Key facts
- President Donald Trump intends to nominate James McDonald as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
- McDonald has prior experience as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and served as the CFTC's Director of Enforcement.
- He is currently a litigation partner at Sullivan & Cromwell.
- McDonald is involved in Trump's appeal of his 2024 conviction in the Manhattan hush money case.
President Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate James McDonald as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. McDonald, who has experience as a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and served as the Director of Enforcement at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from 2017 to 2020, is currently a litigation partner at Sullivan & Cromwell. In that role, he has represented cryptocurrency exchanges and individuals in government investigations. The Southern District of New York is a highly influential federal prosecutor's office known for handling major financial fraud, corruption, and digital asset cases. McDonald was also part of the legal team that secured a favorable outcome for Indian billionaire Gautam Adani in a fraud and conspiracy case and is involved in Trump's appeal of felony convictions related to hush money payments.