A seasoned litigator with deep Central Valley roots has stepped back into federal service, bringing decades of high-level legal experience to one of California's most expansive federal districts. Eric Grant was sworn in yesterday as the Interim United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California by Chief United States District Judge Troy L. Nunley, after Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed him to the position beginning on Aug. 11, 2025.
The appointment marks Grant's third tour of duty with the Department of Justice, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The Modesto-raised attorney has served twice in Washington, D.C.: from 1991 to 1993 as an Attorney-Adviser in the Office of Legal Counsel, and from 2017 to 2021 as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Environment and Natural Resources Division.
A District of Vast Scope
Grant now oversees 34 counties throughout the Central Valley and the Sierra, from the Oregon border in the north to the Los Angeles County line in the south. As reported by the Eastern District office, the operation includes 72 attorneys and 61 non-attorney staff with offices in Sacramento, Fresno, and Bakersfield.
The district represents one of the most geographically diverse federal jurisdictions in the nation, encompassing six large urban areas: Sacramento, Fresno, Bakersfield, Stockton, Vallejo, and Fairfield. It extends over 87,000 square miles, 45% of which is federal land, reaching from the coastal mountains in the west to the Nevada border in the east.
Environmental Law Expertise
During his tenure at the Environment and Natural Resources Division, Grant supervised more than a hundred Department litigators advancing the interests of the United States and its agencies in both enforcement and defensive matters. His high-profile work included spearheading the government's successful petition for certiorari in U.S. Forest Service v. Cowpasture River Preservation Ass'n, 140 S. Ct. 1837 (2020), according to Hicks Thomas LLP.
Between his DOJ stints, Bloomberg Law reported that Grant returned to private practice with Sacramento-based Hicks Thomas LLP, where he worked from their Sacramento office after returning to the firm in 2021.
Supreme Court Credentials
Grant's legal pedigree includes some of the highest levels of the federal judiciary. He served as a law clerk to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger (retired) and Associate Justice Clarence Thomas during the Supreme Court's October 1994 Term, and earlier served as a law clerk to Judge Edith H. Jones of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Houston, Texas.
In addition to his service in the Department, Grant has decades of experience in private practice in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento. That experience includes arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court, the California Supreme Court, and numerous other federal and state courts.
Local Connections
The appointment brings a distinctly local perspective to the federal prosecutor's office. Grant grew up in Modesto, California, and raised his family in Sacramento County. He attended the University of California, Berkeley, from which he earned a bachelor's degree in economics in 1986 and a law degree in 1990.
Transition in Leadership
Grant's appointment comes amid a period of transition for the Eastern District office. According to GV Wire, he replaces acting U.S. Attorney Kimberly Sanchez, who was appointed to that post on July 16. Sanchez, a Republican, followed acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith, a Democrat.
Under federal appointment procedures, an acting U.S. Attorney is predetermined by the Vacancies Act and may serve up to 300 days. At any time, the Attorney General can appoint an interim attorney for up to 120 days without Senate confirmation. If the 120 days expire, the chief district judge may make an appointment until there is a full-time confirmed attorney.
Grant expressed his commitment to the role, stating: "I look forward to working with that team and with our federal, state, local, and tribal partners in law enforcement and otherwise to accomplish that mission." The timing of Grant's appointment coincides with the early stages of the second Trump administration's law enforcement priorities, bringing an attorney with demonstrated experience in complex federal litigation to one of California's most challenging prosecutorial districts.
