ONE Connection | Jones Day and the Creation of ICANN
Read the full issue of ONE Connection.
The second video in our "What Makes Us One" series explores how Jones Day helped shape the very infrastructure of the Domain Name System of the Internet, playing a pivotal role in the creation and evolution of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ("ICANN").
In 1998, as the Internet was first becoming commercialized, Los Angeles partner Jeff LeVee signed the Articles of Incorporation to create ICANN as a California nonprofit public benefit corporation using documents drafted by former Dallas partner Mike Weinberg. Jones Day partner Joe Sims (now retired) then organized and attended ICANN's first meeting of its board of directors, held at a Holiday Inn near New York's JFK Airport to accommodate directors arriving from around the world. Joe also helped to recruit ICANN's first CEO, Mike Roberts, who was elected at that same board meeting.
Jones Day provided more than $1 million in pro bono legal services during ICANN's early years. Since then, our lawyers have successfully defended ICANN against every legal challenge to its existence and operations, from contract and labor disputes to antitrust claims.
In the video above, Jeff, Joe, and ICANN General Counsel and Secretary John Jeffrey discuss how Jones Day cultivated this unique relationship—one that reflects the Firm's versatility, commitment, and willingness to meet even unanticipated client needs at the highest level. ICANN is an organization that might not exist but for Jones Day's early support.
To learn more, we invite you to read "ICANN: The Jones Day Part of the Story."
