HWG attorney Thomas B. Mason and D.C. Bar attorney Hope C. Todd will present an Ethics CLE program titled “Leaving Government Employment: Ethics Issues for Attorneys” at an upcoming American Bar Association (ABA) Administrative Law Fall Conference on November 21, 2025.

This CLE program will offer a clear and practical overview of the special ethics rules that apply when Lawyers leave government employment, explaining why these rules exist and how they protect both the public and the integrity of government decision-making.

Tom and Hope will walk through the key federal ethics statutes, regulations, and professional conduct rules governing post-government employment. Their discussion will include:

  • What it means to “leave the government employment” from an ethics standpoint
  • How to determine whether a lawyer’s prior involvement in a matter constitutes “personal and substantial participation”
  • The range of post-employment restrictions, including limits on the clients former government attorneys may represent, the matters they may handle, and the interactions they may have with their former agencies
  • Why these requirements matter, and how they shape both career transitions and day-to-day work in private practice

To bring these concepts to life, Tom and Hope will also explore hypothetical and practical scenarios explaining how the rules apply in real-world situations. Their presentation emphasizes that attorneys must understand and comply with all relevant federal statutes, ethics rules, and professional-responsibility obligations when moving from public to private practice.

Attendees can earn Ethics CLE credit. Learn more and register here.

Tom is the founder of HWG’s Legal Ethics and Malpractice group and has experience in malpractice and disqualification litigation, disciplinary investigations and prosecutions, partner admissions and departures, and law firm dissolutions. He is a past Chair of the D.C. Bar Legal Ethics and Rules Revisions Committees.

Hope is the Associate Director of Legal Ethics and Regulation Counsel at the D.C. Bar, where she leads the ethics helpline and advises on the D.C. Rules of Professional Conduct. She serves as staff counsel to the Bar’s Legal Ethics Committee and the Rules of Professional Conduct Review Committee. Hope regularly teaches CLE programs and speaks nationally on legal ethics. She previously served on the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility. Before joining the D.C. Bar, she practiced law in New York and earned a J.D. from the University of Richmond School of Law.

The ABA is the largest voluntary professional association in the world, founded in 1878 to establish the foundation of American law and ethics. The ABA’s activities include establishing ethical standards for attorneys, accrediting law schools, and providing continuing legal education.