Beau Biden joins donor's law firm
Former Attorney General Beau Biden didn't waste time finding a job.
Biden, who left office last week ahead of a planned campaign for governor in 2016, will work as a lawyer at Grant & Eisenhofer, the law firm run by Stuart Grant, a prominent Democratic donor and plaintiffs' lawyer who represents institutional investors in Delaware Chancery Court.
Biden will work in G&E's Wilmington offices, the firm announced Monday.
"I've known Stuart and Jay Eisenhofer for many years and have watched as their firm has grown into one of the nation's pre-eminent champions for investors, serving many of the same constituents and causes I worked for as attorney general," Biden said in a written statement provided by the firm.
Biden's political director said the move "doesn't change his intention to run" for the governor's office in two years. Biden, a well-known politician with a high-profile name in Delaware, could likely wait until next year to get started on a campaign. He could not be reached for comment on the new job Monday. "Beau's comment is in the press release," said Josh Alcorn, Biden's political director.
Biden declined to be interviewed.
First elected attorney general in 2006, Biden, who served two four-year terms, has declined repeated requests for interviews and has been conspicuously absent from the public since health problems in August 2013, when Biden had surgery to remove a small lesion from his brain at a Texas cancer center.
In an interview, Grant said Biden's work for the firm would build on his work as Attorney General targeting banking practices that led to the financial crisis, and fighting for consumer protections.
During his time as the state's top law enforcement officer, Biden secured more than $185 million for Delaware in settlements with financial institutions over conduct that contributed to the financial crisis, according to the Department of Justice.
The settlements include $45 million from Bank of America and nearly $20 million from JP Morgan Chase. The JP Morgan money is being used to pay for affordable housing programs, the mortgage enforcement fund and to compensate public entities that suffered losses because of investments in mortgage securities. A new plan from Attorney General Matt Denn to place more police on foot patrols in high crime areas of Wilmington also might be funded by settlement money.
"He's really a perfect fit for our practice," Grant said. "It fits in both in his skill set and his core beliefs.
Grant said in a written statement that the firm's clients will "benefit enormously" from Biden's addition.
Landing at Grant's firm, either during a break from politics or as a more permanent home, is no accident for Biden.
Grant is a prominent Wilmington plaintiffs' lawyer in Delaware Chancery Court, the heralded business venue. His firm represents institutional shareholders in corporate governance cases and mergers and acquisition challenges. G&E also represents whistleblowers in false claims cases seeking redress for alleged fraud against government programs.
Last year, Biden's Department of Justice joined Grant & Eisenhofer in a whistleblower case in Superior Court alleging that a number of highi-profile corporations acted improperly to withhold millions in abandoned property from the state in the form of unused gift cards.
Grant has close connections to Democratic politics here and in Washington. He helped raise money for Gov. Jack Markell's campaigns in 2008 and 2012 and is a close ally of the governor.
He also helped bankroll Matt Denn's successful campaign for attorney general and, in March, hosted a fundraiser for then-U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, of Louisiana, at his Greenville home.
Markell, Beau Biden and U.S. Sen. Chris Coons were among the event's hosts.
Grant is a friend and significant donor to the Bidens. Grant bundled between $200,000 and $500,000 for the re-election campaign of President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, Beau's father, in 2012, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Grant wrote a $10,000 check to Beau Biden's political action committee, Beau PAC, in August, and gave another $10,000 to a political action committee backing Denn in October. Grant said he had "no indication" whether Biden intended to follow through with plans to seek the governor's office in two years. "If Beau decides to run, G&E's loss will be Delaware's gain," Grant said. "Until he makes a formal decision and files the necessary papers, he can change his mind. He can do whatever."
Added Grant, "I expect that he will be in the office regularly and will be practicing law and doing great things. We're very excited to have him."
Contact Jonathan Starkey at (302) 983-6756, on Twitter @jwstarkey or at jstarkey@delawareonline.com.