Jody Hunt

Joseph Harold Hunt (born September 30, 1961) is an American lawyer. He was the United States Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice from September 2018 to July 2020.

Education

Hunt received his Bachelor of Arts from Samford University in 1982, where he was the valedictorian. He earned a Master of Arts from Florida State University in 1984, and a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in 1989, where he was recognized as Best Oralist in the national phase of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition.

Career

After graduating from law school, Hunt clerked for Judge James Hughes Hancock of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

Private practice After clerking, Hunt worked for five years at White & Case as an associate, and four years at King & Spalding, where he became a partner.

The nomination was not acted upon, so on January 3, 2018, it was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. Hunt was renominated on January 8, 2018, and had a confirmation hearing on March 7, 2018, before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On April 19, 2018, Hunt's nomination was reported out of committee by an 18–3 vote. On August 28, 2018, the Senate voted to confirm him to head the Civil Division by a vote of 72–23. Hunt was sworn in on September 4, 2018. He oversaw the legal defense of Trump administration policies, as well as the general refusal to respond to Congressional oversight authority. Hunt declared that he would leave his position in early July 2020.

Samford University On March 1, 2023, Hunt became general counsel of his alma mater, Samford University, in Birmingham, Alabama. He succeeded Clark Watson in the post.