President-elect Donald Trump has chosen longtime top Republican lawyer William McGinley to serve as White House counsel.

McGinley was assistant to the president and White House cabinet secretary during Trump’s first term. Since then, he has been with the firm Holtzman Vogel in Washington, D.C. He has also worked as outside counsel for election integrity for the Republican National Committee.

In a statement Tuesday, Trump called McGinley a “smart and tenacious” lawyer who will help with “fighting for election integrity and against the weaponization of law enforcement.”

In addition to advising the president on legal issues, McGinley will provide guidance on ethics questions and conflicts of interest and on the selection and vetting of nominees. Before joining the Trump administration in 2016, McGinley was a partner at the former Washington, D.C.-based lobbying firm Patton Boggs and at Jones Day, the international law firm closely tied to Trump’s first administration.

“I have know Bill for decades, and he has a great feel for the intersection of law, policy and politics. He’s a solid addition to what is shaping up to be a strong White House team,” said Jones Day partner and Trump’s first White House counsel Don McGahn.

McGinley has experience defending politicians in ethics investigations. He represented U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm, who was charged with mail, wire and tax fraud in a 20-count federal indictment.

Grimm pleaded guilty in December 2014 to aiding and assisting the preparation of a false tax return. The New York Republican, who resigned from Congress that month, was sentenced to eight months of incarceration.

At Jones Day, McGinley, along with McGahn, also represented former Republican Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock, who resigned from Congress following accusations that he used public funds to pay for trips and expensive office decorations. Schock agreed to pay back taxes and reimburse his campaign committees, and charges against him were dropped in 2019.

“Bill is somebody who does not seek publicity. He's a very efficient lawyer, and he has represented a lot of politicians over the years with respect to ethics complaints as well as grand jury investigations and FEC investigations,” said Jan Baran, a Holtzman Vogel partner who specializes in election law.

“I think it's a credit to him that he spent two and a half years working for President Trump in the first term, and left with his excellent reputation fully intact,” Baran said. “Going back and working in this different position is going to present some challenges, but that comes with the job. And there have been challenging moments for virtually all of his predecessors as White House counsel. But I think that by and large, he, like his predecessors, will meet those challenges and perform professionally and ably.”