The FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection enforces federal consumer-protection laws to stop unfair, deceptive and fraudulent business practices. It collects consumer complaints and intelligence; conducts investigations and enforcement actions (including lawsuits and administrative actions); issues rules and guidance; coordinates with state, local and international partners; and provides consumer- and business-facing education and compliance guidance.
A Deputy Director is a senior bureau manager who helps run the Bureau’s day‑to‑day operations: overseeing divisions and staff, coordinating investigations and enforcement work, implementing policy and rulemaking, advising the Director and Chairman, and managing outreach/education and interagency coordination. (Specific daily tasks vary by assignment and current cases.)
According to the FTC press release, Levi Swank is an experienced consumer‑protection litigator who spent his career in private practice at a large Washington, D.C. law firm (associate then partner). He holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia (Executive Editor, Virginia Law Review; Order of the Coif), a B.A. in Government from Patrick Henry College, and clerked for Judge Alice M. Batchelder of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
No. Deputy Director appointments are internal senior staff assignments made by the FTC Chairman and are not subject to Senate confirmation.
Not directly. This is an internal leadership appointment; the FTC press release doesn’t announce any immediate policy changes. In practice, a new Deputy Director can influence bureau priorities, supervision of investigations, and enforcement emphasis over time, but formal policy shifts typically flow from the Commissioners, Bureau Director, rulemaking agendas, or public statements—not from a single deputy appointment alone.
Unclear/publicly unlisted. The FTC press release and bureau materials do not specify a fixed term length or a formal public performance‑review schedule for a Deputy Director; such senior civil‑service or SES‑equivalent positions are typically at‑will or follow agency personnel rules and internal review processes.