Inside the unconventional tenure of Stanley Woodward, DOJ's No. 3
Summary
Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward has taken an unusually active role in Justice Department work, including antitrust matters and corporate criminal cases, according to people interviewed by CBS News. The report says he has challenged some prosecutions and urged antitrust lawyers to take temporary assignments in a new fraud division; the Justice Department confirmed the staffing request but did not address the reported remarks about judges or corporate prosecutions.Key Facts
- Woodward is the Justice Department’s No. 3 official and has served in the role since last fall, according to the article.
- In an October address to some Antitrust Division lawyers, Woodward urged them to consider temporary assignments with the National Fraud Enforcement Division, created earlier this year.
- Sources told CBS News that Woodward criticized a judge overseeing a lawsuit about President Trump’s plans to renovate a public golf course in Washington and offered to hear about future problems with judges.
- The Justice Department spokesperson confirmed Woodward encouraged antitrust attorneys to join the fraud division, citing their relevant experience, and did not dispute that a White House call interrupted his speech.
- People interviewed by CBS News said Woodward has intervened in corporate criminal cases and sometimes opposed recommendations from career prosecutors and political appointees.
- Sources described an Illinois mining company case involving allegations that the company failed to evacuate workers during a 2021 fire and failed to report another fire to regulators this year.
- Before joining the Justice Department, Woodward worked mainly on civil matters at Akin Gump and later represented criminal defendants, including Walt Nauta and Peter Navarro.
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