Jared Kushner is expected to consult primarily on the Middle East and trade deals. | AP Photo Kushner to resign from exec posts, divest sizable assets As a senior White House adviser, Trump’s son-in-law is expected to focus on the Middle East and trade deals.

As he prepares to enter his father-in-law’s White House as senior adviser, Jared Kushner is resigning as CEO of Kushner Companies and publisher of the New York Observer — and divesting substantial assets to comply with federal ethics laws.

For a son-in-law who had originally planned to re-enter his family’s real estate business post-election, the new reality, and efforts to disentangle himself from his vast business holdings, came after the president-elect pushed for Kushner to continue on by his side, according to a senior transition official.


Kushner is expected to consult primarily on the Middle East and trade deals and receive no salary for the post.

The new role was announced on Monday afternoon by the senior transition official and a Kushner attorney, in a hastily organized conference call with reporters — a move designed to get ahead of questions about potential conflicts of interest with Kushner’s vast real estate empire, as well as the possible violation of anti-nepotism laws. On the call, the attorney also outlined some preliminary steps Ivanka Trump, Kushner's wife, is taking to limit her direct hand in running the Trump Organization. But she will continue to have an interest in the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. and the Ivanka Trump fashion business, a Kushner lawyer said.

On Wednesday, Trump is expected to address the media in his first post-election press conference, to outline how he plans to deal with his international business holdings while serving as president. It is unclear if Kushner was setting a precedent for his father-in-law.

But in his virtually unprecedented role as a family member-turned-senior White House staffer, Kushner also plans to resign from all other board positions, trusteeships and partnerships he holds, his attorney, Jamie Gorelick of WilmerHale, said. She did not outline what those positions were.

“Mr. Kushner is committed to complying with federal ethics laws and we have been consulting with the Office of Government Ethics regarding the steps he would take,” Gorelick said, noting that he plans to file a 278 financial disclosure form, required by Cabinet nominees, and comply with the same levels of transparency voters would expect of regular senior government officials.

Kushner will divest from all common stock and over 35 other investments, his attorney said, including: all foreign investments; Thrive Capital, a venture capital fund co-founded by his younger brother, Josh; and his interests in the company’s crown jewel property, 666 Fifth Avenue, where Kushner keeps his corner office. Gorelick said the divestments will be carried out through sales at fair-market value.

Those assets will be sold in part to a trust of which Jared Kushner’s mother, Seryl, is the trustee — but in which he will not be a beneficiary or a contingent beneficiary, his attorney said. Other assets will be sold to his brother, Josh, and to third parties.

Kushner will also resign as manager or authorized signatory of more than 40 Kushner Company entities. And he will recuse himself from participating personally in any government business that would have a direct effect on his remaining financial interests.

Ethics watchdog Richard Painter said it would be important for Kushner to recuse himself from matters involving financial services regulation and the proposed repeal of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law.

In explaining the unique situation around a president-elect hiring a family member as a top adviser, Gorelick admitted there are not many examples to lean on from history. Congress passed the anti-nepotism law in 1967, and since then, the most salient test was, perhaps, due to then-first lady Hillary Clinton, when her husband appointed her to chair a task force on national healthcare reform and a lobbying group filed a lawsuit. In 1993, in a D.C. Circuit opinion, the court ruled that a federal anti-nepotism statute would not necessarily cover White House staff positions, only appointments to Cabinet-level positions.

But Gorelick added that “This is not a close question. In 1978, Congress authorized the President to hire personnel for the White House Office ‘without regard’ to federal personnel laws like the anti-nepotism statute. The Justice Department has described this authority as ‘unfettered’ and ‘sweeping.’”

Kushner’s move to separate himself from his business assets was immediately applauded by ethics watchdogs. Norm Eisen, who served as ethics czar under President Barack Obama, called it “a positive step.” But he added, “We need to see the details of how he will do that. And I hope his father-in-law takes a page from his book and does the same, as presidents have for the past four decades, by divesting into a blind trust or the equivalent.”

Painter, chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, added that it was "good that they did this and above board."

Democratic lawmakers in the House, however, sent a letter Monday asking the Justice Department and the U.S. Office of Government Ethics to review concerns of nepotism and conflicts of interest related to the unusual appointment.

Trump’s transition team officially announced the move Monday evening, touting Kushner as an adviser on equal footing with incoming chief of staff Reince Priebus and chief strategist Steve Bannon.

“Jared has been a tremendous asset and trusted advisor throughout the campaign and transition and I am proud to have him in a key leadership role in my administration,” Trump said in a statement. “He has been incredibly successful, in both business and now politics.

In his stead, Jared Kushner’s father, Charles Kushner, will be taking on an increased role in the family company, according to the senior transition official.

As he prepares for the move to Washington, D.C., many details of Kushner’s new gig remain a question mark — including where his office will be in relation to the Oval Office. The transition official also stressed that Kushner doesn’t know quite what he is walking into — he expects the job to evolve naturally, just as his role on the campaign grew from simple manager of the social media accounts to a senior strategist.

But for now, the official said, Kushner expects to focus on the government’s connections with the private sector, the Middle East and trade deals. The official said Kushner is already working closely with Wilbur Ross, the investor tapped by Trump for commerce secretary, and Peter Navarro, who will lead a new White House office dedicated to trade and industrial policy.

Ivanka Trump is also expected to resign from all officer and director positions she currently holds within the Trump Organization, and the Ivanka Trump businesses, which include her eponymous fashion line. She will also divest significant assets, including all common stock.

Instead of participating in the profits from Trump Organization projects, the attorney said, Ivanka Trump will now receive a series of fixed payments that will come from a diversified pool of projects.

The transition official and Gorelick also made it clear that Ivanka Trump — who has been touted as someone who could step in to fill a first lady-like role while her stepmother, Melania, continues living in New York City — will be keeping a low profile, at least for the beginning of her father’s administration. Instead, she will focus on life as a stay-at-home mom, settling her children into their new home and schools, the attorney said.

The set-up is designed so that no action Kushner could take would affect the income or the value of his wife’s assets.

“We expect when Jared walks into his office after the inauguration,” said Gorelick, “he will do so consistent with the law and all ethical requirements.”