New York AG’s Office Hire New Attorney
In a remarkable twist of legal irony, New York Attorney General Letitia James has enlisted Abbe Lowell — the high-profile defense attorney who shielded Hunter Biden from federal tax and gun charges — to represent her in an unfolding mortgage fraud investigation. The hiring, first reported by the Times Union, signals just how seriously James is treating the accusations lodged against her.
Lowell, formerly of Winston & Strawn LLP and now leading his own practice, was tapped by the New York State Attorney General’s Office rather than retained personally by James, although he is now representing her as a private citizen, according to Fox News.
The decision to bring in such a seasoned white-collar defense expert was driven in part by the Attorney General’s office’s belief that the bombshell referral made earlier this month by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte is not coincidental — but rather connected to the civil fraud case James spearheaded against former President Trump.
The allegations James now faces are serious. According to Pulte’s referral to the Department of Justice, James allegedly falsified mortgage documents in an effort to secure home loans. In 2023, while still serving as New York’s top prosecutor, she reportedly claimed a Virginia property was her “principal residence.”
Further, Pulte alleged that James misrepresented the size of a Brooklyn property she purchased in 2001, claiming it had four units — not five — to obtain more favorable financing terms, a misrepresentation repeated across building permits and mortgage filings.
Lowell, renowned for navigating the treacherous waters of federal investigations, quickly responded with a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, challenging the credibility of the accusations and portraying them as a politically motivated act of retribution by Trump loyalists.
Yet questions swirl around the arrangement, notably whether New York taxpayers will be left covering Lowell’s considerable legal fees — which, according to court filings from an unrelated Hunter Biden case, hover around $855 per hour.
Lowell’s impressive, if politically checkered, résumé adds a fascinating layer to the unfolding drama. A Columbia Law School graduate, Lowell previously defended notable Democrats John Edwards and Senator Bob Menendez from federal corruption charges. During Trump’s first term, Lowell even represented Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner amid congressional and FBI investigations into alleged Russia collusion — a rare moment of bipartisanship in his client list.
However, Lowell's most recent notoriety stems from his representation of Hunter Biden. Lowell managed Hunter’s defense throughout special counsel investigations that culminated in convictions on gun charges in Delaware and a guilty plea to nine counts of tax fraud in California — outcomes largely cushioned by a sweeping presidential pardon from Joe Biden in December.