Todd Kim

Early life and education

Kim was born and raised in New Jersey. He received his B.A., magna cum laude, in biology from Harvard College in 1994 and his J.D., magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1997, where he was an executive editor of the Harvard Law Review. After law school, he served as a law clerk to Judith W. Rogers on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Professional career

Kim served for seven years as an appellate attorney for the United States Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division.

Solicitor general for the District of Columbia Kim was the first solicitor general of the District of Columbia, serving from 2006 to 2017. He was appointed by Attorney General Robert J. Spagnoletti to be responsible for all of the District's appellate litigation before the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. In 2017, his final year as solicitor general, Kim argued on behalf of the District in the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Wesby.

DC Court of Appeals nomination In February 2014, President Barack Obama nominated Kim to a seat on the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, but his nomination was not acted upon. On April 30, 2015, President Obama re-nominated Kim to the position, but the Senate did not take action on that nomination either.

Private practice In January 2018, he became a partner in Reed Smith's appellate practice. He left the firm in January 2021, joining the Biden administration as a deputy general counsel at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Biden administration On March 15, 2021, it was announced that President Joe Biden would nominate Kim to serve as Assistant Attorney General for the United States Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division. On April 14, 2021, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On May 13, 2021, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 15–7 vote. On July 27, 2021, the Senate confirmed Kim in a 58–41 vote. Kim was sworn in on July 28.

Personal life

On February 22, 2004, Kim appeared as the first contestant on a short-run Who Wants to Be a Millionaire spin-off game show called Who Wants to Be a Super Millionaire, where he won $500,000. Kim decided to walk away from his $1,000,000 question.

Kim is married to Carolyn Hill; they have two sons.