Harry Litman

Harry P. Litman (born c. 1958) is an American lawyer, law professor, and political commentator. He is a former U.S. attorney and deputy assistant attorney general. He has provided commentary in print and broadcast news, and produces the Talking Feds podcast. He is a senior fellow at USC's Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy. He has taught in several law schools and schools of public policy.

Litman served as a law clerk to Abner Mikva, Thurgood Marshall, and Anthony Kennedy. His practice specialties have included false claims law and whistleblower law.

Early life and education Harry P. Litman was born around 1958. He attended the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh as a youth.

He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College in 1980. After graduating, he worked as a sports reporter for the Associated Press, and as a production assistant for feature films. He received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of California at Berkeley in Berkeley in 1986, where he was editor-in-chief of the California Law Review, and graduated Order of the Coif. and Supreme Court Justices Thurgood Marshall

After his clerkships, Litman became an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of California. While an Assistant U.S. Attorney, he was detailed to the Department of Justice's main office in Washington, D.C. to work on several national cases, including the federal re-prosecution of the Los Angeles police officers in the Rodney King case.

From 1993 to 1998, he was a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Department of Justice under Janet Reno, coordinating the department's work on a number of issues and advising the Attorney General and other officials on questions of constitutional law and prosecutorial policy.

Litman in 2000 personally litigated a gun trafficking case under Operation Target. In July 2000, Clinton nominated Litman for a judgeship on the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, but the Senate adjourned without considering the nomination. While in government, Litman taught at Berkeley Law School in Berkeley, California, Georgetown Law School in Washington D.C., and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in Pittsburgh.

Litman developed a nationally-recognized gun-violence reduction initiative known as Operation Target, and personally litigated cases in the district court and the court of appeals. A Democrat, Litman was the Pennsylvania state counsel to the Kerry-Edwards campaign in 2004, and post-election counsel for Western Pennsylvania to the Obama-Biden presidential campaign in 2008.

After leaving government, Litman was appointed a Distinguished Visitor and Fellow to the Program in Law and Public Policy at Princeton University's School of Public and International Affairs. As of 2024, he is associated with Whistleblower Partners.

Other activities

Legal commentary

He has contributed opinion commentary to the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The Atlantic , The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, and Lawfare (Lawfare Project).

Litman was the Senior Legal Columnist for the LA Times' op-ed section from 2021 until he resigned in 2024. His resignation was in protest over the LA Times ' leadership currying favor with President-elect Trump. The resignation triggered widespread national and international coverage. He is a regular commentator on legal issues for cable television networks including MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News. Litman also provides legal and political analysis on BBC News, National Public Radio (NPR), and France 24.

Notable cases in private practice Litman was lead counsel for the whistleblower in Washington v. EDMC, a False Claims Act case against a for-profit education chain. The case resulted in the largest settlement ever in an FCA case involving the U.S. Department of Education.

He was counsel for Richard Cordray, then director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, in contemplated litigation against President Trump to prevent Cordray's termination. Litman represented Pittsburgh Mayor Thomas J. Murphy Jr. in a successful effort to prevent indictment on federal charges. He served as co-counsel by appointment of the Department of Justice in two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Teaching As of 2018, Litman taught constitutional law and national security law at UCLA School of Law and the University of California, San Diego School of Political Science. He previously taught at Berkeley Law School, Georgetown Law School in Washington, D.C., University of Pittsburgh School of Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Princeton University's School of Public Policy, Rutgers University–Camden Law School, and Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.

Civic Activities Litman serves on the Regional Leadership Councils of the Brady Campaign in addition to the boards of the Constitutional Accountability Center and the Jewish Healthcare Foundation.

Talking Feds podcast In March 2019, Litman launched the podcast Talking Feds, a round-table of former federal officials talking about the legal issues of the day. He serves as host and executive producer. In October 2024 the podcast won a Silver Award at the W3 Awards and a Silver Signal Award. In May 2025 the podcast was named a Webby Award Honoree.

Talking Feds is the only podcast honored with all three awards: a Webby Honoree, a Signal Award, and a W3 Award.

Recognition As of 2023 Litman was listed in "Best Lawyers of America" in the categories "Commercial Litigation", "White Collar Criminal Defense", and "Qui Tam Law".

Personal life Litman's wife is Julie Roskies Litman, a mathematician and jiu jitsu competitor; they have three children. His sister, Jessica Litman, is a lawyer and copyright scholar at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. His mother was attorney Roslyn Litman and he is a member of the Democratic Party.