Department of Justice Seal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AG

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2001

(202) 514-2007

WWW.USDOJ.GOV

TDD (202) 514-1888


ATTORNEY GENERAL ASHCROFT APPOINTS TWO SENIOR APPOINTMENTS

AT THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT


WASHINGTON, D.C. - Attorney General John Ashcroft today announced two of his appointments for senior positions at the Justice Department -- Paul Clement as Principal Deputy Solicitor General and Adam Ciongoli as Counselor to the Attorney General.

As Principal Deputy Solicitor General, Clement, 34, will assist the Solicitor General in supervising and conducting government litigation in the United States Supreme Court. Clement has been a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of King and Spalding since 1999 where he headed the appellate practice. Before joining King and Spalding, he served as Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution. Prior to his Senate service, Clement was in private practice handling appellate matters. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center, where he teaches a constitutional law seminar.

Clement served as a law clerk to Associate Justice Antonin Scalia of the U.S. Supreme Court during the Court's 1993 term. He also served as a law clerk to Judge Laurence Silberman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1992 to1993.

Clement graduated, summa cum laude, from Georgetown University in 1988, and received an Master's in economics, with distinction, from Cambridge University in 1989. Clement received his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1992, where he served as Supreme Court Editor of the Harvard Law Review.

"I have had the privilege of working closely with Paul during my time in the Senate when he served on the Senate Constitution Committee and know him to be a man of the highest caliber, both professionally and personally," said Attorney General John Ashcroft. "Paul's outstanding credentials and significant

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litigation experience make him highly qualified to undertake the difficult issues which come before the Solicitor General's Office."

Ciongoli, 32, as Counselor to the Attorney General, will serve as the principal legal advisor in the Office of the Attorney General. Prior to his current position, Ciongoli served as Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution, which he joined in April 1999.

From 1996 to 1999, Ciongoli practiced appellate law in the Washington, D.C. law firm of Kirkland and Ellis, where he focused on class action, product liability and telecommunications issues. He also served as a law clerk to United States Circuit Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1995 to 1996.

Ciongoli graduated from Georgetown University Law Center, magna cum laude, and holds a B.A. in history from the University of Pennsylvania.

"Adam's expertise and work in the field of law have proven him to be a trusted advisor to me while I served in the U.S. Senate. I welcome the opportunity to have him at the Justice Department where I believe his knowledge and skills will continue to benefit this great institution and all the people it serves," said Ashcroft.

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