Considered one of the best lawyers in Washington, D.C., Howard Gutman '77 will be leaving private practice and the United States to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Belgium under President Barack Obama '83.

Gutman is a partner with Williams & Connolly, where he focuses on commercial litigation. His clients have included Fortune 500 companies, sports teams and political candidates, and his work earned him a mention as one of "Washington's Top Lawyers" in Washingtonian magazine.

A graduate of Harvard Law, Gutman also has served as a special assistant to F.B.I. Director William Webster, a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart and a law clerk to Appeals Court Judge Irving Goldberg.

-Ethan Rouen '04J