Brand, the associate attorney general who was confirmed last May, has been a prominent Trump administration official working on the reauthorizing of section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. A second friend close to Brand told CNN she was being heavily courted for some time and was wrestling with the decision on whether or not to leave the Justice Department, describing the job as a "once in a lifetime job." A friend of Brand’s says Rachel was “not looking to leave,” but was approached by a Fortune 500 company with a “dream job.”

News of Brand’s departure was first reported by The New York Times. Attorney General Jeff Sessions accompanied by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand, listen to the national anthem during the opening ceremony of the summit on Efforts to Combat Human Trafficking at the Department of Justice in Washington, Feb. 2, 2018. A widely respected lawyer who had served in Justice Department during President George W. Bush's administration, Brand became the focus of increased attention in recent weeks when Trump stepped up his criticism of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who is overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AP)

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department's third-ranking official plans to step down, as the agency has been the target of withering criticism by President Trump and Republican lawmakers, the department said in a statement late Friday. Rachel Brand, who only last week was praised for her leadership by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, will be leaving the department in the next several weeks for a position in the private sector. I’ve seen firsthand his commitment to the rule of law and to keeping the American people safe.”

No immediate reason for Brand’s and her assistant, Currie Gunn, decision to leave was forthcoming. 3 official at the Justice Department, plans to step down after nine months on the job as the country’s top law enforcement agency has been under attack by President Trump, according to two people briefed on her decision.
Rachel Brand, Associate Attorney General since May 2017, plans to step down in the next several weeks in favor of a job in the private sector.