OFFICE OF LEGAL POLICY ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP CHANGES

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Assistant Attorney General Viet Dinh today announced two changes in the leadership of the Justice Department's Office of Legal Policy. Adam H. Charnes joins the office as the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, and Wendy J. Keefer has been promoted to Chief of Staff.

Charnes received his B.A. from Princeton University and his J.D. from Harvard Law School. After law school, Charnes was a law clerk for Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. Charnes most recently served as Director of Commercial Litigation for WorldCom, Inc. and MCI Communications Corp., where he worked from 1996 through 2002. From 1993 until 1996, he was an attorney at Hogan & Hartson LLP. Charnes will assist Dinh with oversight of daily operations and policy development.

"Adam's policy expertise will contribute greatly to the Department's work on several fronts," said Dinh. "His credentials are first-rate, and he will play a key role in advancing the Department's commitment to defending freedom through law."

Keefer served as a senior counsel in the Office of Legal Policy before accepting her new position as Chief of Staff. Prior to joining the Justice Department in August 2001, Keefer was a law clerk for the Honorable J.L. Edmondson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and an attorney at the law firm of Barnwell, Whaley, Patterson & Helms in Charleston, S.C. She is a graduate of the Campbell University School of Law and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. As Chief of Staff, Keefer will manage daily office operations and continue to serve as counsel to Dinh.

"This new designation reflects Wendy's outstanding work and dedication over the past year," said Dinh. "She has met each new challenge and responsibility with excellence, and her service has earned her this promotion.

"At this critical time in our nation's history, the leadership of this team is invaluable. Adam Charnes and Wendy Keefer bring their talents, integrity and intellect to the Department's unyielding pursuit of justice."

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