WASHINGTON D.C (VINnews) — President Donald Trump announced Sunday that Will Scharf, a Jewish attorney who serves as White House staff secretary, will become assistant to the president and White House counsel effective Sept. 1.

Scharf will succeed David Warrington, who is leaving the administration for the private sector after serving as White House counsel since January 2025.

Trump praised Warrington for his work as White House counsel and previously as counsel to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. Trump described Scharf, who also chairs the National Capital Planning Commission, as having done an “amazing job” in his current roles.

The appointment elevates Scharf, a close legal adviser to Trump, to the administration’s top in-house legal position. He will advise the president on legal matters and help oversee the White House legal operation.

Scharf previously represented Trump in several legal matters, including cases that reached the U.S. Supreme Court. A former federal prosecutor, he clerked for two federal appeals court judges before working as a private attorney.

He graduated from Princeton University and Harvard Law School and became deeply involved in Jewish life during his years at Princeton, serving as president of the university’s Chabad student board.

Scharf was raised in a Modern Orthodox Jewish family with roots in New York and North Florida. He has maintained an observant Jewish lifestyle, including keeping kosher, putting on tefillin daily and attending Shabbat services at a Chabad synagogue, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

His Jewish observance has occasionally drawn attention during his time at the White House.

At a White House Hanukkah reception, Scharf led participants in reciting a blessing. Trump then reacted publicly to Scharf’s level of Jewish observance, saying he had not realized how Jewish Scharf was and calling him “seriously Jewish.”

Scharf has also participated in Jewish events within the administration. He has helped host a Passover gathering for White House staff and participated in a Purim Megillah reading organized with American Friends of Lubavitch, the Chabad movement’s U.S. organization.

Before the yahrzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, on the third of Tammuz, Scharf hosted participants in the Living Legacy conference at the White House. He spoke about the influence Chabad had on his life.

His observance has also surfaced in lighter moments. After White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted a photograph of Scharf aboard Air Force One showing lobster tacos nearby, Scharf clarified that he had eaten vegetarian tacos.

Rabbi Eitan Webb, co-director of Chabad at Princeton, has praised Scharf’s character and work ethic, describing him as exceptionally organized, thorough and respectful.

Trump described Scharf in announcing his appointment as “Tough, Strong, and Smart,” adding that he “loves our Country, and respects the Law.”

Scharf’s legal career includes work as a federal prosecutor and private attorney, as well as representing Trump in litigation. He became closely associated with Trump’s legal team and defended the president in cases that Trump has characterized as politically motivated “lawfare” during the previous administration.

Trump selected Scharf as White House staff secretary after his victory in the 2024 presidential election. In announcing that appointment, Trump described him as a highly skilled attorney who would be an important member of his administration.

Scharf has since taken on additional responsibilities, including chairing the National Capital Planning Commission, which approved plans for a new White House ballroom.

His move to White House counsel marks another significant rise for the Jewish attorney, shifting him from overseeing the documents and information reaching the president’s desk to becoming one of Trump’s principal legal advisers.

Warrington, meanwhile, will leave the administration for the private sector. Before becoming White House counsel, he served as Trump’s personal attorney and as counsel to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign.

Scharf is scheduled to assume the White House counsel position on Sept. 1.