Jones Day

Jones Day is an American multinational white-shoe law firm based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1893, the firm was originally headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. It has represented over half of the companies in the Fortune 500, including Goldman Sachs, General Motors, McDonald's, and Bridgestone.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jones Day has also represented the campaign of President Donald Trump, in 2016 and 2020.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Many attorneys from Jones Day have served as federal officials and judges, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, former White House Counsel Don McGahn, former U.S. Solicitor General Noel Francisco, former Federal Trade Commission chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoras, and U.S. court of appeals judges Jeffrey Sutton, Gregory G. Katsas, Timothy B. Dyk, Chad Readler, and Eric E. Murphy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Jones Day was founded in Cleveland in 1893 as Blandin & Rice by two partners, Edwin J. Blandin and William Lowe Rice.<ref>Template:Cite book; Template:Cite news</ref> Frank Ginn joined the firm in 1899, and it changed its name to Blandin, Rice & Ginn.<ref name="ginnobit">Template:Cite news</ref> Rice was murdered in August 1910.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 1912, Thomas H. Hogsett joined the firm as partner, and<ref name="ginnobit" /> it became Blandin, Hogsett & Ginn that year,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Tolles, Hogsett, Ginn & Morley a year later after the retirement of Judge Blandin and the addition of partners Sheldon H. Tolles and John C. Morley.<ref name="ginnobit" /> After Morley retired, in 1928, the firm adopted the name Tolles, Hogsett & Ginn.<ref name="ginnobit" />

In its early years, the firm was known for representing major industries in the Cleveland area, including Standard Oil and several railroad and utility companies.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref>

In November 1938, managing partner Thomas Jones led the merger of Tolles, Hogsett & Ginn with litigation-focused firm Day, Young, Veach & LeFever to create Jones, Day, Cockley & Reavis. The merger was effective January 1, 1939.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The firm's Washington, D.C., office was opened in 1946, becoming the firm's first office outside Ohio.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1967, the firm merged with D.C. firm Pogue & Neal to become Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Jones Day has represented several companies in legal proceedings against labor unions.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

International expansion

The international expansion of Jones Day began in 1986 when the firm merged with boutique law firm Surrey & Morse, a firm of 75 attorneys with international offices in New York City, Paris, London, and Washington, D.C. In the following years, the firm expanded to Hong Kong, Brussels, Tokyo, Taipei, and Frankfurt.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Republican Party and conservative politics

Jones Day has historically focused on corporate law, but since Stephen Brogan became managing partner in 2003, it has increasingly shifted to aiding the Republican Party and the American conservative movement.<ref name=":4">Template:Cite news</ref> In the 21st century, the firm has increasingly taken on ideologically charged cases and causes. In 2025, The Atlantic wrote that it was known for its Republican clients and for its conservative advocacy.<ref name=":7">Template:Cite web</ref> During the Barack Obama administration, Jones Day challenged the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.<ref name=":4" />

During the first Donald Trump administration, Jones Day helped the administration to dismantle the administrative state, combat early voting, and place a citizenship question on the census.<ref name=":4" /> The firm provided services to Donald Trump for his personal legal problems, as well as helping his 2016 presidential campaign amid investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election.<ref name=":4" /> This defense included trying to control which documents to hand over to investigators and which staff members to make available for interviews.<ref name=":4" /> A substantial number of Jones Day lawyers then joined the first Donald Trump administration.<ref name=":6">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Scarcella, Mike "Trump Justice Department taps another Jones Day lawyer for senior role" Reuters, February 21, 2025. Retrieved August 22, 2025.</ref> Jones Day partner Don McGahn, who was previously a member of the Federal Election Commission, served as counsel for the 2016 Trump presidential campaign and was later nominated to serve as Trump's White House Counsel.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As of March 2017, at least 14 Jones Day attorneys had been appointed to work for the Trump administration.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Jones Day was outside counsel for the Trump 2016 and Trump 2020 campaigns.<ref name=":5">Template:Cite news</ref> From 2015 to November 2020, Jones Day received more than $20 million in fees from the Trump campaigns.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jones Day earned more than $4.5 million for Trump 2020 campaign work between January 1, 2019 and August 31, 2020.<ref name=":5" />

