NEWS: Sen. Schiff, Rep. Min Urge DOJ Independent Watchdog to Launch Investigation into Pam Bondi’s Potential Improper Influence Over Cases Involving Brother, Brad Bondi

Washington, D.C. –Today, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), member of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, and Representative Dave Min (D-Calif.-47), member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, urged the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Inspector General toconducta review to determine whether Attorney General Pam Bondi has appropriately recused herself from – or improperly influenced – several cases involving defendants represented by her brother, Brad Bondi.
This push follows the Justice Department’s failure toanswerSenator Schiff and Rep. Min’s inquiry regarding a “troubling pattern” of repeated intervention or dismissals of cases involving Pam Bondi’s brother. In a recentLinkedInpost, Brad Bondi provided public, firsthand confirmation of “remarkable victories” for his clients, referencing “many confidential settlements, declinations, and closing letters from the SEC and other regulatory agencies” in 2025 that “didn’t make the press.”
The lawmakers wrote“we are concerned that DOJ officials, including the Attorney General, may have failed to ensure the independence of internal accountability mechanisms.”
“Considering these circumstances and potentially serious implications for the impartial administration of justice, we respectfully request that the Office of the Inspector General conduct a review into whether Attorney General Bondi adequately recused herself from any involvement in these public and confidential matters, and whether the appropriate ethics safeguards… and DOJ Justice Manual were implemented and respected,”concluded the lawmakers.
The full text of the letter is availablehereand below:
Dear Mr. Blier,
We write to request that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General conduct a review to determine whether Attorney General Pamela Bondi properly recused herself from, or otherwise improperly influenced, several cases involving defendants represented by her brother, Bradley “Brad” Bondi.
On December 16, 2025, we sent a letter to Attorney General Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche seeking clarification as to whether the Department has properly implemented firewalls and screening procedures to separate the Attorney General from matters involving her brother and whether she has recused herself from cases in which the Department’s impartiality could reasonably be questioned.  Refraining from such matters is necessary to ensure compliance with requirements under the Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) and DOJ Justice Manual federal ethics standards.  We requested a response to our questions by January 2, 2026.  To date, we have received no reply.
Our earlier letter outlined several specific cases in which Mr. Bondi’s involvement likely poses a conflict of interest for the Attorney General. In a recent LinkedIn post, Mr. Bondi provided public, firsthand direct evidence and confirmation of these “remarkable victories” for his clients:

In his post, Mr. Bondi also referenced “many confidential settlements, declinations, and closing letters from the SEC and other regulatory agencies” in 2025 that “didn’t make the press.” The extent, if any, of the DOJ’s involvement in these confidential matters is unknown but, given the troubling pattern at the Department of repeated interventions or dismissals in cases involving Mr. Bondi, we are concerned that DOJ officials, including the Attorney General, may have failed to ensure the independence of internal accountability mechanisms.
Considering these circumstances and potentially serious implications for the impartial administration of justice, we respectfully request that the Office of the Inspector General conduct a review into whether Attorney General Bondi adequately recused herself from any involvement in these public and confidential matters, and whether the appropriate ethics safeguards, particularly C.F.R. § 2635.502, C.F.R. § 2635.101, and DOJ Justice Manual were implemented and respected.
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