Member, Steptoe & Johnson PLLC
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Steptoe.Johnson
Twitter: @Steptoe_Johnson
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/steptoe-&-johnson-pllc
Website: www.steptoe-johnson.com/
Kurt Dettinger has traveled a unique career path, and it was his long-time barber, Joe Panzera, who unwittingly steered him toward becoming a lawyer. Fresh out of undergrad, Dettinger entered the banking industry as an internal auditor, became a CPA and later transitioned to being a corporate lender. When visiting the Drive In Barber Shop in Kanawha City, near Charleston, he talked about banking and his decision to leave the industry. Panzera introduced him to a CPA-turned-lawyer, and the rest is history.
From corporate banking to energy law, Dettinger has made the transition look easy with his overwhelming success. He has served as general counsel to Governor Earl Ray Tomblin, worked his way up to member at Steptoe & Johnson PLLC and served as a driving force behind major West Virginia legislation. During his time in the governor’s office, Dettinger chaired the West Virginia Marcellus Manufacturing Task Force and was active in many energy initiatives. Dettinger was the lead drafter and negotiator of two significant pieces of energy legislation—the Marcellus Shale Regulatory Bill of 2011 and the Coal Mine Health and Safety Bill of 2012—and guided these crucial bills through the legislature in hopes of shaping the future of the state’s energy industries and setting the stage for the economic future of West Virginia.
His work and reputation have earned him many awards and honors, including recently being named a Top 20 Under 40 nationally by Oil and Gas Investor magazine and being appointed to the Marshall University Yeager Scholar’s Society Board of Directors. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies and international and regional banking and energy companies, which could afford him opportunities anywhere in the world, but he is committed to excellence in his home state. A Charleston native, Dettinger says his biggest challenge as a lawyer headquartered in West Virginia has been competing with lawyers from large metropolitan areas for complicated transactional work. “I have learned to never let anyone hold West Virginia and its professionals to any standard below global excellence,” he says. “I am but one small example of the impact West Virginians have on business, industry and culture throughout the country and the world.”
Dettinger’s dedication to West Virginia extends beyond his office doors. He has dedicated time to serving his community through committee work, as well as hands-on volunteering. He served both the Consolidated Public Retirement Board and West Virginia Law Institute, and he chaired the West Virginia School Building Authority. After leaving the public sector, he continued serving his state as a trustee to the West Virginia Investment Management Board and chair of its legal committee.
Dettinger volunteers for Read Aloud at Holz Elementary School and as the safety officer and an assistant coach for Charleston Central Little League, which serves more than 250 children. He is most passionate about volunteering in youth sports because they were an important part of his childhood. “I’m involved in coaching and volunteering because team sports teach a lot of lessons: how to trust and rely on your teammates, the importance of positive attitudes and the reality that you can’t control the outcome of every situation,” Dettinger says. “Because these lessons are so important to the future success of the players, I think it is a great way to help shape the future for a large group of kids. It is also a way to provide a positive example for kids who may not have the ideal support structure at home or who may not have been exposed to positive leadership.”
Whether he is negotiating and closing a deal, drafting new legislation, teaching on the baseball diamond and basketball court or fly fishing in the eastern West Virginia mountains, Dettinger enjoys the rewarding and challenging professional opportunities and outdoor activities the Mountain State has to offer.
What is your favorite…?
Color – Blue
Food – Burritos de carne asada
Cartoon Character – The Road Runner
Ice Cream – Ben & Jerry’s Strawberry Cheesecake
Animal – Tiger
Book – “The Great Gatsby”
App – GroupMe
Midnight Snack – Cereal
TV Show – “Iron Chef America”
Movie – Anything with Chevy Chase in it
Smell – Fields in late April
Sport Team – Detroit Pistons during the Bad Boys era
Car – Third generation Toyota 4Runner
Pet – Our two Bengal cats, Tasha and Milo
Place – Kiawah Island, SC
Written by Samantha Cart
Photography by Tracy Toler on location at I-79 Technology Park
