Politico adds two to its legal team

Politico executive editor Dafna Linzer and editor-in-ehief Matt Kaminski sent out the following on Monday:

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In the last year, POLITICO has redefined what legal reporting means: First, with an unprecedented exclusive revealing that 50 years of legal protections for abortion would be overturned and then with a yearlong series on the Supreme Court itself, examining conflicts of interests, ethical issues and the powerful forces that shaped a conservative bench. No publication had covered the Court as vigorously as POLITICO and it was this work that was recognized earlier this year with a George Polk award for national reporting.

Similarly, our coverage of the Jan 6th investigation and the legal implications for those who participated and those who directed it has been unrivaled.

It’s time for the legal reporters at the heart of this coverage to come together as one new team that will build on this success, a key part of our 2023 strategy for covering Washington.

So, we are thrilled to announce today two terrific additions to our staff.

James Romoser, editor of the famed and beloved SCOTUSblog, is joining us as legal editor, starting on March 21.

Erica Orden, who has broken too many stories to count in prior stints at the Wall Street Journal and CNN, starts as legal reporter on March 7, based in New York, and with a specific focus on SDNY.

Erica, Betsy Woodruff Swan, Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney will report to James. Of course, the Court’s work touches on many areas where our own policy teams are focused – from climate to health to technology –allowing for strong collaboration across the newsroom between those teams and our new legal team.

James brings a wealth of experience to the role, having managed over 100 contributing writers, grown SCOTUSBlogs’ digital presence, and spearheaded coverage of the real-world consequences of Supreme Court decisions, as well as the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett, and the Dobbs decision. In addition to editing SCOTUSblog, James also wrote “Case Studies,” a weekly column on legal affairs for National Journal. He’s a lawyer by training with practice in First Amendment law.

Erica comes to POLITICO with a lengthy track record as a dogged federal courts and law enforcement reporter. At the Wall Street Journal, she covered the Trump special counsel probe and the federal investigation into business dealings of the Kushner Companies. Among the stories she has broken: the expansion of the Robert Mueller investigation to cover accusations of money laundering against Paul Manafort. After that, she moved to CNN where she broke news on the Michael Cohen case, the Greg Craig case, the Trump Organization case, the Jeffrey Epstein case, and more. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, their two kids and their dog, Bill.

As important as their respective track records are the testimonials from their colleagues who praise their sharp ideas and smart instincts. They are the type of newsroom additions that will elevate our publication to new heights.

Please welcome James and Erica.