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ATTORNEY GENERAL ASHCROFT WELCOMES WHITE HOUSE NOMINEE

WASHINGTON, D.C. Attorney General John Ashcroft today welcomed President George W. Bush's announcement of his intention to nominate Jay S. Bybee to be Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel.

"Jay Bybee's past experience will be a great asset to the Department of Justice," Ashcroft said. "Under his leadership, the Office of Legal Counsel will help make certain we fulfill our important duties to uphold the Constitution and protect the rights of all Americans."

Bybee is currently a Professor of Law at the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he specializes in Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Civil Procedure. Previously, he served on the faculty of Louisiana State University Law School. He was also an associate in the Washington, DC, office of Sidley & Austin.

From 1984-1989, Bybee worked as a Department of Justice attorney in the Office of Legal Policy and the Civil Division, Appellate Staff. He also served in the White House as Associate Counsel to the President from 1989 until 1991. Following law school, he clerked for the Honorable Donald Russell of the Fourth Circuit.

Bybee received both his BA and his JD from Brigham Young University, where he was Business Manager for the law review. He has published articles on separation of powers, federalism and the First Amendment in various journals, including the Yale Law Journal, Northwestern University Law Review, Vanderbilt Law Review, Tulane Law Review, and George Washington Law Review. He is married to Dianna Greer Bybee and has four children: Scott, David, Alyssa and Ryan.

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