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Joshua
N. Lief is an attorney with Sands,
Anderson, Marks & Miller.
Sands Anderson
is a full service law firm with over 60 attorneys
in Richmond,
McLean, Fredericksburg
and Radford,
Virginia
and in
Raleigh-Durham,
North Carolina. Mr. Lief
focuses his practice on assisting businesses,
whether in the boardroom, the Courts or the
General Assembly. He
has a wide range of clients, from international
corporations to small Virginia-based businesses,
and he serves as general counsel to several
entities.
As
Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Commerce and
Trade, Mr. Lief was an integral member of Virginia’s record-breaking economic development team.
He has worked with Virginia
businesses on a wide range of issues, including
incentives, zoning, environmental, tax, workforce,
transportation and other regulatory matters.
Mr.
Lief worked with industries throughout the
spectrum of the Commonwealth’s diverse economy,
including information technology, housing,
manufacturing, tourism and the natural-resource
based industries of agriculture, forestry and
mining. He
also worked with local governments from the
eastern shore to the coalfields in solving
problems impeding their sustained growth and
development. Mr.
Lief was the Gilmore administration’s
pro-business advocate in the General Assembly,
speaking in favor of businesses on a wide range of
issues.
At
the Attorney General’s office, Mr. Lief
represented
Virginia
in antitrust, consumer and charitable matters.
He was lead counsel on several major
antitrust investigations, including joint
investigations with the Department of Justice
where he took part in grand jury proceedings.
He also was Virginia’s lead counsel in several major multi-state
antitrust investigations.
In the consumer and charitable area, Mr.
Lief was part of trial teams that won major
judgments for the Commonwealth.
He also represented the Commonwealth before
the State Corporation Commission on insurance and
utility matters.
Prior
to entering public service, Mr. Lief practiced
with two national law firms: McGuire Woods in
Richmond, Virginia and Kaye Scholer in New York
City. He
specialized in complex litigation, business torts,
antitrust and products liability.
Mr.
Lief obtained his law degree, magna cum laude, from the Syracuse University College of Law.
He was the recipient of several honors at
law school and was a member of the Syracuse Law
Review. He
obtained his undergraduate degree from the State
University of New York at Albany. He is admitted to practice law in Virginia
and New York.
Mr.
Lief is married and has four children.
His hobbies include playing lead guitar and
singing in the blues-rock band called the
Backscratchers, racing cars at Virginia
International Raceway, playing tennis and working
out.
Speeches
and Publications
(partial
listing)
Columns
May
19: Gentleman,
Start Your Engines.
Virginia
has what it takes to be a contender in motor sports. A
little help from the state could jump start local
development of this fast-growing industry.
March
24: May
the War Pass Quickly. The
war on terror is real, but the case for invading Iraq is
less than compelling. Bottom line: Support the
president, pray for our soldiers and wish for a speedy
end to the war.
February
3: Show
Us the Money. The
Virginia Tourism Cooperative Advertising Program
stimulates significant tourism for a modest state
investment. The General Assembly should preserve it.
January
13: What's
Wrong With This Picture? If
the budget-chastened state is supposed to focus on
"core" services, why are economic development
programs, which generate new tax revenue, getting
whacked?
-
2002 -
November
18: Simplify
the Budget. An
obscure budget process clouds policy decisions in
the Commonwealth.
September
16, 2002: Welcome
to Virginia.
Virginia's
welcome centers are an embarrassment. Opening the
facilities to private investment would save money
and make a better impression on tourists.
August
12, 2002: Means
of Last Resort. Virginia's roads need
help. But before raising taxes, Virginians should
wait for Gov. Warner to straighten out VDOT and
see what two important study commissions have to
say.
July
22, 2002: Four
Years Are not Enough. Governors need two
terms to accomplish long-term goals.
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