Ex-Kirkland Partner Claire Murray Named to Key Post in Barr's Front Office
The Trump administration has not named a permanent nominee for associate attorney general, the third-in-command at Main Justice.
May 14, 2019 at 12:52 PM
3 minute read
Attorney General William Barr testifies May 1. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM
U.S. Attorney General William Barr has elevated a top aide, Claire Murray, to a key role overseeing the Justice Department's expansive portfolio of civil cases, including litigation defending Trump administration policies.
Murray's promotion to the position of principal deputy associate attorney general, announced Tuesday, comes just months after she joined Barr's office from the White House counsel's office, where she'd helped shepherd then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh through his confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former partner at Kirkland & Ellis from 2015 to 2017, Murray clerked for Kavanaugh on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and Justice Samuel Alito on the Supreme Court.
She succeeds Jesse Panuccio, who stepped down last month after a two-year tenure that included stints as the acting associate attorney general—the third-in-command role at the Justice Department. The Trump administration has not named a permanent nominee for the associate position.
“All who work with Claire Murray are impressed with her sharp intelligence, thoughtfulness, and work ethic. During her time at Kirkland & Ellis, she rose to become a partner within just two years of joining the firm,”Barr said in a prepared statement. “She also has a remarkable record of public service, including serving as an associate White House counsel, as a clerk for two of today's Supreme Court justices, and in both appellate and line prosecutor roles at the Department of Justice.”
More than a year after Rachel Brand resigned to take a top in-house position at Walmart, the associate attorney general's slot remains vacant.
At Barr's recommendation, President Donald Trump earlier this year nominated Jessie Liu, the top federal prosecutor in Washington, to serve fill the third-in-command role. But Liu withdrew from consideration in March after meeting resistance from Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Murray's ascension deepens the Kirkland & Ellis ties within the Justice Department leadership. Before reprising the role of attorney general, a position he previously held under the George H.W. Bush administration, Barr was counsel in the firm's Washington office. Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis before becoming the head of the Justice Department's criminal division.
Trump's nominee to succeed Rod Rosenstein as deputy attorney general, Jeffrey Rosen, had been a senior partner at Kirkland & Ellis before becoming deputy transportation secretary in 2017.
Rosen is expected to be confirmed this week.
Read more:
DOJ's Acting No. 3 Panuccio Steps Down, Shares Advice for Successor
Former Sullivan & Cromwell Associate Takes Justice Dept. Front-Office Post
US Justice Department Names James Burnham to Key Civil Division Post
US Justice Department Opens Search for New Fraud Section Chief
Jessie Liu Withdraws From Consideration for No. 3 Post at Main Justice
William Barr Fills Front Office With Trump White House Lawyers
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Government Attorneys Face Reassignment, Rescinded Job Offers in First Days of Trump Administration
4 minute read
RFK Jr. Will Keep Affiliations With Morgan & Morgan, Other Law Firms If Confirmed to DHHS
3 minute read
Am Law 200 Firms Announce Wave of D.C. Hires in White-Collar, Antitrust, Litigation Practices
3 minute readTrending Stories
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
