Covington & Burling hires former US diplomat for Latin America

Covington & Burling has hired Kimberly Breier, a former diplomat for Latin America at the US Department of State, as a senior adviser in the firm’s Washington, DC office.

Breier (pictured) most recently served as Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, the US government’s top diplomatic post for the Western Hemisphere.

She led the State Department’s policy formation, oversaw US embassies and consulates across 30 countries, and led diplomatic engagements with major initiatives in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, the Caribbean, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela, according to a press release from the law firm.

“With over two decades of government, private sector, and think tank experience on Latin American issues, Kim is well placed to provide strategic advice to US and other multinational clients with investments and operations in Latin America,” Al Larson, co-chair of Covington’s global problem solving group, said.

“Her knowledge of the region and its political and business environment is a valuable resource for clients,” he added.

Prior to serving as an Assistant Secretary of State, Breier served on the Secretary of State’s policy planning team for the Western Hemisphere, where she drafted regional strategies.

From 2005-2006, she worked at the White House in the Western Hemisphere Affairs Office of the National Security Council, serving as director for Mexico and Canada, director for Brazil and the Southern Cone, and interim director for the Andean region. She also served more than a decade in the US intelligence community in analytical and management roles.

Outside of government, Breier founded and served as the director of the US-Mexico futures initiative, and was the deputy director of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

She also spent five years as vice president of Peschard-Sverdrup International, leading risk assessment projects for countries in Latin America.

“Latin America continues to present enormous opportunity to businesses around the world, but it requires a keen understanding of the commercial, legal and political structures to succeed,” Sergio Urias, co-chair of Covington’s Latin America practice, said.

“Kim is a unique resource within a law firm and will partner with our lawyers who focus on issues in the region to deliver significant value and benefit to clients focused on Latin America,” he added.

“Covington offers a unique platform that partners the industry’s top legal minds with a deep bench of former top diplomats and a bipartisan roster of policy strategists committed to solving multinational corporations’ most challenging business issues,” Breier, who earned her MA in Latin American studies from Georgetown University in 1997, said.