The Fourth Edition of THE LOBBYING MANUAL (2009) updates chapters of the Third Edition (2005) to reflect the current legal environment confronting federal lobbyists following the enactment of the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 and in light of the continuing initiatives of the Obama Administration. The new edition also contains many entirely new chapters that focus on the practice of lobbying both the legislative and executive branches of government. For a detailed description of the scope of coverage of the Fourth Edition, click here. For biographical sketches of the authors of the various chapters, click here. To purchase the Fourth Edition, click here.

Lobbying law is changing much faster than it ever has. Accordingly, in publishing this Fourth Edition of THE LOBBYING MANUAL, it was clear that periodic updates would be necessary before the next edition could be prepared. This webpage will contain newly issued, publicly available documents (downloadable for free) that relate to material contained in chapters of the Fourth Edition of the THE LOBBYING MANUAL (such as revised Lobbying Disclosure Act Guidance issued by the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives). Moreover, for six months following the publication of the Fourth Edition, this webpage will also contain, free of charge, necessary updating text for those chapters. Following that six month period, new and revised chapters and updating text will be available for purchase at the ABA Webstore.

Comments on the Fourth Edition, updating materials and chapters posted on this page, and this webpage are invited. Please address them to one of the editors, William V. Luneburg, at wvl@law.pitt.edu.

William V. Luneburg started his career at the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 1971 where he specialized in air pollution regulation. Since 1978 he has been a Professor of Law at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law where he has taught courses dealing with civil litigation, administrative law, legislation, and environmental law. His scholarly work has ranged over all of those areas. During the 1980s and early 1990s he served as a consultant to the Administrative Conference of the United States. On the practice side, he has advised and represented a variety of public interest groups in litigation involving air and water pollution, forest management, and endangered species protection. He was the editor of the Second Edition of The Lobbying Manual (1998) and co-editor of the Third Edition (2005). Beyond his work on The Lobbying Manual, he has authored various articles dealing with the reform of lobbying disclosure law and with the constitutional issues presented by lobbying disclosure. Professor Luneburg is currently Chair (2009–2010) of the ABA’s Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice and has been, at various times, Chair and Vice-Chair of its Legislative Process and Lobbying Committee. He is past Chair of the Legislation and Law of the Political Process Section of the Association of American Law Schools.

Thomas M. Susman is Director of the Governmental Affairs Office of the American Bar Association. Before joining the ABA staff, he was a partner in the Washington office of Ropes & Gray, LLP where he coordinated the firm’s regulatory and legislative practice for over 27 years. He received his B.A. from Yale (1964) and his J.D. from the University of Texas (1967), and was general counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee before entering private practice. Mr. Susman has served on the Board of Governors and in the House of Delegates of the American Bar Association and is a past chair of the Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Section of the ABA. He chairs the Ethics Committee of the American League of Lobbyists and is a member of the American Law Institute. He frequently speaks and writes about lobbying and ethics and has taught courses dealing with lobbying and legislative process at the Washington College of Law of American University.

Rebecca H. Gordon is a senior associate in the Political Law Group at Perkins Coie LLP. She focuses her practice on political law, including federal and state campaign finance law, Congressional and Executive Branch ethics regulation, and lobbying registration and disclosure. She advises public officials, candidates, corporations, political parties, and PACs on compliance with campaign finance and congressional ethics matters. She also advises corporations and government relations personnel on lobbying disclosure, campaign finance, and ethics issues, including compliance with the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007. Ms. Gordon served as Deputy General Counsel to Obama for America during the 2008 election cycle, and currently serves as Deputy General Counsel to the Democratic National Committee. Her clients also include federal political party committees, Fortune 500 corporations, and prominent lobbying firms, whom she advises on matters related to campaign finance, lobbying disclosure, and congressional ethics. She has represented clients before the Federal Election Commission and federal courts on campaign finance issues, and before the U.S. House and Senate Ethics Committees on ethics issues.

For biographical sketches of the authors of the various chapters, click here.