Maurene Comey, once a fixture in Manhattan’s federal courtroom battles, is stepping into private practice after a turbulent exit from government service.
The former assistant U.S. attorney has joined Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler as a partner, marking a new chapter following her dismissal from the U.S. Justice Department last year.
Comey had led high-profile prosecutions, including the case against Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison for aiding financier Jeffrey Epstein in sexually exploiting underage girls. She also handled the prosecution of music executive Sean “Diddy” Combs, who received a prison sentence exceeding four years on prostitution-related charges.
Her departure from public office came amid broader changes within the Justice Department after Donald Trump returned to the White House. Comey later filed suit against the department and the Executive Office of the President, asserting she had been removed without explanation.
The legal challenge argued that her dismissal was tied to her family name — she is the daughter of James Comey, the former FBI director fired during Trump’s first term. The elder Comey had overseen the bureau during its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, a probe that drew sustained criticism from Trump.
Although she is no longer seeking reinstatement to her former post, Comey continues to pursue back pay and a retroactive employment designation extending through late December 2025. The government has moved to dismiss her claims, contending that such disputes fall under the jurisdiction of the Merit Systems Protection Board.
Her move to Patterson Belknap places her at a 200-lawyer New York firm that publicly resisted executive orders targeting major law firms. Comey has pointed to that stance as evidence of a culture she believes aligns with her own — one that prizes courtroom independence and a willingness to withstand political pressure.
For a prosecutor who built a résumé on cases that gripped headlines, the shift signals not retreat, but recalibration.
