Top Commerce Department Lawyer Resigns, Returning to New York After 15+ Months

Pierre Gentin, the Commerce Department’s general counsel, is resigning after more than 15 months to return to New York and the private sector. Gentin previously served as a partner at consulting firm McKinsey and at law firm Cahill Gordon.

Gentin joined the Trump administration in February 2025 as part of a wave of private-sector executives that included Michael Grimes, who earlier this year left government to return to Morgan Stanley. His departure comes after a brief but consequential tenure in which Commerce broadened its role in industrial policy and corporate oversight.

Commerce’s Broader Role

In recent years the Commerce Department has moved beyond its traditional trade and regulatory functions. It administered CHIPS Act funding during the Biden administration and, under Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, has acted as a scout and clearinghouse for strategic deals and government stakes.

The agency currently holds the federal government’s stakes in Intel and two rare-earth mineral companies, controls the federal board seat at U.S. Steel, and has been involved in efforts to facilitate a rescue of Spirit Airlines. These activities illustrate how the executive branch has used Commerce to exercise unusual influence over private companies.

“Pierre left a successful career to join the government more than 15 months ago. He is returning to New York, his family, and the private sector, and we thank him for his extraordinary work at the department,” a Commerce spokesman said.

Gentin’s exit creates a vacancy in the department’s legal leadership at a moment when Commerce’s interventions in industry and corporate governance remain high-profile. The department is expected to name an interim or permanent successor in the coming weeks.