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Hugh Verrier delivers the tenth annual Lloyd N. Cutler Lecture on the Rule of Law
Photo Credit: Salzburg Global Seminar/Robert Brown
On February 9, 2024, friends and Fellows of Salzburg Global Seminar, including the 2024 cohort of Cutler Fellows - 55 of the brightest US students of international law - gathered at the Embassy of Austria in Washington, DC for the tenth Lloyd N. Cutler Lecture on the Rule of Law.
The keynote of the evening was Hugh Verrier, currently a Partner and formerly the Chair of White & Case LLP, whose address, "Advancing the Rule of Law: Finding the Riches Hidden in an Inch", was a thought-provoking look at what a career in private international law can be. Throughout the lecture and ensuing Q&A moderated by Martin Weiss, President and CEO of Salzburg Global Seminar, Verrier spoke candidly, often addressing the aspiring law professionals in the room, reflecting on times in his own career when he was faced with decisions that directly advanced or hurt global rule of law.
Verrier spent much of his 40 years at White & Case career overseas in Indonesia, Turkey, and Russia. In 2007, Verrier stepped into the role of Chair of the global firm, directing strategy and operations at its 44 offices in 30 countries around the world. Then, in 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine.
In 2022, he led White & Case in the decision to close their Moscow office: “This was done voluntarily, although for many, western sanctions would have hampered or eliminated their ability to function. It was provoked by moral outrage as well as a fierce outcry against Putin’s invasion, not only by employees of those businesses but also by their clients, and activists too.” He began his lecture posing a question, “Did the withdrawal of Western businesses from Russia advance or hurt the rule of law?”
To answer the question, Verrier brought the audience along on a journey starting in 1962, the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis. The crisis instilled in Hugh an existential fear which, combined with intellectual curiosity, inspired his career path. “I tell you this because I want you to know that you’re not alone in fearing for the future, and those fears are real – not just the fear of nuclear war, but the effects of climate change, the rise of autocratic rulers, and conventional war too, which just won’t go away. Those fears will shape your life, as they have mine” said Verrier, speaking to the 2024 Cutler Fellows.
Curiosity drove Verrier to accept an unpopular job: building a law office in post-soviet Russia. “I wanted that opportunity, because finally I would be able to look behind the curtain. And not just look, but live and understand,” Verrier recalled. Many challenges, both foreseen and otherwise, arose in training lawyers and serving clients in Russia. But when Verrier left Moscow in 2007, he was confident that they had and would continue to advance the rule of law.
Verrier poignantly returned to the original question posed, “This was an excruciating decision to take. To me, it felt– metaphorically speaking – like we had unleashed those missiles that have haunted me all my life. And so, do I believe that we advanced the rule of law? No. We destroyed it.”
Nevertheless, he stated, “I haven’t lost hope that one day Russia will correct its course – things have a strange way of changing quickly in that country, and Russians know it – they’re waiting for it too. Russians will pick up where they left off, drawing lessons from the experience and knowhow acquired in the thirty years of liberal society. But let’s hope that is not too far off.”
Verrier emphasized that a career in private law firms is not a career without public service, exemplified by the firm’s commitment to their pro bono practice which extended into Russian operations. Verrier stated, “Pro bono is not just something we do to atone for our client service; rather, it helps us define who we want to be and the role we must play in society.” In addition to human rights cases, Verrier spoke passionately about White & Case’s support of legal education through partnering with the Jessup Competition and collaborating with the Kingdom of Bhutan to establish the country’s first law school.
In an apt conclusion, Verrier addressed the students of law in attendance with a quote from Austrian novelist Robert Musil, “‘It’s easy to think in miles when you have no idea what riches can be hidden in an inch.’ Please remember that opportunities to make a difference may come up in small, unexpected ways, and if you are alert to them and curious to pursue those opportunities, you may find you can achieve extraordinary things you would otherwise miss. These are the unexpected riches hidden in an inch.”
The Cutler Lecture is held under the auspices of the Lloyd N. Cutler Center for the Rule of Law. The lecture series was started by Salzburg Global Seminar in 2009 to honor the life and work of Lloyd N. Cutler, former White House Counsel to Presidents Carter and Clinton and long-time Chair of Salzburg Global’s Board of Directors.