Statement from Joe Biden's son (Hunter Biden), through his attorney

https://medium.com/@george.mesires/a-statement-on-behalf-of-hunter-biden-dated-october-13-2019-d80bc11087ab


A Statement on behalf of Hunter Biden, dated October 13, 2019

By George Mesires

Hunter Biden’s business activities have received significant press attention. Since 2016, I have served as Hunter’s lawyer. In recent weeks, I have received numerous questions about those activities, many of which have been shaped by allegations bearing little resemblance to the public record. The following is a succinct, fact-based accounting of Hunter Biden’s business activities in Ukraine and China. Hunter has also outlined specific commitments that would govern his business and financial dealings during a Biden Administration.

Ukraine: Burisma Holdings Limited (“Burisma”)

In April 2014, Hunter was asked to join the board of Burisma, the largest independent natural gas producer in Ukraine. At the time, Hunter was of counsel with Boies Schiller Flexner LLP [fn 1] (“Boies Schiller”), a major U.S. law firm, and was advising Burisma on its corporate reform initiatives, an important aspect of fueling Burisma’s international growth and diversity. Vibrant energy production, particularly natural gas, was central to Ukraine’s independence and to stemming the tide of Vladimir Putin’s attack on the principles of a democratic Europe.

To further its goals of independence, Burisma sought to adopt standards and practices traditionally employed by Western companies. At Hunter’s urging, Boies Schiller engaged Nardello & Co., a leading global investigative firm, to assess, among other things, Burisma’s corporate structure and governance practices. Burisma agreed to pay the legal expenses of Boies Schiller to support Hunter in developing corporate reform initiatives.

Because of Burisma’s stated commitment to corporate best practices, it was able to attract well-qualified board members, including the former president of Poland, Aleksander Kwasniewski, a leading advocate of democratic principles in the region. President Kwasniewski, familiar with Hunter’s work on behalf of Burisma, recommended that Hunter join the board.

Hunter joined the board as a non-executive director, meaning he was an independent board member and not a member of the management team. At no time was Hunter in charge of the company’s legal affairs. Like all Burisma directors, Hunter was compensated for his board service.

Hunter focused his work on the principles of corporate transparency, governance and responsibility, which was based on his prior experience as a lawyer and director on other boards, including the Chair of World Food Program USA, which supports the largest humanitarian organization in the world, Vice-Chair of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), to which he was appointed by President George W. Bush, Center for National Policy, Truman National Security Project, and the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign.

Hunter stepped off Bursima’s board in April, 2019. Despite extensive scrutiny, at no time has any law enforcement agency, either domestic or foreign, alleged that Hunter engaged in wrongdoing at any point during his five-year term..

Snip...

After graduating from Yale Law School, where Hunter served as an editor of both the Yale Law & Policy Review and the Yale Journal of Law & the Humanities, Hunter worked in numerous posts, including as a Senior Executive VP for a major U.S. bank, and as Executive Director of E-Commerce Policy Coordination for the United States Department of Commerce. Hunter also taught as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University School of Foreign Service Masters of Science program.