Trenton,
NJ – Attorney General Anne Milgram has
appointed Theodore B. (“Taysen”)
Van Itallie Jr. as the director of the Division
of Law in the Department of Law & Public
Safety to succeed Robert Gilson, whose nomination
to the Superior Court by Governor Jon S. Corzine
was confirmed by the State Senate on Thursday.
Van
Itallie, 58, was associate general counsel
and head of global litigation at Johnson &
Johnson for 12 years after working as a partner
at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler, a New
York law firm.
“Taysen
brings tremendous litigation, counseling and
management experience to the division and
will be a strong addition to our team at the
Department of Law & Public Safety,”
Attorney General Milgram said.
Van Itallie, who is scheduled to begin work
at the division on Wednesday, July 1, is a
resident of Princeton who grew up in Englewood.
He earned his A.B. from Harvard College and
his LLM from Columbia University Law School.
He joined Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler
in 1977 and was elected partner in 1985. He
joined Johnson & Johnson in New Brunswick
in 1996, where he was associate general counsel
and chief of worldwide litigation for the
company. He retired from J&J earlier this
year.
“I
am honored and excited at the opportunity
to serve the people of New Jersey and their
interests and join General Milgram in the
department,’’ Van Itallie
said.
The Division of Law, with 529 attorneys, provides
legal representation and counsel to state
government departments, commissions and agencies.
The division also protects the public interest
by initiating affirmative litigation on a
variety of issues, including consumer rights,
children’s rights and environmental
protection.
Gilson
was appointed director of the Division of
Law in October 2006 by former Attorney General
Stuart Rabner. He was a partner at Riker,
Danzig, Scherer, Hyland and Perretti before
taking his state position.
“I
want to thank Bob Gilson for his valuable
service during his tenure as Director of the
Division of Law,” Milgram said.
“We have all benefited from his
commitment to the Department of Law &
Public Safety and the state of New Jersey
and the quality of his lawyering. I wish him
the best as he joins the judiciary.”
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