• Van Ness Feldman has hired Tracy Nagelbush and Todd Wooten as senior directors of the government policy practice. Nagelbush was senior policy adviser to Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.). Wooten served as legislative counsel to Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.)

• Robert Jones has joined Alston & Bird to head its legislative and public policy group in Washington, D.C. Jones previously worked at Patton Boggs , where he oversaw transportation, infrastructure and federal funding.

• Ken Smith has been promoted to director, employment and labor policy at the National Association of Manufacturers . Smith will work on issues related to employment or labor relations. Previously, Smith worked for Tew Cardenas and former Sen. George Allen (R-Va.).

• Chris Downing has been hired by UHS Pruitt Corporation as vice president of government affairs. For the last six years Downing has worked for Health and Human Services.

• Alan Smith has been hired as executive director of the American Legislative Exchange Council . Smith is a former president of the State Government Affairs Council and served two terms on the Strategic Planning Committee of the Council of State Governments.

• Weil, Gotshal & Manges has hired Mark Davis, Ronald Pabis and Brian Ferguson to join its global patent litigation practice. All three are leaving McDermott, Will & Emery .

• Dennis M. Hertel has been named president of the International Michigan Election Monitoring Institute (IEMI). Hertel served six terms as a member of Congress for Michigan and has been a partner at The Livingston Group .

• Chris Ashby has joined LeClaire Ryan as a partner in the government relations and regulated industries group. Ashby practices constitutional and public policy litigation and has worked on both state and federal political campaigns.

• Carol McGee has joined Alston & Bird as a partner, working primarily with the securities practice. She was previously with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as deputy chief counsel in the division of corporation finance.