Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, has hired two prominent Washington attorneys with experience representing senior political figures, as she faces two federal investigations: one involving alleged immigration fraud and another concerning financial disclosures.
A CBS report identified the lawyers as Amy Jeffress and Joshua Matz, partners at Hecker Fink LLP. Both have represented Democratic clients and worked on cases involving President Donald Trump, his administration and his supporters.
Jeffress, a former federal prosecutor, spent a decade in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, where she led the National Security Section and tried more than 40 cases. She also served as a Justice Department attaché.
Earlier this year, Jeffress represented former President Joe Biden in a lawsuit seeking to prevent the release of audio recordings of interviews with his “Promise Me, Dad” ghostwriter, Mark Zwonitzer. The recordings, made in 2016 and 2017, were requested under the Freedom of Information Act by the Heritage Foundation in 2024. They had also featured in special counsel Robert Hur’s inquiry into Biden’s handling of classified information and drew attention from conservatives who questioned his mental sharpness.
A court declined to block the recordings’ release. They became public in July and included moments when Biden appeared to have memory lapses.
Before joining Hecker Fink, Jeffress served as counsel to then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic-led House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. She represented the committee in a lawsuit brought by former Trump campaign spokesperson Taylor Budowich, after the committee subpoenaed his bank records.
Jeffress also represented former FBI lawyer Lisa Page during congressional scrutiny of the bureau’s handling of the Russia investigation. Page later sued the Justice Department over the release of text messages between her and former FBI colleague Peter Strzok. In the messages, Strzok told Page the FBI would prevent Trump from becoming president and referred to an “insurance policy.” The lawsuit was settled in 2024.
Jeffress is married to U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper. In May, Cooper ruled that the Kennedy Center could not legally add Trump’s name to the institution. Trump criticized the judge as conflicted because of his marriage to Jeffress.
Matz, who also works at Hecker Fink, graduated from Harvard Law School and clerked for former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. His legal work has included democracy and election issues. He represented Pennsylvania in defending the certification of its election results, including before the Supreme Court, and advised House Democrats during both of Trump’s impeachments in his first term.
Matz also represented E. Jean Carroll in two civil cases against Trump over his denials of her sexual assault allegations. A jury found Trump liable for sexual assault and defamation in one case. In a separate case, a jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million in 2024 over other defamatory statements. Trump was not criminally charged in connection with Carroll’s claims.
His past clients have also included students, parents and teachers challenging Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act, often called the “Don’t Say Gay” law. Matz represented Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear in a lawsuit over COVID-19 restrictions, including school closures, and represented people harmed at the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville.
Jeffress and Matz are now representing Omar as she responds to the two federal inquiries. In a social media video earlier this month, Omar asked supporters to continue contributing, saying the legal fight would be expensive.
