Mr. Swankin is an attorney specializing in regulatory and administrative law. He has a broad background in both government and public interest advocacy. His government career included assignments in the White House and the U.S. Department of Labor. He has provided legal services to numerous public interest and professional organizations, including serving as Special Counsel to the National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators, a General Counsel to the National Consumers League, and Special Counsel to the Consumer Federation of America. He served as a Commissioner on the Pew Health Professions Commission during 1997 and 1998. He served as a member on The Institute of Medicine (IOM) Committee that wrote the report Health Professions Education A Bridge to Quality in 2003. Mr. Swankin was appointed a Senior Fellow to the Center for the Health Professions, UCSF, in June 2003.
Previously, Mr. Swankin served as Director of the Bureau of Labor Standards and Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Labor. He served as the first Executive Director of the White House Office of Consumer Affairs in the mid-1960s.
Mr. Swankin was a member of the original National Advisory Council to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, has served on the faculty of the University of Southern California (Washington, D.C. campus), and is a former member of the Board of Directors of the American Society for Testing and Materials. He is listed in Who's Who in America, and has received numerous public service awards.