Judicial clerkship After graduating from
Harvard Law School, Debevoise clerked for the Hon.
William J. Holloway, Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in 1978 through 1979.
Private practice Debevoise started at
Arnold & Porter, LLP as an associate in 1979 and practiced as a partner from 1986 to 2007. During this time, he increasingly specialized in international financial transactions, banking and international trade. While in private practice, Whitney Debevoise represented the central banks and finance ministries of many countries, as well as the Bank for International Settlements,
the World Bank, the
African Development Bank and the
Inter-American Development Bank. Debevoise has been involved in transactions ranging from Brazil's $49 billion Brady Plan exercise to numerous Yankee bond, Samurai bond, and Eurobond issuances in ten different currencies. He was involved with billion dollar equity placements of shares in firms, such as Telfonica Argentina,
Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD),
Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras), and Unibanco-Uniao de Bancos Brasileiros. For his efforts, Brazil awarded Debevoise the
Order of Rio Branco in 1997, which recognizes Brazilian and "foreign individuals" who have significantly contributed to the promotion of Brazil's international relations. Debevoise also handled cases in the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and
World Trade Organization dispute settlement mechanism and at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, including cases establishing rulings on the allocation of arbitral expenses and attorney's fees. ==References==