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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release August 3, 2000

PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES BILL LANN LEE AS ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL

FOR CIVIL RIGHTS AT THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

The President today recess appointed Bill Lann Lee to serve as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the Department of Justice.

Mr. Lee, of California, has served as Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the Department of Justice since December 15, 1997. He was first nominated to the position on July 21, 1997, and was renominated on January 29, 1998, and on March 5, 1998. Mr. Lee has spent over twenty-five years seeking equal opportunity for all people and working against discrimination in all forms, including in employment, housing, voting, and education. His experience in civil rights law encompasses employment discrimination, access to health care, prevention of lead poisoning in poor children, access to public transportation, and equal access to education. Prior to his appointment at the Department of Justice, Mr. Lee served as Western Regional Counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) in Los Angeles from 1989 to 1997. Mr. Lee served as a Supervising Attorney for Civil Rights Litigation at the Center for Law in Public Interest from 1983 to 1988. In addition, Mr. Lee was Assistant Counsel at the LDF in New York City from 1974 to 1982.

Mr. Lee received a B.A. degree from Yale University and a J.D. degree from Columbia University Law School.

The Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights is responsible for a division of 736 employees, including 300 attorneys. The Assistant Attorney General reports directly to the Attorney General and manages the following litigating sections: Appellate Coordination and Review, Criminal, Disability Rights, Educational Opportunities, Employment Litigation, Housing and Civil Enforcement, Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices, Special Litigation and Voting. In addition, the Assistant Attorney General represents Division policies in the Department, among counterparts in the Administration and on Capitol Hill.

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