Providing an Order of Succession Within the Department of Justice

This executive order establishes a new line of succession for acting Attorney General, prioritizing four U.S. Attorneys (Southern District of New York, Arizona, Northern District of Illinois, and Hawaii) after the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, Associate Attorney General, and any 28 U.S.C. 508 designees become unavailable. It revokes the 2017 Trump-era succession order (EO 13787) which had listed different officials.

Federal Register Open PDF 90 FR 2581

Impact dates

Mar 31, 2017
Revoke Executive Order 13787 of March 31, 2017

Key directives

Revoke Executive Order 13787 of March 31, 2017
Establish order of succession: SDNY USA → Arizona USA → NDIL USA → Hawaii USA
Exclude acting officials from succession by virtue of acting service
Require eligibility under Federal Vacancies Reform Act
Preserve presidential discretion to depart from this order

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

EO 13787 revoked
new succession order takes effect

Near term (90d)

potential personnel adjustments among listed U.S. Attorneys

Long term

establishes precedent for DOJ succession planning
may influence future administration succession designs

Risks & tensions

Political significance: SDNY (historically independent, high-profile investigations) placed first in succession—may reflect or invite perceived politicization
Vague on 'otherwise unable to perform' threshold—interpretation left to circumstances
Presidential discretion clause (Sec. 2(c)) makes this order non-binding on President, reducing practical certainty
No stated requirement for Senate confirmation status of listed U.S. Attorneys