The judge overseeing the Eric Adams corruption and bribery case is indefinitely postponing a trial scheduled for April, but has not ruled yet on whether he will sign off on the Department of Justice's motion to dismiss the case with prejudice, according to a new order filed Friday.
In his order Friday, U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho said since Adams' defense is supportive of the DOJ's motion, there is "no adversarial testing of the Government's position." As a result, the judge appointed Paul Clement, of Clement & Murphy PLLC to present arguments as amicus curiae, or an independent attorney to argue on behalf of third parties.
Here's what you need to know about the constitutional law expert who will be arguing against the dismissal.
What you need to know about Paul Clement
Clement was born in Wisconsin and received his law degree from Harvard Law School. Following law school he clerked for Judge Laurence Silberman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
Clement also served as the 43rd Solicitor General of the United States from June 2005 until June 2008.
Clement has argued over 100 cases before the United States Supreme Court. He argued more Supreme Court cases since 2000 than any lawyer in or out of government.
Some of the cases he argued included NFL v. Brady, when various National Football League players including Tom Brady filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NFL in which they alleged that the league's planned lockout was an illegal group boycott and price-fixing arrangement.
He has also taken pro bono cases, including successfully representing the Omaha Tribe in Nebraska v. Parker, a case in which the Supreme Court determined that the passage of the 1882 Act by Congress did not diminish the original boundaries of the Omaha Indian Reservation.
He also filed administrative law challenges and constitutional litigation against the federal government, successfully challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' drug-pricing rule as well as successfully arguing a case in which he secured a $16 billion verdict against Argentina.
Clement is a founding partner of Clement & Murphy, PLLC and is a distinguished lecturer at Georgetown Law. He has also taught at NYU Law School and frequently lectures at schools nationwide.
