Noel Francisco

Noel John Francisco (born August 21, 1969) is an American lawyer who served as Solicitor General of the United States from 2017 to 2020. He was the first Asian American confirmed by the United States Senate to hold the position. Francisco is now a partner at the law firm Jones Day.

As Solicitor General, Francisco was characterized as a staunch defender of President Donald Trump. In his position, Francisco sought to have the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) struck down by the courts, neither of which occurred during his tenure. He also defended Executive Order 13769, which was a ban on travelers from predominantly Muslim countries deemed to present security risks; this was ultimately upheld by the Supreme Court in Trump v. Hawaii.

Early life and education

Francisco was born on August 21, 1969, in Syracuse, New York. His father, Nemesio Francisco (1935–1989), was a physician who immigrated to the United States from the Philippines to study medicine. His mother, Therese, was an Italian American nurse from Oswego, New York. Francisco grew up in Oswego and graduated from Oswego High School in 1987.

Francisco attended Brandeis University for one year before transferring to the University of Chicago, graduating in 1991 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics with honors. He then entered private practice at Cooper, Carvin, & Rosenthal (now Cooper & Kirk). He was part of the legal team that worked for George W. Bush on the Florida recount in the 2000 presidential election. He also argued numerous cases in the lower federal and state courts on a wide range of constitutional, civil, and criminal matters. He served as the Acting Solicitor General from that date until March 10, 2017. On March 7, 2017, the White House announced Francisco's nomination to the position of Solicitor General. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate by a vote of 50–47 on September 19, 2017, and was sworn in later that day.

With the resignation of Rachel Brand as Associate Attorney General on February 8, 2018, Francisco became the fourth-ranking official in the Justice Department. Francisco received an ethics waiver on April 24, 2018, which relieved him of a previous obligation to recuse himself from any investigation in which his former employer, law firm Jones Day, was involved. Jones Day, which owed Francisco approximately $500,000, represented the Trump presidential campaign in the Special Counsel investigation. In his three years as United States Solicitor General, Francisco had represented the United States government in over 150 merit cases, and personally argued in 17.

As Solicitor General, Francisco was characterized as an "aggressive defender" of Trump. As Solicitor General, Francisco sought to have the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) struck down. He defended Trump's travel ban, which barred people from seven majority-Muslim countries. He defended the Justice Department's decision to withdraw a case against Trump associate Michael Flynn even after Flynn had pleaded guilty.

Personal life

Francisco is married with two daughters and resides in Washington, D.C.

Selected publications and lectures Articles

Op-eds Francisco, Noel J.; Burnham, James M. (October 3, 2016). "Time for a New Pleading Standard in Criminal Cases". Forbes. Retrieved January 29, 2019.