Politico
Sullivan & Cromwell, one of the most prestigious law firms in the world, has developed a mutually beneficial relationship with President Donald Trump — rankling some of the firm’s top talent in the process.
The elite firm represents Trump in a variety of his personal legal matters, including an appeal of his criminal conviction on 34 counts of business fraud in the Manhattan hush money case, his effort to move that case to federal court and his appeal of a New York state civil fraud verdict.
And Trump has rewarded its partners handsomely. Jay Clayton, who had a more than 20-year career at Sullivan & Cromwell, is Trump’s nominee to be director of national intelligence. While Clayton awaits a confirmation hearing, he remains the Manhattan U.S. attorney, one of the most powerful prosecutorial roles in the country.
Trump nominated Matthew Schwartz, one of his lawyers at Sullivan & Cromwell, to be a judge on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. Schwartz’s confirmation is pending.
And Trump has tapped James McDonald, another Sullivan & Cromwell partner on Trump’s legal team, to replace Clayton as Manhattan U.S. attorney. McDonald is slated to join the office first as deputy U.S. attorney, where he is expected to assume day-to-day leadership while Clayton turns to confirmation matters.
The relationship stems from Trump’s friendship with the firm’s co-chair Robert Giuffra Jr. People familiar with the matter say he has encouraged the firm’s alliance with Trump. Giuffra, who is also a member of the president’s legal team, was among those considered by Trump for the job of attorney general after he was elected to a second term.
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https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/12/trump-doj-sullivan-cromwell-00993916
