Biden Names Judge Merrick Garland As Attorney General WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Thursday, President-elect Joe Biden announced key nominations for the Department of Justice. Judge Merrick Garland, a Department of Justice veteran and independent jurist on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, has been nominated as the United States' new Attorney General. He will succeed William Barr, who resigned last month after stating that the Justice Department found no evidence of voter fraud that would change the outcome of the presidential election. A consensus-building voice, Judge Garland has worked under Democratic and Republican administrations. He led investigations into some of the most high-profile cases and crises in modern history, including the 'Unabomber' Ted Kaczynski, and coordinated the government's response to the Oklahoma City bombing.