In 2020, Jones Day was hired by Trump in his legal fight to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to President Joe Biden.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The firm worked for Trump in trying to have courts toss out Pennsylvania mail votes.<ref name=":4" /> According to The New York Times, Jones Day "was giving voice — and legal backing — to the president’s unsubstantiated fear-mongering about the possibility of an election tainted by fraud."<ref name=":4" /> However, the firm said it "is not representing President Trump, his campaign, or any affiliated party in any litigation alleging voter fraud." Jones Day also said it "is not representing any entity in any litigation challenging or contesting the results of the 2020 general election" and that "media reports to the contrary are false."<ref name="Firm denies representing Trump">Template:Cite news</ref> According to The New York Times, Jones Day's post-election justifications for its role in the 2020 election "blurred a basic fact: Jones Day and its lawyers were trying to stop votes from being counted, all in an effort to serve the client."<ref name=":4" />

After Trump left office, Jones Day hired a significant number of former Trump administration lawyers, including Don McGahn and Noel Francisco.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

While Jones Day was seen to distance itself from Trump, between presidencies; it is among the law firms representing the Republican National Committee in various litigation matters, ahead of and following the Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign.<ref>Weiss, Debra Cassens "Jones Day gets involved in election litigation for RNC after declining to advise Trump campaign" ABA Journal October 31, 2024. Retrieved August 22, 2025.</ref>

When Trump became president again, in January 2025, the Trump administration hired Jones Day partner Brett Shumate to lead the Civil Division of the Department of Justice.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 2025, amid the second Donald Trump administration's targeting of big law firms that represented his perceived political opponents, the Trump administration did not target Jones Day.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":7" />

Operations

File:Acacia Building.jpg

Jones Day headquarters are located in the Acacia Building, Washington, D.C.

In 2018, Jones Day was the fifth largest law firm in the U.S. and the 13th highest grossing law firm in the world.<ref name="law.com"/> It is currently headquartered in Washington, D.C.

In 2019, some associates reported being under-compensated, compared to their peers at other firms, sometimes by tens of thousands of dollars, and that their compensation is much lower than what they were promised when they interviewed.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2023, it was among the largest law firms in the United States, with 2,302 attorneys, and ranked among the highest-grossing in the world, with revenues of $2.5 billion in 2022.<ref name="law.com"/>

Notable clients and cases

The firm's attorneys have argued more than 40 cases before the United States Supreme Court.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Some of the firm's notable clients and cases include:

• The firm has represented R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company since 1985.<ref name="Miller">Template:Cite web</ref> At one point, R.J Reynolds accounted for 19% of Jones Day's annual revenue.<ref name="Miller" /> Jones Day continues to represent R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in high-profile litigation around the country.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Template:As of the firm represented Access Industries<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• In 2012, the firm challenged the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.<ref name=":4" />
• Template:As of Jones Day represented the losing party – a startup Myriad Genetics, Inc. – at the US Supreme Court in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc.
• Template:As of it served as lead restructuring counsel to the City of Detroit in connection with its chapter 9 bankruptcy case filed in July 2013 In re City of Detroit, Michigan, No. 13-bk-53846 (Bankr. E.D. Mich.)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Template:As of it represented National Public Radio in a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency's ("FEMA") withholding of critical information. National Public Radio, Inc., et al. v. Federal Emergency Management Agency, et al., No. 1-17-cv-00091 (D.D.C.)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• In 2020 the firm submitted a brief of amicus curiae on behalf of its client Chevron in Nestle v. Doe, raising the pleading requirements for plaintiffs stating a claim under the Alien Tort Statute.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Template:As of the firm represented the National Rifle Association of America<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Template:As of the firm represented the Alabama Association of Realtors in a successful legal challenge to the Center for Disease Control's nationwide eviction moratorium (Alabama Association of Realtors v. Department of Health and Human Services).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The CDC eviction moratorium covered approximately 30-40 million renters at risk of eviction.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• As of 2022 the firm represented Chevron in a MDL-class action lawsuit, denying that its herbicide product Paraquat causes the onset of Parkinson's disease.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Template:As of the firm represented the Arizona Republican Party in Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jones Day successfully defended against the DNC's legal challenge to Arizona voting laws that had a disparate impact on racial minorities.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Template:As of the firm served as outside counsel for the Trump 2016 and Trump 2020 campaigns.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite news</ref> Jones Day collected more than $19 million from Trump's operation since 2020.<ref name="open">Template:Cite web</ref>
• Template:As of the firm represented the North American Coal Corporation in a legal challenge to the Environmental Protection Agency's rule-making power under the Clean Air Act (West Virginia v. EPA).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Template:As of the firm represented Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation<ref>

