The Young Marines have appointed a new General Counsel

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY — The members of the Board of Directors of the Young Marines, a national youth organization, announced David S. Jonas as the new General Counsel.

Jonas is a Partner at FH+H law firm in Tysons.

“The entire Board of Directors is very excited about appointing Dave Jonas as General Counsel of the Young Marines,” said William Smith, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Young Marines. “He couldn’t be more qualified, and we couldn’t be more pleased. Dave not only brings tremendous legal expertise but also significant experience serving on nonprofit boards.”

Jonas has a record of both leadership and management.

He has served in command assignments in a Regimental Headquarters Company, as a trial and appellate counsel, as General Counsel of two federal agencies, and in the private sector as corporate vice president at PenFed Credit Union.

“I am humbled to be named General Counsel to the Young Marines, an organization that does the crucial work of training our next generation of leaders by providing them with transferable skills,” Jonas said. “The skills and values that were embedded in me during my Marine Corps service have proved invaluable throughout my life. These valuable skills, education, and experiences, unlike material belongings, can never be taken from you.”

Jonas most recently served as Senior Advisor to U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, after being nominated by the President to be the General Counsel of the Department of Energy.

After being voted out of Committee, Jonas withdrew his nomination to focus on his practice during the wait for a full Senate vote.

Jonas’ major practice areas include employment law, trial and appellate litigation, government contracts, providing general counsel services to business, international law, and Department of Energy matters.

He is also recognized as one of a handful of experts worldwide in nuclear nonproliferation law.

He was a career member of the Senior Executive Service and served as general counsel of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) for nearly ten years.

He also served as general counsel of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board.

Jonas has negotiated many international agreements including the U.S. – India Civil Nuclear Agreement, where he was a lead negotiator.

He has extensive experience dealing with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Prior to his civilian service, he was a career U.S. Marine Corps officer.

His final military assignment was as nuclear nonproliferation planner for the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

He received the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces Award for Excellence in Legal Writing in 1992 and was selected as the Outstanding Career Judge Advocate in the Marine Corps in 2000. He concluded his military service as a lieutenant colonel.

Jonas is currently an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center and George Washington (GW) University Law School, where he was recognized as Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Law.

He teaches nuclear nonproliferation law and policy and was a pioneer in developing the academic coursework in this discipline.

He has also taught this course at the U.S. Naval War College, and he is also widely published and frequently speaks on this topic.

Beyond serving on the Board of Directors of the Young Marines, he is a board member of the Young Marines National Foundation, the Naval War College Foundation and the Marine Executive Association.

He is also on the American Bar Association’s Rule of Law Initiative and the Advisory Committee of the University of Pennsylvania Law School’s Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law.