Leading appeals lawyer leaves Jones Day for US Justice Dept post
By Mike Scarcella
April 9 (Reuters) - Longtime Washington appellate lawyer Hashim Mooppan has left law firm Jones Day for a post at the U.S. Justice Department, where he also held senior roles during Republican U.S. President Donald Trump's first administration.
Mooppan in Trump's first term served as counselor to the U.S. solicitor general, the head of the office that represents the United States before the U.S. Supreme Court and decides whether to file appeals in other federal courts.
Mooppan did not respond to requests for comment. During the first Trump administration he helped to defend the White House’s ban on travelers from seven majority-Muslim nations. He also argued unsuccessfully against extending civil rights protections to gay and lesbian workers.
The U.S. Senate last week confirmed Trump loyalist John Sauer as U.S. solicitor general. Sauer successfully urged the high court last year to give Trump broad immunity for actions that were within his constitutional powers as president.
Sarah Harris had been serving as acting U.S. solicitor general prior to Sauer's confirmation. Harris did not immediately respond to a request for comment about her and Mooppan's current roles. A DOJ spokesperson had no immediate comment on Mooppan's move.
Harris was a law clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas, and Mooppan and Sauer both clerked for the late Justice Antonin Scalia.
Jones Day, a 2,400-lawyer firm known for its corporate defense work, represented Trump in his 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns. Several lawyers at the firm served in senior White House and Justice Department roles in his first administration.
The firm's top Washington, D.C. partner Noel Francisco, who led the solicitor general's office during Trump's first term, in a statement on Wednesday praised Mooppan, saying the Justice Department was fortunate to have him back.
Former Jones Day lawyers tapped to serve in Trump's second term include Brett Shumate, whose nomination to lead the Justice Department's civil division is pending a Senate vote. Another ex-Jones Day lawyer, Yaakov Roth, is serving as the acting head of the civil division for now.
Read more:
Trump nominees disclose US law firm pay
Trump Justice Department taps another Jones Day lawyer for senior role
Trump picks first-term loyalists for top Justice Department posts
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