Susan Bell Joins Bernstein Shur Government Solutions as Senior Project Manager

Former legislator, advisor to Gov. King, Bell will represent clients in public affairs matters

Susan J. Bell, a former legislator and senior advisor to former Governor Angus S. King, has joined Bernstein Shur Government Solutions as Senior Project Manager.

Bell, who most recently served as Director of the Office of Clerks of Court for the Maine State Judicial Branch in Augusta, brings an extensive career of public service to Bernstein Shur Government Solutions (BSGS), a consulting subsidiary of the regional law firm Bernstein Shur. BSGS helps a wide range of clients find solutions to complicated regulatory, legislative, and political issues.

A resident of Augusta, Bell provided strategic counsel and policy to Governor King from 1995 to 2003, serving on the Governor’s Executive Management Team.

In 1992, she was selected by Governor McKernan as the first woman in the United States to serve as Director of the Maine Forest Service, and previously served as Deputy Commissioner of the Maine Department of Conservation from 1987 to 1992. She also served three terms in the Maine House of Representatives from 1980 to 1986, representing the towns of Buckfield, Hebron, Paris, and West Paris.

"Sue Bell's knowledge of government is unsurpassed, having served as a legislator, as Director of Clerks of Court in the Judicial Branch, and as a senior policy advisor in the Office of Governor Angus King,” said Kay Rand, Managing Director of BSGS. “Sue knows how to make things happen in a positive and collaborative fashion. She is a wonderful addition to our team."

In her new post, Bell will serve clients who require representation or coordination with the Departments of Education or Health and Human Services. Current projects include the Maine Readiness Campaign, a project with the Mitchell Institute and the Department of Education that focuses on high school reform.

A former biology teacher, Bell is a 1970 cum laude graduate of the University of Maine. She received a Master’s in Public Administration in 1993 and an MA in Teaching in 1971. She currently serves on the board of the Seven Islands Land Co., and served formerly as Vice President of the Kennebec Valley YMCA Board of Directors and as a Director of the University of Maine Alumni Association. In 1986, Sue was selected as Citizen of the Year by the Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce.

Bernstein Shur Government Solutions is led by two of Maine’s most distinguished public policy strategists – Kay Rand, Governor Angus King’s former Chief of Staff; and Larry Benoit, who served as Chief of Staff to former U.S. Representative John Baldacci and in high-ranking capacities to Senators George Mitchell and Edmund Muskie during 30 years of congressional service.

Bernstein Shur Government Solutions assists municipalities and governmental agencies in interactions with private industry, state, and federal government; represents corporations and business community alliances before state and federal governmental agencies; and reviews failed or failing governmental programs and services to provide remedial solutions.

Bernstein Shur is one of northern New England’s largest multi-service law firms, with more than 85 attorneys in Portland and Augusta, Maine and Manchester, New Hampshire. Established in 1915, the firm provides practical legal counsel to a diverse group of public and private clients throughout the region and around the world. Bernstein Shur’s commercial, litigation, and municipal practices are complemented by the services of the firm’s affiliates, which include Bernstein Shur Government Solutions LLC, a government consulting firm; Stratex LLC, an environmental and engineering consultancy; and Monument Title Company. For more information, visit bernsteinshur.com.

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