Law firm Boies Schiller adds white — collar partner in latest DOJ exit
By David Thomas Oct 14 (Reuters) — A US Justice Department official whose work included defending the use of force against allegedly violent protesters during a Chicago immigration crackdown has left to join Boies Schiller Flexner, the law firm said Wednesday. Sarmad Khojasteh, who joined the Justice Department in April 2025 from King & Spalding, will be a partner handling white-collar defense, investigations and commercial litigation in New York and Washington, the firm said. He was most recently deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's special litigation and enforcement and affirmative litigation branches. Boies Schiller cited Khojasteh's work securing a $600 million settlement in July from Chinese technology and e-commerce giant Alibaba and its US-based payment processor to resolve allegations that they failed to prevent illegal drug sales. "Sarmad brings a deep understanding of how the government builds and pursues cases and strong knowledge of current enforcement priorities," firm chairman Matthew Schwartz said in a statement. Khojasteh in a statement said the firm's "identity is built on elite trial work, crisis management and high-stakes litigation." A
By David Thomas Oct 14 (Reuters) — A US Justice Department official whose work included defending the use of force against allegedly violent protesters during a Chicago immigration crackdown has left to join Boies Schiller Flexner, the law firm said Wednesday. Sarmad Khojasteh, who joined the Justice Department in April 2025 from King & Spalding, will be a partner handling white-collar defense, investigations and commercial litigation in New York and Washington, the firm said. He was most recently deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's special litigation and enforcement and affirmative litigation branches.
Boies Schiller cited Khojasteh's work securing a $600 million settlement in July from Chinese technology and e-commerce giant Alibaba and its US-based payment processor to resolve allegations that they failed to prevent illegal drug sales. "Sarmad brings a deep understanding of how the government builds and pursues cases and strong knowledge of current enforcement priorities," firm chairman Matthew Schwartz said in a statement. " A Boies Schiller spokesperson said Khojasteh had no further comment.
Khojasteh represented the Trump administration in a lawsuit brought by protesters, journalists and clergy members who sued to curb ICE agents' use of tear gas and other anti-riot weapons on people protesting an immigration enforcement push in Chicago. The immigration crackdown, dubbed Operation Midway Blitz, led to thousands of arrests as federal agents clashed with protesters from September until December 2025. Agents shot two people, including one person fatally, and threatened to shoot others, body-cam footage showed.
US District Judge Sara Ellis granted an injunction sought by the plaintiffs in November 2025, rejecting arguments by Khojasteh that immigration agents only used force when necessary. The judge said immigration officials' allegations about violent, rioting protesters were contradicted by body camera video and other recordings. An appeals court later paused the order, finding it impermissibly micromanaged federal law enforcement in the city. S.
Office of Personnel Management. That includes more than 4,000 lawyers who have left since the start of Republican President Donald Trump's second term in January 2025; the government has also hired more than 1,700 lawyers in that time. Boies Schiller last month hired Stuart McCommas, former DOJ chief of staff and former deputy White House counsel to Trump during his second term, as a partner. Other former DOJ officials at the firm include Alison Anderson, who joined in 2023, and Jesse Panuccio, who joined in 2019.
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