01/07/09
 Ogden's deputy on the transition team, Thomas Perrelli (managing partner of Jenner & Block's Washington, D.C. office) was called for the Justice Department's number three slot, associate attorney general. Perrilli also served in several positions in the Clinton Justice Department, leaving in 2001 as the head of the Civil Division's Federal Programs Branch.
Obama's solicitor general selection of Elena Kagan, the dean of Harvard Law School, came as a bigger surprise.The Office of Legal Counsel, the high-profile arm of the Justice Department that provides legal advice to the president and all executive branch agencies, will be lead by Dawn Johnsen, a law professor at Indiana University School of Law. Both
Kagen and Johnsen both served in the Clinton administration. Johnsen served as deputy assistant attorney general and acting chief of the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) under Clinton. Former OLC colleagues describe Johnsen as a tremendous intellect who frequently served as the office's compass, even before she took over as chief. Kagan would be the first Senate-confirmed woman to serve as the government's chief advocate before the Supreme Court. She has also been mentioned as a potential nominee to the Supreme Court, and her role as solicitor general could only enhance her appeal.
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