The Department of Justice Creates New Civil Division Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch
Thursday, September 25, 2025
For Immediate Release
Office of Public Affairs
The Department of Justice has announced the creation of a new office within the Civil Division — the Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch — dedicated to safeguarding public health and safety through proactive enforcement and high-impact affirmative litigation.
“By consolidating the Civil Division’s affirmative litigation work into a highly specialized branch, the Department will strengthen its ability to hold powerful actors accountable, protect public health and safety, and enforce critical national policies,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This restructuring reflects the Department’s commitment to aggressively protecting consumers and advancing the interests of the United States.”
The new Branch will consist of two sections. The Enforcement Section will draw on the Department’s extensive experience bringing landmark cases under statutes such as the Controlled Substances Act, Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, Consumer Product Safety Act, Federal Trade Commission Act, Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, and Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act, to protect consumers — whether it be from unfair and deceptive trade practices of the largest technology companies in the world, defective consumer goods imported from China, or false and misleading claims about drugs and dietary supplements manufactured by pharmaceutical companies. The Affirmative Litigation Section will represent the United States by filing lawsuits against states, municipalities, and private entities that interfere with or obstruct federal policies, ensuring nationwide compliance with the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
The new Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch will strengthen the Civil Division’s ability to advance the Department’s enforcement priorities, including protecting women and children from pharmaceutical companies, health care providers, and medical associations profiting off of false and misleading claims related to so-called gender transition, and ending sanctuary jurisdiction laws, policies, and practices that impede federal immigration enforcement and make Americans less safe in their communities.