Robert Taylor

Robert Taylor rejoined the Department of Defense as the Deputy General Counsel (Environment, Energy, & Installations) (Acting) in September 2024.  He has served in the senior ranks of the Department of Defense (DoD) for 14 years; his most recent previous service was as the Principal Deputy General Counsel (PDGC) of DoD from 2009 to 2017. He spent nearly two of those years as Acting General Counsel.  He also served as the first Deputy General Counsel (Environment and Installations) in DoD, from 1995 to 2002.

During his career at DoD, Bob was awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service (DoD’s highest civilian honor) six times. From 2007 to 2008, Bob served on the Defense Science Board Task Force on Energy Security, identifying vulnerabilities in the U.S. power grid and related national security threats.

Prior to (and during the breaks in) his government service, Bob had a distinguished career in private practice focused on energy and environmental regulatory work. Since leaving DoD in 2017, Bob has been a visiting scholar at Harvard Law School for two semesters, and represented clients on government contracts related matters, including with respect to innovative technologies and acquisition authorities, and served as the General Counsel of MCE Social Capital, an nonprofit entity dedicated to providing financing and support to microfinance and other organizations in roughly 40 countries throughout the developing world.
 
Bob is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of National Security Law and Policy; on various advisory boards, including the Technology, Law, and Security Program at the American University Washington College of Law, and the Center for Climate and Security; and a contributor to JustSecurity and LawFare.  He is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the Harvard Law Review, and a member of the District of Columbia Bar, as well as of various federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court.