Trump Expected to Tap Jones Day Lawyer to Lead Civil Division
- Brett Shumate would oversee DOJ’s largest litigation unit
- Civil Division represents executive branch against lawsuits
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President-elect Donald Trump is expected to name Brett Shumate to lead the US Department of Justice’s Civil Division, choosing a veteran litigator to run an office that will defend the incoming administration’s agenda in court, according to people familiar with the situation.
Shumate is a partner at Jones Day in Washington, a law firm that has served as a pipeline for conservative lawyers to government posts and judgeships. During the first Trump administration, Shumate was a senior official in the Civil Division’s Federal Programs Branch, and handled some of the biggest legal fights of Trump’s first term.