DLA Piper announced that Paul Hemmersbaugh has joined the firm's Litigation practice as a partner and chair of its transportation regulatory and litigation group, in Washington, DC.

Hemmersbaugh has broad experience in a variety of areas of transportation law, including significant experience in autonomous vehicle law and policy. He joins the firm from General Motors, where he served as Chief Counsel and Policy Director for Transportation as a Service (TaaS). He previously served as Chief Counsel to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, where he oversaw the largest recall in US history and was a principal author of the first federal autonomous vehicle policy. His practice focuses on regulation, policy, litigation and legislation related to the development, testing and deployment of autonomous vehicles (AV), and on traditional motor vehicle law and regulation.

""Paul brings unparalleled knowledge and experience regarding the regulatory landscape associated with autonomous vehicles,"" said Loren Brown, global and US co-chair of DLA Piper's Litigation practice. ""He has a unique perspective of the primary AV regulatory agency and understands the regulatory and policy needs and concerns of AV manufacturers.""

""We are committed to building a world-leading transportation practice, and Paul's knowledge of the issues impacting the AV regulatory and legislative processes on the federal, state, and local levels, as well as his knowledge and experience in other areas of transportation law, makes him an ideal partner to companies tackling the business and legal challenges of transformative transportation technologies,"" said Jeff Lehrer, managing partner of the firm's Washington, DC, office.

Hemmersbaugh previously served as general counsel for the District of Columbia Bar, and as a transportation regulation and litigation partner at a major international law firm. He received his J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School and his B.A. from St. Olaf College.