Lawyer Barred From Discussing Hit Movie Based On His Book

“Oh, he wishes he could talk about it,” says the brother of author Michael Punke, whose book has been turned into the Hollywood film “The Revenant.” Punke is prevented from discussing the movie, however, because of his job as a deputy U.S. trade representative and ambassador to the World Trade Organization in Switzerland. The lawyer and writer is legally prevented from any side work that may enrich him and potentially abuse his high-ranking office in the process. While the film’s stars, Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy, were walking the red carpet, Punke was putting the finishing touches on a $1.3 trillion international trade deal covering GPS devices, semiconductors, and touch screens. Punke wrote the book while working for Mayer Brown in Washington, D.C.