Education

J.D., The George Washington University Law School, Book Review Editor, George Washington International Law Review

B.A., Mount St. Mary’s University

Bar and Court Admissions

California

District of Columbia

Maryland (inactive)

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

District of Columbia Court of Appeals

Joseph M. Birkenstock joined Sandler Reiff Lamb Rosenstein & Birkenstock, P.C. in 2014 after serving as Chief Counsel of the Democratic National Committee and practicing political law with two other firms.

Services

Mr. Birkenstock practices in all aspects of political law, advising corporations, non-profit organizations, candidates, officeholders, major donors, and other clients in structuring and undertaking their political, lobbying, and issue-advocacy projects. He also helps clients respond to controversies involving issues of political law such as alleged campaign finance improprieties, conflicts of interest, and real or perceived violations of other legal and ethical obligations.

Highlights

While at the DNC, Mr. Birkenstock worked closely with the party’s fundraisers and campaign staff to help ensure their compliance with the myriad of state and federal laws governing their activities. He took primary responsibility for responding to several investigations into Democratic Party fundraising following the 1996 presidential election. He also assisted in the litigation and public relations efforts surrounding the 2000 Florida recount and helped implement the DNC’s transition to the McCain-Feingold campaign finance regime.

Professional Activities

Mr. Birkenstock regularly speaks before professional associations and conferences. These engagements have included:

• Speaker, Political Outreach Considerations: PACs, SuperPACs, and Beyond, Financial Services Roundtable, Washington, D.C.
• Lecturer at The University of Virginia Law School
• Adjunct Professor, Pepperdine University School of Law
• Steering Committee, GW Political Law Studies Initiative
• Lectured or appeared on panels at The George Washington University Law School, George Mason University School of Law, Vanderbilt Law School and the Pepperdine University School of Law

Awards & Rankings

• Chambers USA®, since 2010
• Best Lawyers in America®, since 2010
• Super Lawyers®, since 2013
• DC’s Best Lawyers in Washingtonian Magazine, since 2007

Other Professional Affiliations

• American Bar Association
• California Political Attorneys Association

News

• September 30, 2022

  Sandler, Reiff, & Birkenstock named to Washingtonian magazine’s Top Lawyers Hall of Fame

• December 15, 2021

  Birkenstock Quoted in POLITICO

• October 21, 2020

  Joe Birkenstock Quoted in POLITICO

• August 21, 2020

  Birkenstock Quoted on DC Circuit Opinion in CREW v FEC

• January 18, 2019

  Birkenstock Quoted in Politico on Singh Challenge to Foreign National Prohibition

* Sandler Reiff Lamb Rosenstein & Birkenstock, P.C. has created this website as a way to convey general information about the firm and our practice areas, and not to provide legal advice – you should not act on any information contained in this website without seeking your own legal counsel. No information on this website should be construed as legal advice, and nothing in this website will be deemed to create an attorney-client (or any other) relationship with you.

Additionally, under legal ethics rules, legal representation requires a mutual agreement for us to provide legal advice to you, or to represent you. Email sent to any of the firm’s lawyers will not create an attorney-client relationship, and will not be treated as confidential. Please do not send confidential information to us, unless and until a formal attorney-client relationship has been established.