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Notable attorneys and alumni

• Carson Block (born 1977), short-seller and investor
• Marvin Bower, led McKinsey & Co.<ref>"Great American Business Leaders of the 20th Century" Harvard Business School, Retrieved September 23, 2025.</ref><ref name="Bower obit">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, former U.S. congresswoman<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• James Brokenshire, Northern Ireland Secretary under Prime Minister Theresa May<ref name="Brokenshire resigns">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Yvette McGee Brown, first African-American female justice on the Supreme Court of Ohio<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• David L. Carden, former U.S. ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Alex Chalk KC, former Lord Chancellor and Member of Parliament for Cheltenham<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Timothy Dyk, judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit<ref name="Circuit Judge">Template:Cite web</ref>
• Noel Francisco, former United States Solicitor General in the Donald Trump administration<ref name="Official Biography">Template:Cite web</ref>
• Benjamin Ginsberg, lawyer<ref name="POLITICO Playbook">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Jonathan Gould, former partner, Comptroller of the Currency, former chief counsel for the Senate Banking Committee<ref>Schroeder, Pete [https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-senate-confirms-gould-serve-large-bank-watchdog-2025-07-10/ "US Senate confirms Gould to serve as large-bank watchdog", Reuters, July 10, 2025. Retrieved September 14, 2025.</ref>
• Erwin Griswold, former United States Solicitor General and Harvard Law School Dean<ref name=hevesi>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Jane Harman, former U.S. congresswoman<ref name="Harman downplays role as lobbyist">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Justin Herdman, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio<ref name="whitehouse">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Gregory Katsas, judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Megyn Kelly, journalist<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Deborah Platt Majoras, former Procter & Gamble Chief Legal Officer; former Federal Trade Commission chair<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Donald McGahn, former White House Counsel in the Donald Trump administration<ref name="WaPo">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Carmen Guerricagoitia McLean, associate judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia<ref name="Obama">Template:Cite web</ref>
• Sundaresh Menon, Chief Justice of Singapore<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Eric E. Murphy, judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit<ref name="Confirmation Murphy">Template:Cite web</ref>
• David Nahmias, former chief justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia
• Morgan E. O'Brien, former co-founder and chairman of Nextel Communications<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Kevyn Orr, former emergency financial manager for Detroit, Michigan<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• Chaka Patterson, fundraiser for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, former Chief of the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, Civil Division<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• L. Welch Pogue, former chairman of the Civil Aeronautics Board<ref name="Split">Template:Cite news</ref>
• Chad Readler, judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit<ref name="Confirmation Readler">Template:Cite web</ref>
• Antonin Scalia, former Supreme Court associate justice<ref name="hlrecord">Template:Citation</ref>
• Sparkle L. Sooknanan, judge for the United States District Court for the District of Columbia<ref>https://www.dcd.uscourts.gov/content/district-judge-sparkle-l-sooknanan</ref>
• Jeffrey Sutton, chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit<ref name="Confirmation hearing">Template:Cite web</ref>

Pro bono work

• Since 2014, representing migrants, primarily women and children at the U.S.-Mexico border, with staffed office in Laredo,Texas.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Launched Global Compendium of Laws on human trafficking- the first standardized collection of the relevant laws, on a country-by-country basis with the Rotary Action Group Against Slavery (RAGAS).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• With the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children wrote "The Attorney Manual: Guide to Representation of Children Victimized by the Online Distribution of Child Sexual Abuse Material," a more than 400-page document free to lawyers looking to help victims on a pro bono basis.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• With the American Bar Association, created VetLex, a national pro bono legal network to help veterans find volunteer attorneys that provide free and low-cost legal services.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

See also

• List of largest United States-based law firms by head count

Further reading

• Enrich, David. 2022. Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, and the Corruption of Justice. Harper Collins.

External links

• Template:Official website