Brett A. Shumate — Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division
Status: 🔴 Career DOJ leadership figure who authorized the nationwide administrative subpoena campaign targeting transgender youth medical records.
Overview
Brett A. Shumate serves as the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. In this capacity, he has personally authorized the issuance of administrative subpoenas to hospitals and healthcare providers nationwide seeking the private medical records of transgender youth.
His signature appears in the authorization chain for each subpoena issued as part of this campaign, as attested in the declaration of Lisa K. Hsiao, Acting Director of the Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch:
“The subpoena… was lawfully issued and authorized by Brett A. Shumate, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.”
Key Actions
Authorization of the Subpoena Campaign
As Assistant Attorney General, Shumate bears ultimate responsibility for the Civil Division’s Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch, which has been the lead unit executing the campaign against transgender healthcare. Under Attorney General Order 3591-2015, the authorization for administrative subpoenas runs through the AAG for the Civil Division.
Oversight of Misleading Litigation Conduct
Multiple federal courts have found that attorneys and officials within the Civil Division — operating under Shumate’s authority — submitted misleading or false sworn declarations in support of these subpoenas:
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District of Rhode Island (May 2026): Judge Mary S. McElroy found that a declaration from the EALB Director — whose office operates under Shumate — was “clearly misleading, if not utterly false” and that the DOJ demonstrated “reckless disregard for the duty of candor owed to a federal court.”
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Eastern District of Pennsylvania (2025): The court took note of an “inconsistency” in sworn declarations from the same unit, reminding DOJ attorneys that “sworn declarations filed in federal court must reflect verified facts, not speculation recast as fact.”
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Western District of Washington (2025): The court described one of the unit’s filings as reflecting “a fundamental misunderstanding—or deliberate misuse—of court procedure.”
Prior DOJ Career
Shumate has held various roles within the Department of Justice across multiple administrations, including prior service in the Civil Division. He represents the career leadership echelon within DOJ that has remained in place across political transitions.
Significance
As the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division, Shumate is the highest-ranking DOJ official personally authorizing the subpoena campaign under the legal theory that off-label prescribing of FDA-approved medications by licensed physicians constitutes felony misbranding under the FDCA — a theory that has been rejected by every federal court to consider it on the merits.
His role illustrates how the institutional machinery of the DOJ Civil Division has been deployed to enforce a legally baseless theory against transgender youth and their healthcare providers, with the imprimatur of the DOJ’s highest career leadership.
See Also
- Lisa K. Hsiao — Acting Director, Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch
- Pam Bondi — Attorney General of the United States
- Mary S. McElroy — U.S. District Judge, District of Rhode Island
- Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch (EALB) — DOJ unit executing the subpoena campaign
Sources
- In re: Admin. Subpoena 25-1431-032 to RI Hospital – Full Ruling (PDF) — Judge McElroy’s May 13, 2026 ruling, referencing Shumate’s authorization
- DOJ Press Release — 20+ Subpoenas (July 2025)
- In re Subp. No. 25-1431-014, 810 F. Supp. 3d 555, 582 (E.D. Pa. 2025)
- QueerDoc, PLLC v. U.S. Dept. of J., 807 F. Supp. 3d 1295, 1303 n.2 (W.D. Wash. 2025)
Related Pages
- Lisa K. Hsiao — Acting Director of EALB
- Brett A. Shumate — Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division
- Mary S. McElroy — US District Judge, D.R.I., quashed the Rhode Island subpoena
- Pam Bondi — Attorney General, issued April 22, 2025 memo targeting trans youth healthcare
- Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch (EALB) — DOJ Civil Division branch executing the subpoena campaign
- DOJ Subpoenas for Transgender Healthcare Records — Overview of the nationwide campaign