D. John Sauer
Official portrait, 2025
49th Solicitor General of the United States
Incumbent
Assumed office
April 4, 2025
President Donald Trump
Preceded by Elizabeth Prelogar
Solicitor General of Missouri
In office
January 9, 2017 – January 3, 2023
Governor Eric Greitens
Mike Parson
Preceded by James Layton
Succeeded by Josh Divine
Personal details
Born Dean John Sauer
(1974-11-13) November 13, 1974 (age 51)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Education
  • Duke University (BA, BS)
  • Oriel College, Oxford (BA)
  • University of Notre Dame (MA)
  • Harvard University (JD)
Sauer's voice
Sauer's opening statement before the Supreme Court in Trump v. CASA
Recorded May 15, 2025

Dean John Sauer (/saʊər/; born November 13, 1974) is an American lawyer who has served as the solicitor general of the United States since 2025. He previously served as solicitor general of Missouri from 2017 to 2023. In 2024, he represented Donald Trump in his successful appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court in Trump v. United States, which was a landmark decision giving presidents "absolute immunity" for actions taken within their core duties.

As solicitor general of Missouri, Sauer sought to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election. As solicitor general of the United States, Sauer argued in front of the Supreme Court to limit birthright citizenship,[1] and to include the Department of Government Efficiency as a "presidential advisory body" within the Executive Office of the President.[2]

Early life and education

Sauer was born on November 13, 1974, in St. Louis, Missouri, to a family that was prominent in local business and politics.[3][4] He attended Saint Louis Priory School, a Catholic day school for boys in Creve Coeur run by the Benedictines of Saint Louis Abbey.[5]

Sauer graduated from Duke University in 1997 with a double Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering, summa cum laude. He won a Rhodes Scholarship to study in England at the University of Oxford, where he earned a second Bachelor of Arts in theology from Oriel College, Oxford, in 1999.[6][7] After receiving a Master of Arts in philosophy from the University of Notre Dame in 2000, Sauer then attended Harvard Law School. He was an articles editor of the Harvard Law Review and graduated in 2004 with a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude.[8]

After law school, Sauer was a law clerk to Judge J. Michael Luttig of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 2004 to 2005 and to U.S. Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia from 2005 to 2006. He was in private practice at the law firm Cooper & Kirk from 2006 to 2008, then became an assistant United States attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri.[9][10] In the spring semesters between 2011 and 2013, he was an adjunct professor at the Washington University in St. Louis's law school.[11] He later reentered private practice.[10] From 2013 to 2015, he was a partner at Clark & Sauer, LLC. In 2015, Sauer founded James Otis Law Group, which, according to Abbie VanSickle of The New York Times, was named for James Otis Jr., "an early American lawyer who espoused limited government and opposed British measures that allowed law enforcement officials to search private property."[9]

In 2015, Sauer defended a Catholic priest accused of sexually abusing children. Sauer helped the priest sue his accusers and the police officers who were involved.[12] Prosecutors dropped all charges against the priest, whose record had been fully expunged as of June 17, 2015.[13][14] Sauer prevailed in the civil lawsuits related to the accusations.[12]

Missouri solicitor general

In January 2017, then-Missouri attorney general Josh Hawley appointed Sauer Solicitor General of Missouri.[15]

On December 10, 2020, as Solicitor General Counsel of Record, Sauer signed the "Motion of States of Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Utah to Intervene and Proposed Bill of Complaint in Intervention" in an attempt to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election.[16] The motion sought to intervene and join the Texas Bill of Complaint—filed by Texas attorney general Ken Paxton—to prevent the selection of presidential electors based upon the November election results in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, and Michigan.[17]

In January 2023, Missouri attorney general Andrew Bailey appointed Sauer Deputy Attorney General for Special Litigation.[18][19] Sauer resigned from his post less than a month later, on January 27, 2023.[20]

In July 2023, Sauer testified before the United States House Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government as Louisiana Department of Justice Special Assistant Attorney General.[21]

Representing Donald Trump

On January 9, 2024, Sauer appeared before a panel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to argue on behalf of former president Donald Trump regarding his presidential immunity dispute. Trump's immunity dispute was a component of United States of America v. Donald J. Trump, the federal criminal case concerning Trump's obstruction of the 2020 US presidential election.[22]

At the hearing, in response to a hypothetical question posed by Judge Florence Y. Pan about whether a president could order SEAL Team Six to assassinate a political rival and be immune from prosecution,[23] Sauer argued that the impeachment clause in Article II § Section 4 of the US Constitution[24] implies that the US Senate must first impeach and convict an accused president before they can be criminally prosecuted, and that acquittal bars prosecution.[25] Sauer further stated that should the court accept the United States' position regarding the (lack) of presidential immunity, it "would authorize, for example, the indictment of President Biden in the Western District of Texas after he leaves office for mismanaging the border allegedly".[26]

U.S. solicitor general

In November 2024, President-elect of the United States Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Sauer to serve as Solicitor General of the United States.[27] His nomination was confirmed by the US Senate on April 4, 2025, by a vote of 52–45.[28] He took office the same day.[29]

In May 2025, Sauer asked the US Supreme Court to include the Department of Government Efficiency as a "presidential advisory body" within the Executive Office of the President.[2] In the same month, during oral arguments in Trump v. CASA which concerned nationwide injunctions, Sauer informed the Supreme Court—regarding decisions from United States circuit courts—that the executive branch "generally respect[s] circuit precedent, but not necessarily in every case".[30]

On April 1st, 2026, Sauer presented arguments to the Supreme Court calling for the end of birthright citizenship in the United States.

