By: Aebra Coe
Shan Wu spoke to Law360 about expected changes to the Department of Justice under President-elect Biden’s nominee for attorney general, Judge Merrick Garland. Shan stated, “One of Garland’s priorities will be the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. He will face pressure to send a strong message that DOJ is investigating injustices via prosecutions, and to revive the use of oversight of police departments through consent decrees overseen by special masters and courts.”
Law360 (January 7, 2021, 4:42 PM EST) — D.C. Circuit Judge Merrick Garland has a big job ahead of him as President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for U.S. attorney general, according to top attorneys, who say the nomination portends steep departures from the Trump administration in areas like white collar crime, immigration and civil rights.
If he is confirmed, Garland’s top priority is likely to be restoring the reputation of the U.S. Department of Justice as a nonpartisan, independent entity and rebuilding the American public’s trust in the institution — no small feat, said many of the lawyers who provided their thoughts on the nomination to Law360 on Wednesday and Thursday.