Adrian Zuckerman (attorney)

Adrian Zuckerman (born September 22, 1956) is a Romanian-born American lawyer and diplomat who is serving as United States Ambassador to Romania from December 17, 2019, when he presented his credentials to Romanian President Klaus Iohannis.[1]

For the British legal scholar, see Adrian Zuckerman.

Adrian Zuckerman
United States Ambassador to Romania
Incumbent
Assumed office December 17, 2019
President	Donald Trump
Preceded by	Hans G. Klemm
Personal details
Born	Adrian Zuckereman (1956-09-22) September 22, 1956 Bucharest, Romania

Born in Bucharest, Romania, he is still fluent in Romanian. He and his family emigrated from Romania in the mid 1960s, when he was nine years old.[2][3] Zuckerman was a real estate lawyer and partner with the New York City law firm Seyfarth Shaw.[4]

Education

Zuckerman graduated from Hamden Hall Country Day School in 1975.[5] He earned a BS in Life Sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a BS in Management from the MIT Sloan School of Management and his JD from New York Law School.[6]

Zuckerman and Rudy Giuliani

During his confirmation hearings in June 2019, Zuckerman testified “If confirmed, I would offer continued support for Romania’s noteworthy anti-corruption efforts. ... Fighting corruption and support[ing] judicial independence are vital to Romania’s long-term prosperity and security.” But Rudy Giuliani “appeared to contradict the U.S. State Department’s existing policy position” in August 2018 by writing a letter, at the request of former FBI director Louis Freeh, to Romania’s president “claiming Romania’s National Anticorruption Directorate had crossed the line of acceptable behavior.” Giuliani “requested amnesty be granted to various people prosecuted in Romania, shortly after the State Department urged Romania to continue its ‘considerable progress in combatting corruption and building effective rule of law.’”[4]

In 2007, when Giuliani was seeking the Republican nomination for President, Zuckerman donated $2000 to his campaign.[2] He is also a member of one of Donald Trump’s golf clubs.[7]

Career

Before his tenure at Seyfarth Shaw, Zuckerman was co-head of national real estate and corporate services at Epstein Becker & Green.[2]

Sexual harassment claim

When Zuckerman was a partner at Lowenstein Sandler, a sexual harassment claim was made against him by one of their legal secretaries in 2008.[8][7] Both Zuckerman and the firm were sued by the secretary and the suit was settled in 2009. It appears the Trump administration knew about the allegations and lawsuit.[9]

References

1. "Ambassador Adrian Zuckerman Presents Credentials to President Klaus Iohannis". U.S. Embassy in Romania. December 17, 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
2. "US Senate confirms Adrian Zuckerman as ambassador to Bucharest". Romanian Insider. November 21, 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
3. Hopulele, Cătălin (25 January 2020). "Ambasadorul SUA: Nu ar fi nimic mai bun pentru SUA decât să poată elimina vizele". ziaruldeiasi.ro (in Romanian).
4. Lovelace, Ryan (November 20, 2019). "Adrian Zuckerman confirmed by Senate for ambassador to Romania". The Washington Times. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
5. "Adrian Zuckerman 1975 Nominated to be Ambassador to Romania". Hamden Hall Country Day School. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
6. "Ambassador Adrian Zuckerman". U.S. Embassy in Romania. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
7. Gramer, Robbie (October 30, 2019). "Plugging the Donor-to-Ambassador Pipeline". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
8. Lovelace, Ryan (June 20, 2019). "Seyfarth Shaw's Zuckerman, Trump Ambassador Nominee, Testifies at Senate Hearing". The National Law Journal. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
9. Rubino, Kathryn (September 14, 2018). "Biglaw Partner Nominated For Ambassador Role Faced Sexual Harassment Allegations At His Former Firm". Above the Law. Retrieved 5 December 2019.

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Hans G. Klemm	United States Ambassador to Romania 2019–present	Incumbent