Jesus A. Osete

Jesus A. Osete was the Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice. He previously served as Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights from 2025 to 2026, following his promotion from Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights.

Prior to joining the Department, Mr. Osete was an attorney with Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, LLP’s Appellate and Supreme Court Group, and previously served as General Counsel to the Hon. John R. Ashcroft, Secretary of State of Missouri.  Mr. Osete also served as Deputy Solicitor General of Missouri and Deputy Attorney General for Special Litigation, where he advocated for Missourians’ interests before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mr. Osete also clerked for the Hon. Bobby E. Shepherd of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and the Hon. Chief Justice Zel M. Fischer of the Supreme Court of Missouri. Mr. Osete received his J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis, where he served as Senior Executive Editor of the Washington University Law Review. He has a bachelor’s degree in political science and pre-law from the University of Arizona.