Mark A. Patterson is an American lobbyist, former vice president and managing director of

Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many internationa ...

, and former Chief of Staff to the United States Secretary of the Treasury. In 2018, he was hired as general counsel for

Senator Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from New York, a seat he has held since 1999. A member of the Democratic Party, he has led the Senate Democratic Caucus sin ...

, overseeing investigations and appropriations and leaving his position at law firm

Perkins Coie Perkins Coie LLP ( ) is an American law firm based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1912, it is recognized by The American Lawyer as being one of the top 50 firms in the US. It is the largest law firm headquartered in the Pacific Northwest and ...

Early life and education

Patterson was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. His mother was a librarian while his father was a high school English teacher. He graduated from the

University at Albany The State University of New York at Albany (University at Albany, UAlbany, or SUNY Albany) is a Public university, public research university in Albany, New York, United States. Founded in 1844, it is one of four "university centers" of the St ...

in 1984. He received his J.D. degree from

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...

in 1990.

Career

Patterson was the special assistant of

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

Daniel Patrick Moynihan Daniel Patrick Moynihan (; March 16, 1927 – March 26, 2003) was an American politician, diplomat and social scientist. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he represented New York (state), New York in the ...

from 1984 to 1988 before entering law school. Patterson later served as Moynihan's legislative director (1993-1995), and as Democratic staff director and chief counsel of the Senate Finance Committee (1995-1999). From 1999 to 2004 Patterson was the policy director for Senate Democratic Leader

Tom Daschle Thomas Andrew Daschle ( ; born December 9, 1947) is an American politician and lobbyist who represented South Dakota in the United States Senate from 1987 to 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, he led the Senate Democratic Caucus during the ...

. In 2004 Patterson became a lobbyist for

, with the position of vice president (2004-2007), and managing director (2007-2008). Patterson left Goldman Sachs in April 2008, after which time he served as a volunteer for the Obama-Biden presidential campaign, and as the Senate confirmation coordinator for the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Project. Upon the inauguration of

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

, Patterson was in February 2009 appointed chief of staff to the

Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...

. In 2013, after the long-anticipated departure of secretary Tim Geithner, secretary

Jack Lew Jacob Joseph Lew (born August 29, 1955) is an American attorney and diplomat who served as the 28th United States ambassador to Israel from 2023 to 2025. He was the 76th United States secretary of the treasury from 2013 to 2017. A member of the ...

announced Patterson's replacement. Patterson worked as a partner in Perkins Coie's Washington, D.C. office before joining Senator Schumer's team in May 2018.

Personal life

Patterson is married to Jennifer S. Leete, a former assistant director in the Enforcement Division of the

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street crash of 1929. Its primary purpose is to enforce laws against market m ...

and, as of 2022, a partner in the start-up Washington, D.C. office of New York law firm

Cravath, Swaine & Moore Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP (known as Cravath; ) is an American white-shoe law firm headquartered in New York City. The firm has additional offices in London and Washington, D.C. History In 1854, former college classmates William H. Seward (la ...

. The start-up was being led by

Jelena McWilliams Jelena McWilliams (; born July 29, 1973) is a Serbian-American business executive and a former chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. She was nominated to the position and to the FDIC Board of Directors by President Donald Trump ...

, former chair of the FDIC, and also included Elad Roisman, former commissioner and acting chair of the SEC.Williams, Claire
"Former FDIC regulator lands at Cravath to set up D.C. operations"
''

American Banker ''American Banker'' is a New York-based trade publication covering the financial services industry. Originally a daily newspaper, the print edition ceased publication in 2016, but continues to be published as a print magazine nine times a year. ...

'', June 6, 2022. Retrieved 2023-12-19. Patterson is a member of the bar of the

District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

and of the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Mark. A Catholic University of America alumni Goldman Sachs people Lawyers from New York City Living people Obama administration personnel United States Department of the Treasury officials University at Albany, SUNY alumni Year of birth missing (living people) People associated with Perkins Coie