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SSP Assistant Counsel Earns the Junior Attorney Achievement Award
24 October 2024
From Thomas Jones
WASHINGTON NAVY YARD – James Gulliksen, Assistant Counsel at Strategic Systems Programs (SSP), was recognized by Vice Adm. Johnny Wolfe Jr., director of Strategic Systems Programs, on 10 October for earning the Department of the Navy (DON) Office of the General Counsel (OGC) Junior Attorney Achievement Award.
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The Junior Attorney Achievement Award recognizes an attorney who has been admitted to the practice of law within the past five years and who has performed above and beyond expectations, showing an outstanding ability to effectively digest and disseminate information, substantially contributing to both their activity and OGC.
Vice Adm. Wolfe, in recognizing Gulliksen for his award, stated, “We have a lot of legal staff in the Navy. They can be your best or worst friend depending on the situation... But the legal staff we have at SSP truly want to help us succeed. The recognition that James received from the Navy truly shows this. We are blessed to have the legal staff we have here and I am thankful for the work that James has done.”
"I'm extremely honored to receive this award from the Navy's General Counsel and to hear Vice Adm. Wolfe's recognition. I personally thank our supervisory international law attorney Josh Kuyers and the rest of my leadership for their perpetual guidance and support," Gulliksen said.
Gulliksen passed the bar exam in 2020 and began his career as an attorney with SSP in 2021.
“After working in stints of public, non-profit, and private sector work during law school, I decided to join the [Department of Defense] because I saw firsthand that young lawyers in government are given impressive amounts of responsibility and autonomy out of the gate,” Gulliksen said.
He has played a critical role in SSP’s international partnerships, including going to extraordinary efforts in supporting the Polaris Sales Agreement (PSA) and Mutual Defense Agreement (MDA) with the UK.
“When people say that the United States and the United Kingdom share a ‘special relationship,’ a key part of that is each of our navies’ ongoing execution of the Polaris Sales Agreement and the Mutual Defense Agreement,” Gulliksen said. Having represented the U.S. in high-level bilateral engagement with the UK, Gulliksen has also been a crucial part in renewing provisions of the MDA.
“Beneath the formal bilateral agreements are strong personal relationships between the two sides based on service and trust. That allows us to approach any issue of the day as true partners,” said Gulliksen.
During his time at SSP, Gulliksen has repeatedly demonstrated excellence in his field and a passion for his work.
“I love working at SSP mostly because of the importance of our mission,” Gulliksen said.
“We deal in high stakes matters like managing some of the true crown-jewel systems that exist to deter attack on the United States, our allies, and partners.”
Strategic Systems Programs is the Navy command that provides cradle-to-grave lifecycle support for the sea-based leg of the nation’s nuclear triad. This includes training, systems, equipment, facilities and personnel responsible for ensuring the safety, security, and effectiveness of the nation’s Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) Trident II (D5LE) Strategic Weapon System.
Contact
Thomas Jones
Thomas.c.jones@ssp.navy.mil
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