See also

  • List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Seat 9)
  • List of Rhodes Scholars

References

  1. ^ Gannon, Paula Reid, Casey (March 31, 2026). "D. John Sauer: Trump's top litigator faces uphill battle with birthright citizenship". CNN Politics.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b Sherman, Mark (May 21, 2025). "Trump administration asks Supreme Court to block watchdog access to DOGE documents". AP News. Retrieved May 22, 2025.
  3. ^ Wagman, Paul (June 9, 2022). "D. John Sauer: Scion of a well-known and powerful St. Louis family". Gateway Journalism Review. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  4. ^ "Questionnaire for Non-Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Retrieved October 3, 2025.
  5. ^ VanSickle, Abbie (April 3, 2025). "Trump's Pick to Argue at Supreme Court Made His Career in Culture Wars". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 21, 2026.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  6. ^ "Duke University Alumni Magazine". Duke. August 1, 1998. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
  7. ^ "32 American College Students Are Named Rhodes Scholars". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 9, 1996. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  8. ^ Parker, Shannon (January 29, 2009). "LN Ten Most Interesting: John Sauer". Laude News. Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  9. ^ a b VanSickle, Abbie (April 3, 2025). "Trump's Pick to Argue at Supreme Court Made His Career in Culture Wars". The New York Times. Retrieved November 6, 2025.
  10. ^ a b "WULS: Faculty Profiles". Washington University School of Law. June 15, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
  11. ^ "UNITED STATES SENATE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY" (PDF).
  12. ^ a b "Jiang v. Porter et al". Justia Dockets & Filings.
  13. ^ "Abuse charges dropped against St. Louis priest". Fox2 Now. Associated Press. June 17, 2015. Archived from the original on December 2, 2024. Retrieved November 18, 2024.
  14. ^ McKeown, Jonah (August 30, 2022). "Priest to have arrest record expunged after abuse cases dropped". Catholic News Agency.
  15. ^ Mannies, Jo (February 10, 2017). "Missouri Attorney General Hawley addresses Democrats' residency concerns, rents apartment". KWMU. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  16. ^ "MOTION OF STATES OF MISSOURI, ARKANSAS, LOUISIANA, MISSISSIPPI, SOUTH CAROLINA, AND UTAH TO INTERVENE AND PROPOSED BILL OF COMPLAINT IN INTERVENTION, December 10, 2020" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States.
  17. ^ "AG Paxton Sues Battleground States for Unconstitutional Changes to 2020 Election Laws". Office of the Attorney General of Texas.
  18. ^ Faughn, Scott (December 22, 2022). "Bailey brings on national conservative figure, Josh Divine as Solicitor General". The Missouri Times.
  19. ^ "Missouri's new attorney general to be sworn-in today". 93.9 the Eagle. November 23, 2022.
  20. ^ Crowe, Jack (January 27, 2023). "Legal Resistance to Biden Administration in Doubt as Powerhouse AG Offices Stumble". National Review.
  21. ^ "Louisiana Department of Justice Special Assistant Attorney General D. John Sauer testifies during a House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government hearing on Capitol Hill July 20, 2023". ALAMY. July 20, 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  22. ^ "District of Columbia Circuit Court Oral Arguments on Former President Trump's Immunity Claims". C-SPAN. January 9, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
  23. ^ Breuninger, Kevin; Mangan, Dan (January 9, 2024). "Trump Hearing Live Updates: Lawyer for ex-president argues immunity for official acts is absolute". CNBC. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  24. ^ "ArtII.S4.1 Overview of Impeachment Clause". U.S. Congress. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  25. ^ Liptak, Adam (January 12, 2024). "Trump's Boldest Argument Yet: Immunity From Prosecution for Assassinations". The New York Times. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  26. ^ Hurley, Lawrence; Barnes, Daniel; Reilly, Ryan J. (January 9, 2024). "Judges skeptical of Trump's immunity appeal at court hearing in 2020 election interference case". NBC News. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  27. ^ Peters, Gerhard; Woolley, John. "Statement by President-elect Donald J. Trump Announcing the Nomination of Dean John Sauer as Solicitor General of the United States". The American Presidency Project. Retrieved March 7, 2026.
  28. ^ "PN12-39 - Nomination of Dean Sauer for Department of Justice, 119th Congress (2025-2026)". www.congress.gov. April 3, 2025. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
  29. ^ "Office of the Solicitor General | Solicitor General D. John Sauer | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. April 28, 2025. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  30. ^ Strawbridge Robinson, Kimberly (May 16, 2025). "Trump Solicitor General Hedges on Always Following Court Orders". Bloomberg Law. Retrieved June 10, 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)