Hampton Dellinger

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American lawyer and politician (born 1967)

title: "Hampton Dellinger" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1967-births", "living-people", "north-carolina-democrats", "north-carolina-lawyers", "people-from-oxford,-mississippi", "university-of-michigan-alumni", "yale-law-school-alumni", "boies-schiller-flexner-people", "biden-administration-personnel", "united-states-assistant-attorneys-general-for-the-office-of-legal-policy"] description: "American lawyer and politician (born 1967)" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampton_Dellinger" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American lawyer and politician (born 1967) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]

FieldValue
nameHampton Dellinger
imageHampton Dellinger, Assistant Attorney General.jpg
captionOfficial portrait, 2022
officeSpecial Counsel of the United States
presidentJoe Biden
Donald Trump
term_startMarch 6, 2024
term_endMarch 5, 2025
predecessorHenry Kerner
successorDoug Collins (acting)
office1United States Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy
term_start1November 1, 2021
term_end1June 15, 2023
president1Joe Biden
predecessor1Beth Ann Williams
successor1Susan Davies (acting)
birth_nameHampton Yeats Dellinger
birth_date
birth_placeOxford, Mississippi, U.S.
partyDemocratic
spouse
relationsWalter Dellinger (father)
educationUniversity of Michigan (BA)
Yale University (JD)
::

| name = Hampton Dellinger | image = Hampton Dellinger, Assistant Attorney General.jpg | caption = Official portrait, 2022 | office = Special Counsel of the United States | president = Joe Biden Donald Trump | term_start = March 6, 2024 | term_end = March 5, 2025 | predecessor = Henry Kerner | successor = Doug Collins (acting) | office1 = United States Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy | term_start1 = November 1, 2021 | term_end1 = June 15, 2023 | president1 = Joe Biden | predecessor1 = Beth Ann Williams | successor1 = Susan Davies (acting) | birth_name = Hampton Yeats Dellinger | birth_date = | birth_place = Oxford, Mississippi, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | party = Democratic | spouse = | relations = Walter Dellinger (father) | education = University of Michigan (BA) Yale University (JD)

Hampton Yeats Dellinger (born April 30, 1967) is an American lawyer who served as Special Counsel of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel until fired by President Donald Trump. Initially dismissed on February 7, 2025, Dellinger sued to keep his job and gained rulings by a federal district court judge preventing his immediate dismissal. However, on March 5, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit lifted the injunction imposed by the district court, allowing his dismissal, and the next day Dellinger dropped the legal action to keep his job.{{cite news|title= Head of federal whistleblower office drops legal battle challenging his firing|first1=Jacob|last1=Rosen|first2=Melissa|last2=Quinn|date=March 6, 2025|access-date=March 6, 2025|publisher=CBS News|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/special-counsel-whistleblower-office-trump-firing-hampton-dellinger/}}

Dellinger previously served as the United States Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy and had been a partner at Boies, Schiller & Flexner and at Robinson, Bradshaw, and Hinson.

Education and early career

Dellinger's father, Walter E. Dellinger, served as the solicitor general for the United States from 1996 to 1997.

Dellinger earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan and a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School. Dellinger clerked for Judge James Dickson Phillips Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

From January 2001 to June 2003, he served as legal counsel for North Carolina Governor Mike Easley. From July 2001 to June 2003, he also served as a member of the governor's advisory council on Hispanic-Latino affairs.

From July 2003 to January 2008, he was a partner with the firm Womble Carlyle. From 2008 to 2013, Dellinger was a lawyer in the office of Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson. From 2013 to 2020, he was a partner at the Washington, D.C. office of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP. He practiced as a solo practitioner from 2020 to 2021.

He was a candidate for the 2008 Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor of North Carolina. In his first run for elective office, he lost the Democratic primary on May 6, 2008 to Walter H. Dalton.

In 2009, Senator Kay Hagan recommended Dellinger and two other lawyers to President Barack Obama for consideration as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Obama eventually nominated attorney Thomas Walker.

Federal government career

On June 18, 2021, he was nominated by President Biden to serve as the United States Department of Justice's Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy. On July 28, 2021, a hearing on his nomination was held before the Senate Judiciary Committee. On September 23, 2021, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 13–8–1 vote. On October 27, 2021, the United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 51–45 vote. On October 28, 2021, Dellinger was confirmed by a 53–37 vote. He was sworn in on November 1, 2021.

On October 3, 2023, Dellinger was nominated to be the next Special Counsel of the United States. On November 30, 2023, a hearing on his nomination was held before the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. On January 17, 2024, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 7–1 vote. On February 27, 2024, the United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 51–46 vote. He was confirmed later that day by a 49–47 vote. He was sworn in on March 6, 2024.

