Speaker Bio
Will Johnson serves as Verizon’s Senior Vice President & Dep. General Counsel Federal Regulatory & International Public Policy. In this role, he leads Verizon’s federal regulatory and legal team and has responsibility for representing Verizon on a wide range of issues, including Internet governance and spectrum policy, before the FCC and other federal agencies. He also represents Verizon in related federal appellate litigation.
Will had previously served as VP & Associate General Counsel in Verizon's federal regulatory legal group, which he joined in 2004. Will has spent much of his time with the company focusing on broadband, video, and Internet issues, as well as network transformation and other emerging issues.
Will is actively involved in pro bono and public service efforts. Will currently serves on the Emory College Alumni Board and on the Board of Trustees for the Media Institute, a nonprofit research foundation specializing in communications policy issues and focused on promoting freedom of speech, a competitive media and communications industry, and excellence in journalism. Will also serves on the Board of Directors for the National Exchange Carriers Association. Will previously served as Chairman of the Board for Miriam’s Kitchen, a nonprofit aimed at ending chronic homelessness in Washington, D.C.
Prior to joining Verizon, Will was a litigator at Hogan & Hartson in Washington, DC, and before that at Long, Aldridge & Norman in Atlanta, GA. He also clerked for Chief Judge R. Lanier Anderson and Judge Ed Carnes, each on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Will received his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. He received a B.A., summa cum laude, in Political Science and German Studies from Emory University. Will grew up on a farm in Georgia.