanford University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Post-government career and teaching

After leaving the Federal Trade Commission, Ohlhausen joined private practice at a law firm that represents clients before tribunals including the Federal Trade Commission and the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She has been affiliated with think tanks and policy organizations such as those linked to scholars from Brookings Institution and American Enterprise Institute, and she has lectured at law schools where faculty include professors from Georgetown University Law Center, Columbia Law School, and New York University School of Law. Her teaching and public speaking have covered topics embodied in courses offered at institutions like George Mason University and seminars modeled on curricula from Oxford University and Cambridge University.

Personal life and memberships

Ohlhausen is married and her personal affiliations include membership in professional organizations such as the American Bar Association, the Federalist Society, and bar associations tied to the District of Columbia Bar and state bars with histories including figures like Clarence Darrow and Thurgood Marshall. She has participated in events organized by entities such as the National Association of Attorneys General and advisory panels convened by academic centers connected to Harvard Kennedy School and Stanford Graduate School of Business. Her civic activities have intersected with alumni networks linked to universities that counted alumni like Jimmy Carter and John Adams.

Category:Living people Category:1962 births Category:American lawyers Category:United States Federal Trade Commission commissioners