Cooley Partner, Former FCC Member Battles Likely COVID-19

By Kelcee Griffis
Law360 is providing free access to its coronavirus coverage to make sure all members of the legal community have accurate information in this time of uncertainty and change. Use the form below to sign up for any of our weekly newsletters. Signing up for any of our section newsletters will opt you in to the weekly Coronavirus briefing.

Sign up for our Telecommunications newsletter

You must correct or enter the following before you can sign up:

Select more newsletters to receive for free [+] Show less [-]

Thank You!



Law360 (March 23, 2020, 5:33 PM EDT) -- Former FCC commissioner and current Cooley LLP partner Robert McDowell has been discharged from a Virginia hospital after falling ill with what doctors believe is the novel coronavirus, according to a pair of social media statements the attorney made over the weekend.

The ex-commissioner, who served two terms during end of George W. Bush's presidency and the beginning of Barack Obama's, wrote on Twitter Saturday that his doctor sent him to the emergency room for treatment of "mild pneumonia" linked to a likely COVID-19 infection. 

As of Sunday, McDowell said he had been discharged from the hospital to self-quarantine and recover at home. He described his experience with the illness as "brutal" and said he is "still quite weak." 


McDowell joins a growing number of high-profile lawmakers and public policy figures who have contracted the highly contagious coronavirus. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar released a statement Monday that her husband, University of Baltimore School of Law professor John Bessler, has tested positive for the sickness and has been checked into a hospital in Virginia.

Before joining Cooley as a partner in the firm's communication regulatory practice in 2016, he worked as a communications partner at Wiley. His tenure as a Republican FCC commissioner ran from 2006 to 2013.

--Additional reporting by Aebra Coe. Editing by Peter Rozovsky.

For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.

Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!