President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

WASHINGTON – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

·         David S. Cohen, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, Department of the Treasury
·         Donald B. Verrilli, Jr., Solicitor General of the United States, Department of Justice

President Obama said, “I am grateful these accomplished individuals have agreed to continue their service to the nation, and I’m confident they will serve ably in these important roles.  I look forward to working with them in the coming months and years.”

President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

David S. Cohen, Nominee for Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, Department of the Treasury
David S. Cohen was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 1, 2009 as the Department of the Treasury’s Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing. In this role, Mr. Cohen is responsible for formulating and coordinating the counterterrorist financing and anti-money laundering efforts for the Department of the Treasury. Until February 2009, he was a partner in the law firm of WilmerHale, where he focused on complex civil litigation, white collar criminal defense, internal investigations and anti-money laundering counseling. Immediately prior to joining the firm in 2001, Mr. Cohen worked at the Treasury Department, where he served concurrently as Acting Deputy General Counsel and Associate Deputy General Counsel, and was a recipient of the Treasury Secretary’s Award for outstanding service. Mr. Cohen received his J.D. from Yale Law School, and his B.A., magna cum laude, from Cornell University.

Donald B. Verrilli, Jr., Nominee for  Solicitor General of the United States, Department of Justice
Donald B. Verrilli, Jr. currently serves as a Deputy Counsel to the President.  Previously he served in the Department of Justice as an Associate Deputy Attorney General, where he focused on domestic and national security policy issues.  Prior to joining the Justice Department in February 2009, Mr. Verrilli was a litigator in private practice for more than 20 years in the D.C. office of the Jenner & Block law firm, where his practice focused on First Amendment, telecommunications, and intellectual property law, as well as pro bono matters.  At Jenner & Block, he was co-chair of the firm’s Supreme Court practice group from 2000 until his departure in 2009.  Mr. Verrilli has participated in more than 100 cases before the Supreme Court and has argued twelve.  He also has participated in approximately 90 cases in the U.S. Courts of Appeal and state supreme courts, arguing over 30 of these appeals.  Mr. Verrilli held numerous leadership positions at Jenner & Block, including serving as a member of the firm’s governing Policy Committee and as chair of its Diversity Committee.  Mr. Verrilli also served for over fifteen years as an adjunct professor of constitutional law at the Georgetown University Law Center, focusing on First Amendment law.  Mr. Verrilli received the Frederick Douglass Award from the Southern Center for Human Rights in 2006, and the Arthur Von Briesen Award from the National Legal Aid and Defenders Association in 2004.  He also served as a law clerk to the Hon. William J. Brennan, Jr. of the United States Supreme Court and to the Hon. J. Skelly Wright of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.  Mr. Verrilli received his J.D. from Columbia Law School where he was a Kent Scholar and Editor-in-Chief of the Columbia Law Review, and received a B.A. with honors from Yale University.