Solicitor General Donald Verrilli is leaving Justice Department
Solicitor General Donald Verrilli. Photo from the Department of Justice.
Solicitor General Donald Verrilli will be leaving the Justice Department on June 24.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced Verrilli’s departure on Thursday in a statement calling him “a brilliant lawyer, a devoted public servant and one of the most consequential Solicitors General in American history.”
In his Supreme Court arguments on behalf of the Obama administration, Verrilli defended the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act and backed constitutional protections for same-sex marriage, report National Public Radio, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.), USA Today and Law.com.
USA Today says Verrilli’s tenure as solicitor general included “a remarkable run of ups and downs.” His losses include Shelby County v. Holder, in which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the formula to determine which jurisdictions have to get advance clearance before making changes to voting practices.
Verrilli’s principal deputy, Ian Gershengorn, will take over his job on an acting basis.
Verrilli hasn’t announced his future plans. He is a former Jenner & Block partner who oversaw the firm’s Supreme Court practice. Gershengorn is also a former Jenner partner, according to Law.com.
