Former Maryland US attorney with ties to Trump representing Harvard in funding lawsuit

Natalie Jones, The Baltimore Sun on Apr 23, 2025

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A former top Maryland federal prosecutor with ties to the Trump administration is one of the attorneys representing Harvard University in its legal battle against the administration after officials froze billions of dollars of the university’s federal funding.

Robert Hur, who was appointed by President Donald Trump as the U.S. Attorney for Maryland in 2018 and served as special counsel to investigate former President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents, is one of multiple attorneys representing Harvard in the dispute, which escalated to a lawsuit on Monday.

While Harvard could have any number of attorneys represent it in court, Hur’s “unusual background” benefits the university from a public relations standpoint, said Michael Greenberger, a law professor at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law

“It’s a very nice niche for them to hit — they’re suing Trump, yet they are able to have as their lawyer someone who has been appointed to various positions by Trump and who is a Republican,” he said. “I think it just gives a nice finish to the way they’re handling this litigation.”

It’s certainly not the first high-profile case Hur has handled. During his nearly three years as the state’s top prosecutor, Hur oversaw the charging and convictions of former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, former Baltimore Police Commissioner Darryl De Sousa and former Baltimore Del. Cheryl Glenn. He stepped down in February 2021 after Biden took office.

Two years later, in 2023, then-Attorney General Merrick Garland tapped Hur to serve as special counsel to investigate the classified documents found at Biden’s home and a former office.

Hur faced scrutiny from both Democrats and Republicans last year after his report describing Biden as a “sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory” was released.

Democrats contended that Hur’s report was prejudicial and attempted to smear Biden, while Republicans criticized him for not recommending that the former president be criminally charged for retaining the documents.

Hur, who now works for private law firm King & Spalding, focusing on special matters and government investigations, did not respond to a request for an interview.

It’s hard to say if Hur’s prior experience will give him more insight as to how the Trump administration may respond to the Harvard case, said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond, and that’s due to the difference in the Department of Justice in Trump’s second term.

“In this administration, I think the Department of Justice is acting more aggressively,” he said. “I think that’s an understatement.”

While Hur has a “very strong, admirable record,” including his time as a Trump appointee, Greenberger, who was the founder and director of the University of Maryland Center for Health and Homeland Security, said he doesn’t see Hur’s experience as an advantage in the pending litigation against the Trump administration.

“I think with every insight he has, there are lots of very capable lawyers who would have a similar insight,” he said. “I don’t think that, in and of itself, brings any advantage.”

Hur does have a connection to Harvard, though — he earned his undergraduate degree from the university in 1995.

“It seems to me he’s a pretty good choice for this litigation,” Tobias said.

How exactly the lawsuit will play out remains to be seen, though.

Suing a presidential administration is “no doubt difficult,” Greenberger said, but the university is in a good position.

“I think on the merits, Harvard has a very strong case here,” he said. “It’s the Trump administration that’s gone off the traditional path of the way to deal with universities … they’ve taken a very radical position in terms of their dealing with Harvard.”

Tobias thinks the case may move fairly quickly through the courts, though he also thinks it’s likely to go to the Supreme Court.

“I think it will be difficult, but I think the university is showing it intends to stand its ground,” he said. “I think the administration feels equally strongly that it has a valid case.”

In a statement Monday, Harvard University President Alan Garber said the funding freeze is “unconstitutional and beyond the government’s authority.”

“The consequences of the government’s overreach will be severe and long-lasting,” he said, referring to its effect on scientific research.

University leaders across the country have condemned the “unprecedented government overreach and political interference” posing a danger to American higher education, according to a joint statement released Tuesday by the American Association of Colleges and Universities.

Garber and University of Maryland President Darryll J. Pines were among more than 100 leaders who signed on to the statement calling for “constructive engagement.”

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