Former Stradley partner Claire DeMatteis was recently confirmed by Delaware Gov. John Carney to be the next commissioner of the Delaware Department of Correction. Claire is also a former senior counsel to then-U.S. Senator Joe Biden. She was counsel at Stradley from 2004-2007 and a partner beginning in 2008. Claire left Stradley at the end of 2008 to become the first in-house General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and Chief Privacy Officer at Catalina Marketing.
Q: You have enjoyed a wide-ranging career since you left Stradley. Can you give us a quick synopsis of where you have been and what you have been doing over the past 10 years?
Catalina Marketing, Inc. had been taken private and purchased by a private equity firm in late 2007 and at the time was the world’s fifth largest data company. Catalina was a client of mine while at Stradley, and I went in-house as GC to help address consumer, financial and medical privacy issues as well as several litigation and IP matters. In 2013, the private equity owners sold the healthcare division and restructured the company’s domestic and international divisions under new private equity ownership. At that time, I accepted a new position as GC of a 30-year old health care company in New York, whose mission is to provide healthcare to low-income residents throughout New York. The company had just been selected as one of the first health care companies in the country to roll out the Affordable Care Act. It was a great experience to be part of this groundbreaking law that led to tens of millions of people obtaining healthcare insurance. In late 2016, following John Carney’s election as Governor of Delaware, he asked me to “come home” and serve in his Administration.
Q: One of the hallmarks of your career to date is its breadth. You’ve done so many different things and have clearly done them all well. Can you talk about that?
There are three traits that I have learned transcend various career positions: 1) demonstrating seasoned judgment, 2) building relationships before task, and 3) delivering results. If there is a theme to how I have moved from the public sector, to building a client base at Stradley to serving in the private sector and now back to an executive level position in government, it is characterized by these three traits. Above all, I have been incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with and for such terrific, ethical, caring and loyal people.
Q: Has your Stradley experience been beneficial to you in subsequent positions or in other respects?
Not only has my Stradley experience been beneficial, it laid the foundation to give me the confidence to move from government service to the private sector. Law firms rarely hire attorneys at a senior level without a “book of business.” Bill Sasso, Jeff Lutsky, Kevin Boyle, Gillian Facher and others took a tremendous risk hiring me in 2004. I will never forget at my final interview, Jeff Lutsky asked me if I was a “closer.” I assured him I was if he gave me a chance to prove it. Within my first week, I brought in a rather significant new client. To his credit, Jeff walked into my office and said, “Ok, you’re a closer!”
Q: You are about to become the first female Department of Correction Commissioner in Delaware. What unique challenges do you think you will face, both as a woman and given the size of the department and the complexities of supervising 7,000 inmates, 17,000 probationers and 2,500 employees?
Over the past two years I have worked closely with the women and men of the Delaware Department of Correction following the darkest period in the Department’s history. On Feb. 1-2, 2017, more than 120 inmates rioted, took several officers hostage and killed a correctional officer. The siege ended 18 hours later when Delaware State Police and the DOC Special Operations Team breached the building where the riot occurred by driving a backhoe through the rear of the building. Since being appointed as the Governor’s Special Assistant to DOC, I have worked to earn the trust and respect of correctional officers and leaders and have demonstrated that together we can get big, important things done to improve officers’ safety and security as well as improving programming and services for inmates. As special assistant to Commissioner Phelps from July 2017 to July 2018, we implemented more than 40 reforms within a 12-month period. The two public reports we issued in January and July of 2018 are candid, detailed, straightforward assessments of the progress made by the Department of Correction and the challenges that continue to confront it. Over the past nine months as special assistant on reentry initiatives to implement Governor Carney’s Executive Order 27, I have helped to coordinate efforts across six state agencies to build a seamless plan of services and supervision from the time an offender enters prison through transition and reintegration in the community. The goal is to engage correctional officers, probation and parole officers, counselors and evidence-based practices to provide offenders with the education, training, housing, healthcare and social services they need to succeed in the community.
As Commissioner, I will continue and sustain the reforms we have implemented to: strengthen officers’ safety, security and training; increase recruitment and retention; modernize operations, intelligence gathering, communication and operational excellence throughout DOC’s correctional facilities and community corrections centers; expand prison-based programming and services for inmates; restructure and improve drug treatment services; and, implement reentry initiatives from the time an inmate enters prison through his or her release back into our communities.
Q: What activities outside of work keep you sane and give you joy?
Running, walking and swimming daily keep me sane and help me strategize and think through tough decisions. I take time out of every day to text, email, call or visit with family, friends, former colleagues, college buddies and new acquaintances. My mom, three brothers, two sisters, 10 nieces and nephews, and my husband Michael ground me in what is truly important in our lives.
Q: Do you have any favorite Stradley memories?
The Delaware events organized by Stradley’s creative, fun, talented marketing team are among my favorite memories. I really enjoyed working with attorneys and the government affairs team to impact legislation and regulations in Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Jeff Lutsky asked me to work with one of his insurance clients to change a law in Delaware to allow for foreign investments. When we were successful, Jeff and his client reminded me that companies don’t hire law firms, they hire an attorney. That is what makes Stradley so strong – the strength, expertise and dedication of its individual attorneys.
Q: Anything else you’d like to share with other Stradley alums?
Rarely do attorneys at law firms consider themselves a “family.” Stradley is a family, and I proudly still consider myself part of that family. I have been bugging Bill Sasso to hold an Alumni Reunion for years, and I am thrilled we will all be getting together soon.