The president of the United States appoints individuals to the position of assistant attorney general with the advice and consent of the Senate. [1] United States Department of Justice components that are led by an assistant attorney general are:
^ "Attorney General Holder Announces Vanita Gupta to Serve as Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division | OPA | Department of Justice". Justice.gov. October 15, 2014. Retrieved December 16, 2016. ^ "James P. Turner, Used and Abused: The Civil Rights Division, Washington Post, Sunday, December 14, 1997; Page C01".
The AAG is assisted by six Deputy Assistant Attorneys General (DAAGs) who may be either career or noncareer employees. These DAAGs assist the AAG by supervising enforcement matters and advising on enforcement decisions and policy matters.
Senior appointed official leading OLC since the end of January 2011 until June 2011, when Virginia A. Seitz was confirmed. Confirmed by the Senate in a voice vote on June 28, 2011. Resigned effective December 20, 2013. [24] Appointed Principal Deputy AAG on March 24, 2014. [25] Appointed Principal Deputy AAG on January 20, 2017. [26]
Her nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 20, 2009, by a vote of 87 to 1.
As Assistant Attorney General, Varney has suggested that there may be a lack of competition in the health insurance market, and has endorsed a measure that would revoke the federal antitrust exemption for health insurers. Varney has also been critical of " reverse payment patent settlement " or "pay-for-delay" agreements, in which a potential generic competitor delays entry of a generic drug in exchange for a payment from a branded drug manufacturer with market power. A brief signed by Varney argues that such agreements are "presumptively unlawful", signifying a departure from the previous DOJ positions, aligning the DOJ's position with that of the FTC.
As an FTC Commissioner, Varney voiced concerns about legislation that would grant certain antitrust immunities to doctors, as well as potential competitive problems caused by vertical integration of drug companies into the pharmacy benefits management market.
Similarly, in her first public remarks as Assistant Attorney General, Varney stated, "I believe that as targets of antitrust enforcement have expanded their operations worldwide, there is a greater need for U.S. authorities to reach out to other antitrust agencies.".
Varney was instrumental in establishing several industry associations, including the Online Privacy Alliance, which helped promote self-regulation and identify Internet best practices in the field of online privacy. She has served on the board of directors of TRUSTe, a privacy certification and seal program.
During her tenure, Varney successfully prevented several mergers and acquisitions, including NASDAQ and Intercontinental Exchange from acquiring NYSE Euronext, as well as Verifone 's acquisition of Hypercom. She allowed the mergers of Live Nation Entertainment with Ticketmaster, and of Comcast with NBCUniversal.
In October 2010, Varney brought an anti-competition suit against Visa Inc., MasterCard, each of which soon settled, and American Express, which did not.
• Kristen Clarke (2021–present)
• Eric Dreiband (2018–2021)
• John M. Gore (Acting 2017–2018)
• Thomas E. Wheeler II (Acting 2017)
Christine A. Varney is an American antitrust attorney who served as the U.S. assistant attorney general of the Antitrust Division for the Obama Administration and as a Federal Trade commissioner in the Clinton Administration. Since August 2011, Varney has been a partner of the New York law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore, where she chairs the antitrust department.
Varney was born in Washington, D.C. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from University at Albany, SUNY in 1977. As an undergraduate, she studied abroad at Trinity College, Dublin. She later earned a Master of Public Administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, and a Juris Doctor from Georgetown Law School.
Varney served as general counsel to the Democratic National Committee from 1989 to 1992; chief counsel to the Bill Clinton 1992 presidential campaign, general counsel to the 1992 Presidential Inaugural Committee, associate and partner of the firm of Hogan & Hartson, and as assistant to the president and White House cabinet secretary. In the latter role, she acted as a liaison between the White House and cabinet departments. She stated the Clinton Administration's philosophy o…
While at the FTC, Varney predicted that online privacy would "become a critical aspect of [the FTC's] consumer protection responsibilities." Former FTC Chairman Robert Pitofsky has credited Varney as "the leading force in getting the agency active on the online privacy front."
In advocating adoption of the FTC's privacy guidelines, Varney identified a maj…