Practices:

• Political Law
• Energy
• Federal Issues Litigation
• Energy
• Global Infrastructure and Public-Private Partnerships
• Government Contracts
• International
  • Canada-U.S. Practice
• Political Law
• Public Policy and Regulatory Affairs
  • Canada-U.S. Practice
  • Federal Government Affairs
  • National Government Affairs
  • Political Law

Experience

Ambassador Giffin is the Chair of the Public Policy and International department of McKenna Long & Aldridge. He maintains offices in Washington, DC and Atlanta, Georgia. His practice is focused on international transactions and trade matters, government procurement, energy regulatory and policy matters federal and state regulatory matters and public policy.

Ambassador Giffin has been engaged in the practice of law or government service for over thirty years. His law practice involves substantial experience at the state and federal levels in regulatory and administrative litigation in the energy, technology and telecommunications fields; government procurement counseling and litigation; public policy strategic counseling and advocacy; corporate compliance counseling and internal audits; election law; international transactions; trade matters, including trade disputes and policy counseling.

From August 1997 to April 2001, Ambassador Giffin served as the nineteenth U.S. Ambassador to Canada. As Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa, he managed U.S. interests in the world's largest bi-lateral trading relationship in the context of the North American Free Trade Agreement, as well as U.S. collaboration with Canada on global issues in international fora. In addition to the Department of State complement in Canada, more than 900 personnel from 21 federal departments and agencies, along with six consulates, reported to the Ambassador. He received the Superior Honor Award from the Department of State for negotiating a pre-clearance agreement.

From 1975-1979, he was Legislative Director and Chief Counsel to U.S. Senator Sam Nunn in Washington, DC. 

JAMES Magazine named Giffin as one of Georgia's Most Influential People in its 2007 annual listing. He has also served as an adjunct professor of law at Emory University School of Law.

Education

• J.D., Emory University School of Law, 1974
• B.A., Duke University, 1971

Admitted

• Georgia
• District of Columbia