Alden Abbott

Alden Abbott is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center. Prior to joining Mercatus, he served as the general counsel of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

In earlier stints at the FTC, he served as deputy director of the Office of International Affairs, associate director of the Bureau of Competition, and attorney-advisor in the Office of Legal Policy. He has also been an adjunct professor at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, deputy director and senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation, and director of global patent law and competition strategy with Research In Motion. Earlier in his career, he held positions with the U.S. Justice Department, U.S. Commerce Department, and as an associate with Fried Frank.

He received his bachelor’s from the University of Virginia, his master’s in economics from Georgetown University, and his JD from Harvard Law School.