skip to main content

ProfessionalsJeh Charles Johnson

Jeh Charles Johnson

Jeh Charles Johnson

Partner

Partner

Tel: +1-212-373-3093
Fax: +1-212-492-0093
jjohnson@paulweiss.com

+1-212-373-3093
New York

1285 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10019-6064
Fax: +1-212-492-0093

Washington

2001 K Street, NW
Washington,, DC 20006-1047

Education 
Bar Admissions 
Education 
Bar Admissions 

Jeh Johnson, the former Secretary of Homeland Security, is a partner in the Paul, Weiss Litigation Department and a member of the Firm’s Management and Partnership Committees. Secretary Johnson advises clients, including management teams and boards of directors, on crisis management, government and internal investigations, high-stakes litigation and regulatory matters, and legal aspects of cybersecurity and other security matters. He is also an experienced trial lawyer, and a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. Secretary Johnson is on the board of directors of Lockheed Martin. Since leaving government in January 2017, Secretary Johnson has been called upon to testify before Congress on cybersecurity matters three times, and is a regular commentator on national and homeland security on ABC, CBS, NBC, BBC, MSNBC, CNBC, CNN and numerous other outlets. He was the 2018 recipient of the Ronald Reagan Peace Through Strength Award, presented at the Reagan Presidential Library.

EXPERIENCE

Secretary Johnson’s legal career has encompassed both private law practice and public service, including three Senate-confirmed presidential appointments. He has been affiliated with Paul, Weiss on and off since 1984.

Secretary Johnson led the U.S. Department of Homeland Security from December 2013 to January 2017, where he was responsible for counterterrorism; cybersecurity; border, port, aviation and maritime security; enforcement and administration of immigration laws; response to national disasters; detection and prevention of nuclear, chemical and biological threats; and the protection of critical infrastructure and the nation’s leadership. Secretary Johnson is credited with building a more effective, cohesive Department of Homeland Security and with raising morale. He served as the public face of the U.S. government’s homeland security mission, engaging with the press on numerous occasions and testifying before Congress 26 times. Secretary Johnson managed 230,000 employees in 22 different components and agencies, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Transportation Security Administration, the Coast Guard, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Secret Service.

Between 2009-2012, Secretary Johnson served as General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Defense, where he was a primary legal architect for the military’s counterterrorism missions in the Obama Administration, and was responsible for the prior legal approval for every military operation authorized by the President and the Secretary of Defense. He co-authored the 2010 report that paved the way for the repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law by Congress. In his book Duty, former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates called Johnson “the finest lawyer I ever worked with in government – a straightforward, plain-speaking man of great integrity, with common sense to burn and a good sense of humor.”

Between 1998-2001, Secretary Johnson served as General Counsel of the U.S. Air Force. He also served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York from 1989-1991, trying 12 cases before a jury and arguing 11 appeals in three years.

Over his many years at Paul, Weiss, Secretary Johnson has handled a variety of civil and white collar matters for some of the firm’s most important clients. In 2005, he successfully defended Citigroup against a $900 million arbitration claim — at the time the largest ever filed before the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD). That same year he successfully defended Citigroup against an $86 million claim before the NASD.

Secretary Johnson has received numerous awards and acknowledgments, including three Department of Defense medals for distinguished public service and nine honorary degrees. He has debated at both the Oxford and Cambridge Unions in England. His November 2012 address at the Oxford Union, “How Will the War Against al Qaeda End?,” received international attention and acclaim. Secretary Johnson has also lectured at Westminster College, the Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard and Yale Law Schools, the National War College and all four U.S. military academies. Secretary Johnson received a J.D. from Columbia Law School and a B.A. from Morehouse College.

BOARDS AND OTHER PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

In addition to service on the board of Lockheed Martin, Secretary Johnson is presently a Senior Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School and is on the board of directors of the Center for a New American Security and on the board of advisors of the Drum Major Institute, an organization devoted to preserving and promoting the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He is currently a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

In the past, Johnson has served as a trustee, director and governor of Adelphi University, the New York Hall of Science, the Legal Aid Society, the Film Society of Lincoln Center, the New York Community Trust, the City Bar Fund, the Roosevelt Institute, the National Institute of Military Justice, the Federal Bar Council, the Fund for Modern Courts, Vera Institute of Justice and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

From 2001-2004, Johnson chaired the Judiciary Committee of the New York City Bar Association, which rates and approves all federal, state and local judges in New York City. He has also served as a member of the Executive Committee of New York City Bar.

 

© 2019 Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP

Privacy Policy