Jay Clayton (attorney)

Jay Clayton
Official portrait, 2017
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York
Interim
Assumed office
April 16, 2025
PresidentDonald Trump
Preceded byMatthew Podolsky (acting)
Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission
In office
May 4, 2017  December 23, 2020
PresidentDonald Trump
Preceded byMichael Piwowar (acting)
Succeeded byElad L. Roisman (acting)
Personal details
Born
Walter Joseph Clayton III

(1966-07-11) July 11, 1966
Newport News, Virginia, U.S.
Political partyIndependent
SpouseGretchen Butler
EducationUniversity of Pennsylvania (BS, JD)
King's College, Cambridge (MA)

Walter Joseph "Jay" Clayton III (born July 11, 1966) is an American attorney who has served as the acting United States attorney for the Southern District of New York since 2025. Clayton served as the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from May 4, 2017, until December 23, 2020. He was nominated for the position by President Donald Trump.