Meet Beth Wilkinson, the lawyer leading the probe into culture of Washington's NFL team
Daniel Snyder said he is committed to changing the culture and standards of his Washington NFL franchise after allegations of sexual harassment against former staffers were reported by the Washington Post last week.
The allegations from 15 former female employees and two reporters, one of whom still covers the team, occurred from 2006 to 2019, according to the report.
Synder hired Beth Wilkinson, partner of Wilkinson and Walsh, a Washington-based law firm, to conduct an independent review of the club's culture and the allegations of workplace misconduct.
William Issacson, a Washington-based attorney who interacts with the same professional circle and clientele as Wilkinson, told Paste BN Sports he believes Wilkinson and Walsh will be "looking at everything" and conducting the independent review "very thoroughly and very professionally."
Issacson and Wilkinson both graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law and won The American Lawyer's Litigator(s) of the Year award in 2016.
Paste BN Sports takes a quick look at who Wilkinson is, what she has done in her career and her experience with sports.
High-profile work
With almost three decades of work that has included high-profile cases and lead counsel experience in over 50 jury trials, according to the firm's website, Wilkinson is no stranger to public figures and organizations in the spotlight. She has carved out a career path in the private sector, specializing in white-collar criminal defense and representing numerous Fortune 500 companies.
Best known for prosecuting Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, the call for McVeigh's death sentence in her closing argument earned an Exceptional Service Award from the Justice Department, according to Princeton, making her the first person to receive it twice. She also received the award for her work in prosecuting a key member of Colombia's drug cartel.
Wilkinson defended Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing when he faced sexual harassment charges, and also represented four of Hilary Clinton's aides in the wake of Clinton's email scandal.
Wilkinson was retained by U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan last month as he sought to investigate the Justice Department's dismissal of the case against Michael Flynn, a former national security adviser.
Wilkinson's work in sports
Wilkinson's firm has handled investigations and litigation matters in both professional and collegiate sports.
Wilkinson was the NFL's lead counsel in a lawsuit that challenged the NFL's "Sunday Ticket" package and broadcasting rights, and she defended the NCAA a handful of times, including when athletes sued the association for limiting benefits they can receive. Wilkinson has also addressed gambling-related corruption issues facing professional tennis.
Wilkinson has represented the NFL in concussion-related litigation and represented MLB in a class-action lawsuit. She got a malpractice action brought by retired players against the NFL Players Association dismissed.
Within the past week, three men accused of misconduct left the Washington NFL organization: front office members Alex Santos and Richard Man III and radio play-by-play voice Larry Michael. The NFL released a statement addressing the allegations:
"These matters as reported are serious, disturbing and contrary to the NFL's values. Everyone in the NFL has the right to work in an environment free from any and all forms of harassment. Washington has engaged outside counsel to conduct a thorough investigation into these allegations. The club has pledged that it will give its full cooperation to the investigator and we expect the club and all employees to do so. We will meet with the attorneys upon the conclusion of their investigation and take any action based on the findings."
When the NFL responded to allegations against former Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson in 2017, the league opted to use outside counsel to run the misconduct probe rather than investigating the matter on its own.
The details of the agreement between Wilkinson's internal investigation and the franchise are not known.
"We will not be making any statements other than confirming our retention," Wilkinson told Paste BN Sports in a request.
Outside the courtroom
Wilkinson graduated from Princeton before attending the University of Virginia School of Law. She currently sits on the Board of Directors of Onex, a publicly owned private equity company. Wilkinson was described as "outstanding" by former classmate and New Orleans-based attorney Kim Boyle in an email to Paste BN Sports. Boyle also attended Princeton and Virginia's School of Law.
Wilkinson is married to David Gregory, a television journalist and former host of NBC's Sunday morning talk show Meet the Press. Gregory is now a political analyst for CNN. Wilkinson and Gregory have three children.
Contact Analis Bailey at aabailey@usatoday.com or on Twitter @analisbailey.