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Abbe Lowell
Personal details
Born (1952-04-28) April 28, 1952 (age 72)
New York City, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMolly Meegan
Children3
EducationColumbia University (BA, JD)

Abbe David Lowell (born April 28, 1952) is an American defense attorney who has represented several high-profile defendants. Some of the well known political figures Lowell has represented include Bob Menendez, John Edwards, Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump, Hunter Biden, Jim Wright, Dan Rostenkowski, Charles Keating, Joseph McDade, Joe Bruno, Gary Condit, and Jim Gibbons.

Early life and education

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Lowell was born in 1952.[1] He graduated from Columbia University in 1974, and Columbia Law School in 1977.[2][3][4] Lowell is Jewish.[5]

Career

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Lowell in 1998

Lowell worked in the U.S. Department of Justice, including a stint as an assistant to Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti.[6][when?] He has been an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown Law Center and Columbia University.[7][when?] He is currently a partner at the firm of Winston & Strawn LLP.[8] He has appeared in the media as a legal affairs expert.[9]

Lowell was chief minority counsel to U.S. House of Representatives Democratic members during the impeachment of Bill Clinton in the Lewinsky scandal.[10]

Lowell has defended political figures including John Edwards,[11] Jim Wright, Dan Rostenkowski, Charles Keating,[12] Gary Condit,[13] former Nevada governor Jim Gibbons,[14] former congressman Joseph McDade,[15] lobbyist Jack Abramoff,[10] and U.S. senator Bob Menendez.[16]

Lowell was part of the defense of Stephen Jin-Woo Kim,[17] a State Department contractor who pleaded guilty to a felony count of disclosing classified American intelligence on North Korea.

As of June 2017, Lowell has represented both Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump in inquiries linked to Russia.[18][19][20]

Lowell represented Nickie Lum Davis, who pleaded guilty in August 2020 to illegally lobbying the Trump administration on behalf of international fugitive Jho Low. In 2017, Lowell was also involved in discussions about Low's legal and lobbying efforts, which were designed to end the Justice Department's probe of the embezzlement of around $4.5 billion from the Malaysian state fund 1MDB.[21][22]

In 2021, Lowell represented Michael Taylor, the American soldier accused of helping Carlos Ghosn escape from Japan. At the time, Taylor was fighting extradition to Japan.[23]

Justice Department investigation

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As of December 2020, the United States Department of Justice's Public Integrity Section was investigating Lowell for his role in an alleged "secret lobbying scheme" and potential bribery in exchange for a pardon. Lowell was enlisted by California billionaire Sanford Diller to seek a pardon for his friend Hugh Baras.[24]

Lowell's involvement came to light in an August 28, 2020 court opinion by Judge Beryl Howell that found Lowell's communications were not covered by standard attorney-client privileges "because they potentially contained both evidence of crimes and involved nonlawyer third parties." As part of the alleged bribery-for-pardon scheme, Lowell interacted with the White House Counsel's Office, and "according to documents reviewed by the [Wall Street] Journal, Mr. Lowell and Mr. Diller discussed contacting top officials in the [Trump] administration."[24]

Political and civic activities

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In 1982, Lowell ran unsuccessfully for the Maryland House of Delegates as a Democrat.[1] Lowell heads the development committee and is a trustee of the Shakespeare Theatre. He also serves as vice president and general counsel of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington in 2020.[25]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Counsel Lowell: A Defender Of Democrats in Trouble". The Washington Post. October 6, 1998. Retrieved May 16, 2013.
  2. ^ "Defense Attorney Abbe D. Lowell". Times Union. October 29, 2009. Retrieved May 16, 2013.
  3. ^ "Abbe D. Lowell". Huffingtonpost.com. May 30, 2009. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  4. ^ "Power Player | Columbia College Today". www.college.columbia.edu. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  5. ^ "Abbe Lowell Is on a Legal Mission". The Forward. May 3, 2015. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  6. ^ "Senate Seat Reshuffling 'Impossible'". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Associated Press. January 16, 1980. Retrieved November 20, 2017 – via Google News.
  7. ^ "Abbe David Lowell - J.D. Adjunct Faculty". Law.georgetown.edu. Georgetown Law. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  8. ^ "Nationally Recognized White Collar Defense and Trial Attorney Joins Winston & Strawn". Winston & Strawn LLP. May 23, 2018.
  9. ^ "Legal Tangle Tightens Around WikiLeaks, Julian Assange". PBS NewsHour. PBS. December 7, 2010. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  10. ^ a b "A Talk with Jack Abramoff's Attorney". Businessweek. April 22, 2005. Archived from the original on April 23, 2005. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  11. ^ "Key witness in Edwards' trial Young grilled again by defense lawyer". Fox News. April 7, 2010. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  12. ^ "Trial Showdown Begins for Keating, Symbol of Thrift Debacle". Apnewsarchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  13. ^ "Condit hires lawyer who aided Clinton / Abbe Lowell to advise on intern case". San Francisco Chronicle. June 23, 2001. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  14. ^ Archibold, Randal C. (November 3, 2008). "Governor of Nevada Is Cleared in an Inquiry on Gifts, His Lawyer Says". The New York Times.
  15. ^ "McDade Seeks Specter Records To Try To Prove Conflict Of Interest". The Philadelphia Inquirer. June 11, 1992. Retrieved May 16, 2013.
  16. ^ Wilber, Del Quentin (September 11, 2017). "Both Parties Turn to Lawyer Lowell in High-Stakes Cases". The Wall Street Journal.
  17. ^ Gerstein, Josh (February 3, 2011). "Alleged State Department leaker fights charges - Josh Gerstein". Politico. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
  18. ^ O'Brien, Brendan (June 27, 2017). "Trump son-in-law Kushner hires prominent trial lawyer: NYT". Reuters.
  19. ^ Conway, Madeline (July 14, 2017). "Kushner lawyer Abbe Lowell taking over Russia case from Gorelick". Politico. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
  20. ^ "Abbe Lowell Built Ties to Trump World. Now He's One of Hunter Biden's Lawyers". New York Times. February 28, 2023.
  21. ^ Allen-Ebrahimian, Bethany (September 29, 2020). "China's influence agents lawyer up". Axios.
  22. ^ Friedman, Dan (October 21, 2020). "'He Was Throwing Off Cash': How an International Fugitive Tried to Influence Trump's Swamp". Mother Jones.
  23. ^ "Man wanted in Carlos Ghosn's escape accuses US of 'betrayal'". AP News. February 1, 2021. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
  24. ^ a b "Now-Deceased Billionaire Prompted Bribery-for-Pardon Investigation". The Wall Street Journal. December 4, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  25. ^ Schwartz, Eric Hal (January 23, 2013). "Having a ball at the DCJCC". Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
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