He was appointed in 2009 by President Barack Obama, replacing interim U.S. Attorney Lawrence G. Brown.

Attorneys nationwide, he represented the United States in all civil and criminal cases within his district.

At NYU, he served as managing editor of the New York University Journal of International Law and Politics.

In 1992, he left to join the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California.

[5] He has since worked for Gibson Dunn Law Offices and serves on the Board of Trustees of Menlo College.