---
category: Other
summary: Ristau had a long career with the DOJ, serving in the Internal Security Division
  and Civil Division from 1958 to 1963, and as Director of the Office of Foreign Litigation
  from 1963 to 1981.
tags:
- Person
---

[Bruno Ristau](/people/bruno-ristau/) was a partner with [Michael Abbell](/people/michael-abbell/) in the law firm Ristau and Abbell in Washington D.C. He was also formerly with the law firm of Kaplan, Russin and Becchi, where [Michael Abbell](/people/michael-abbell/) worked after leaving the [DOJ](/organizations/department-of-justice/).[^1]

Ristau had a long career with the [DOJ](/organizations/department-of-justice/), serving in the Internal Security Division and Civil Division from 1958 to 1963, and as Director of the Office of Foreign Litigation from 1963 to 1981. He was described as a "heavyweight in the field of international law," speaking German, Polish, Spanish, and French. He was Chairman of the Division of International Law of the Washington D.C. Bar from 1971 to 1973, and Chairman of the Committee of Private International Law Practice in the American Bar Association from 1981 to 1984. He is also a member of the American Society of International Law.[^1]

[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro’s Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.