Jennifer Tatel, formerly acting general counsel at the FCC, has joined Wilkinson Barker Knauer (WBK) as a partner, focusing on media, privacy and the internet.
Tatel was named acting general counsel only last month, after general counsel Brendan Carr was sworn in as the newest Republican member of the FCC.
But industry sources had expected her to take the law firm job, which one source said had been in the works when she agreed to fill in when Carr became commissioner.
Eariler this month, Pai advisor Nicholas Degani was tapped to succeed Tatel as acting general counsel when she exited.
“Jennifer has been a policy leader on media and privacy issue for over a decade—her drive and passion for the law will be a tremendous asset for our clients," said WBK managing partner Bryan Tramont.
Before moving to the office of general counsel—she had been chief of staff and deputy general counsel when tapped to fill in for Carr—Tatel was legal advisor to then Republican commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker, and before that was chief of the Media Bureau's industry analysis division.