On February 7, 2025, President Donald Trump fired Dellinger, giving no reason for the removal. On February 10, Dellinger sued, alleging Trump had ignored a federal law that a special counsel can only be fired due to "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office." Judge Amy Berman Jackson issued a temporary stay requiring Dellinger to be restored to office pending further legal action. On February 16, the Justice Department opened an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court seeking to lift the temporary order, arguing that it is an unacceptable intrusion on executive power. The Court agreed to hear the case on an emergency basis. Arguments on Bessent v. Dellinger began within days. On February 21, the Supreme Court declined to grant the emergency appeal in a 5-4 decision, holding the case in abeyance until February 26, when the temporary stay is set to expire.

On March 1, 2025, Judge Berman issued a ruling that Dellinger's firing was unlawful and that he was to be fully reinstated in his job. The Trump administration appealed the ruling. The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on March 5, 2025 lifted the stay imposed by the district court, allowing his dismissal. Dellinger then dropped his lawsuit, accepting his dismissal.

Personal life

Dellinger is the son of the law professor and former acting Solicitor General of the United States, Walter E. Dellinger III. He married Jolynn Childers on September 10, 1994.

References

Footnotes

References

  1. {{cite court. (March 5, 2025). link
  2. https://www.justice.gov/archives/olp/staff-profile/former-assistant-attorney-general-office-legal-policy-hampton-y-dellinger
  3. "Our Campaigns - Candidate - Hampton Dellinger".
  4. Baxter, Brian. (December 22, 2014). "In Partner Promotions, Boies Schiller Sees Its Future". The American Lawyer.
  5. (February 16, 2022). "Walter Dellinger, influential scholar and lawyer, dies at 80".
  6. (June 18, 2021). "President Biden Announces Five Key Nominations".
  7. "Questionnaire for Non-Judicial Nominees". United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
  8. (May 7, 2008). "Pittenger, Dalton will compete for lieutenant governor". Winston-Salem Journal.
  9. (2009-11-30). "President Obama Nominates Four U.S Attorneys".
  10. (June 18, 2021). "President Biden Announces Five Key Nominations".
  11. (July 28, 2021). "Nominations".
  12. "Results of Executive Business Meeting – September 23, 2021". United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
  13. "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Hampton Y. Dellinger to be an Assistant Attorney General)".
  14. "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Hampton Y. Dellinger, of North Carolina, to be an Assistant Attorney General)".
  15. (2020-12-14). "Meet the Assistant Attorney General".
  16. (October 3, 2023). "President Biden Announces Hampton Dellinger as Nominee for Special Counsel, Office of the Special Counsel". The White House.
  17. (November 30, 2023). "Nominations".
  18. (January 17, 2024). "Memo".
  19. (February 27, 2024). "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Hampton Y. Dellinger to be Special Counsel, Office of Special Counsel)".
  20. (February 27, 2024). "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Hampton Y. Dellinger, of North Carolina, to be Special Counsel, Office of Special Counsel)".
  21. (2024-02-27). "New Lead Confirmed For Watchdog Office For Fed. Employees".
  22. (2024-03-06). "Hampton Dellinger Sworn In as Special Counsel of OSC". United States Office of Special Counsel.
  23. (2025-02-20). "Federal ethics official sues after purported Trump firing". National Public Radio.
  24. Gerstein, Josh. (2025-02-10). "Judge to Trump-terminated ethics watchdog: You're un-fired".
  25. Liptak, Adam. (2025-02-16). "First Test of Trump's Power to Fire Officials Reaches Supreme Court". The New York Times.
  26. (2025-02-16). "Trump administration wants Supreme Court to permit firing of whistleblower agency head - CBS News".
  27. "Bessent v. Dellinger". SCOTUSBlog.
  28. Adam Liptak. (February 16, 2025). "First Test of Trump's Power to Fire Officials Reaches Supreme Court". New York Times.
  29. (February 15, 2025). "USCA Case #25-5028".
  30. Fritze, John. (2025-02-21). "Supreme Court rules that government watchdog fired by Trump may temporarily remain on the job".
  31. Richer, Alanna Durkin. (2025-03-02). "Judge rules head of watchdog agency must keep his job, says Trump's bid to oust him was unlawful".
  32. Haley Chi-Sing. (March 1, 2025). "Federal judge rules Trump's firing of head of special counsel was unlawful, will maintain his job". Fox News.
  33. Montague, Zach. (March 5, 2025). "Appeals court rules Trump can remove federal ethics watchdog". [[The New York Times]].
  34. Polantz, Katelyn. (2025-03-06). "Federal watchdog removed by Trump drops his case, citing long odds of winning at Supreme Court {{!}} CNN Politics".
  35. (September 11, 1994). "WEDDINGS; Jolynn Childers, H. Y. Dellinger". The New York Times.

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