Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's offices in Washington, D.C. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM

The Trump White House counsel's office has swelled in recent months as U.S. House Democrats press investigations of President Donald Trump and his private businesses, lawmakers seek information about the special counsel's Russia investigation, and the federal courts confront a series of cases that could force the president to hand over financial records he's long tried to keep secret.

White House counsel Pat Cipollone, who succeeded Donald McGahn as the president's top in-house lawyer, said a few months ago he planned to beef up the counsel's team with more than a dozen new attorneys. The Trump White House counsel has played a central role in the administration's attempts to shield current and former officials from speaking with Democrats.

Newly disclosed White House salary records reveal some of the attorneys who've left academia and posts at major U.S. law firms—including Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher; Sidley Austin; and Kirkland & Ellis—to work under Cipollone's leadership. What follows is a snapshot of some of the new lawyers at the White House counsel's office.

>> Brittany Biles arrived at the White House in April from Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner, where Cipollone had been a name partner. Biles, an associate counsel, joined Stein Mitchell in November 2017 from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, where she had been assistant chief litigation counsel. Biles earlier worked at Kirkland & Ellis from 2006 to 2014. She made partner in 2011. Biles clerked for Judge Julia Smith Gibbons of the U.S. Court of Appelas the Sixth Circuit.

>> Devin DeBacker, also an associate counsel, joined the White House in April from Kirkland & Ellis, where he had been a partner. DeBacker, who clerked for Judge D. Brooks Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, started at Kirkland in 2013. DeBacker clerked for then-U.S. District Judge Amul Thapar of the Eastern District of Kentucky in 2011. Trump elevated Thapar in 2017 to the Sixth Circuit.

>> Trent Benishek is formerly a white-collar senior associate at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in Washington. He's now an associate counsel to the president. “Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Mr. Benishek served as the press secretary on a successful campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives, where he focused on earned media and messaging strategy, debate preparation, and policy development,” the firm said on a bio page. Benishek worked on the campaign for his father, Dan Benishek, a doctor and former Republican U.S. representative from Michigan.

> Eric Hamilton, a Stanford Law School graduate and former Williams & Connolly associate in Washington, is a deputy associate counsel to the president. Hamilton successfully argued a Third Circuit appeal for a pro bono client involving claims of First Amendment retaliation and defamation. White House lawyer Emmet Flood, who was brought to help Trump navigate the special counsel's Russia investigation, is expected to return to Williams & Connolly.

Williams & Connolly offices in Washington, D.C. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ NLJ

>> John Coghlan, an associate counsel, formerly worked at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. He joined the White House counsel's office as a detailee from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Coghlan has represented federal agencies in civil litigation disputes in Alexandria, Virginia, federal district court.

>> Coreen Mao, now a deputy associate counsel to the president, had been a Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher associate until March. At Gibson Dunn, she focused on commercial litigation, white-collar defense and congressional investigations. She was earlier an associate at the firm from 2014 to 2017, before taking a clerkship with U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden of the District of Columbia, one of Trump's first appointees to the federal trial court in Washington.

>> Kevin Garvey is a former Sidley Austin associate in Washington who joined the White House as a deputy associate counsel to the president. At Sidley Austin, Garvey worked in the firm's securities and derivatives enforcement and regulatory group.

>> Tara Helfman, an associate counsel, joined the White House in April from Syracuse University College of Law, where she teaches contracts and constitutional law, among other topics. “Helfman is a frequent contributing writer and speaker on areas of the law including executive powers. She was critical of Barack Obama's use of executive orders during his term as president,” according to a post at Syracuse.com. Helfman is co-author of the book “Liberty and Union: A Constitutional History of the United States.”

 

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