Ex-Biden chief of staff Ron Klain rejoins law firm O’Melveny

Former White House chief of staff Ron Klain has rejoined global law firm O’Melveny as a partner after leaving the Biden administration, the firm announced Monday. 

Klain, who was sought after by law and lobbying firms for his close relationship with President Biden, was a partner at O’Melveny from 1999 to 2004. 

This time, Klain will head the firm’s strategic counseling and crisis management practice. He’ll advise corporate executives and board members on several issues, including technology, health care, infrastructure, transportation, private equity and finance, the firm said. 

Klain served as Biden’s top adviser from the beginning of his presidency in 2021 through late January. He played a central role in the White House’s negotiations over the Inflation Reduction Act and the bipartisan infrastructure bill, among other measures. 

Biden and Klain go back nearly four decades. Klain was Biden’s chief counsel during his tenure as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He later became then-Vice President Biden’s chief of staff. 

“When I was elected President, I knew that I wanted Ron to lead the White House staff,” Biden said in a January statement announcing his Klain’s departure. “He is as tough, smart, determined, and persistent as anyone I have ever met.”

Klain, a former investment firm executive, was a surprising ally to progressive lawmakers during his time in the Biden White House. Progressives have bemoaned what they see as a rightward shift in strategy under Jeff Zients, Biden’s new chief of staff.