Rising Star: Holland & Knight's Taite R. McDonald
Public Policy & Regulation Partner Taite McDonald was named a 2021 Rising Star by Law360, a recognition honoring the top lawyers under 40 across various practice areas. Ms. McDonald spoke with Law360 about her path to becoming an energy and clean technology attorney, saying she wanted to be able to solve big problems and be involved in big developments. And she's done that — most notably through playing a key role in obtaining legislative improvements in the U.S. Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office that unlocked $40 billion of stranded capital. Looking ahead, she said she's especially excited about green hydrogen development and sees a bright future for the clean tech world.
"I became a lawyer because lawyers are pivotal parts of any needle-moving or large transactions or even development in the world," Ms. McDonald explained. "...My proudest moment is really the culmination over the past six years because we still got so many different things [such as the DOE loan program improvements] done in a bipartisan way, even when a Democratic administration wasn't in office. And all of that work is going to make the U.S. that much more successful in the next four to six to eight to 12 years and beyond."