Mark Holden serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Koch Industries, Inc., Retired.
As a former correctional officer in his hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts, Mark has been a long-time advocate for criminal justice reform at the federal and state level. He was part of the bipartisan coalition that drove the First Step Act’s passage in 2018. Passage of this legislation lead to the first reforms of the federal criminal justice system in a generation. Mark worked closely with the Obama Administration and continues to work closely with the Trump Administration to advance meaningful criminal justice reform.
Mark began his career with Koch in 1995 as a litigation attorney. In 2001, he became the Vice President and General Counsel for litigation and compliance where he worked with the various Koch companies on a variety of litigation, regulatory, compliance, and commercial issues. During his tenure at Koch, he developed extensive experience in labor and employment issues, complex litigation, and domestic and international investigations.
In 2004, Mark was promoted to Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary of Koch. He served in that for role for 15 years. He also served as President and COO of the Legal Division of Koch Companies Public Sector, LLC.
Mark also was a member of the Koch Industries Compliance Committee. He served as a Board Member for Invista, Georgia Pacific, and Molex.
In addition, he serves as Senior Vice President of Stand Together Chamber of Commerce, Inc., Chairman of the Americans for Prosperity Foundation Board, and Board Member of Americans for Prosperity.
He also served as Chairman of the Board of Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce, Inc.
Prior to joining Koch, Mark was an associate with Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld in Washington, D.C., where he focused on labor and employment litigation.
Along with Charles Koch, Mark was named one of the Politico 50 in 2015 for their work on criminal justice reform.
Other honors include the Prison Fellowship Charles Colson Advocate Of Hope Award in 2018 and the 2019 Margaret Mead Award from the International Communities Corrections Association.
Mark earned a bachelor’s degree cum laude in political science from the University of Massachusetts. He earned his law degree from the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America, where he was an associate editor of the Catholic University Law Review.
Mark and his wife Louise live in Washington, DC. They are the proud parents of four children.
