Jay Clayton

Walter Joseph "Jay" Clayton III (born July 11, 1966) is an American attorney who has served as the 9th director of national intelligence since 2026. Clayton served as the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York from 2025 to 2026, and as the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission from 2017 to 2020. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1993, Clayton was a law clerk for Marvin Katz of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 1993 to 1995. Clayton worked for Sullivan & Cromwell for over twenty years, where he was involved in business deals. In January 2017, President-elect Donald Trump nominated Clayton to serve as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Senate voted to confirm Clayton in May. Clayton resigned from the position in December 2020. After his resignation, Clayton worked for Apollo Global Management and rejoined Sullivan & Cromwell. In April 2025, Trump named Clayton as the acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. He was approved by the district's judges in August. In June 2026, Trump named Clayton as his nominee to serve as the director of national intelligence. The Senate voted along party lines to confirm Clayton as the director of national intelligence the following month.