Table of Contents
For fifteen years, my world has been one of numbers, filings, and public records.
As a financial researcher, my job is to assemble the puzzle pieces of a public figure’s life and produce a single, coherent picture: their net worth.
For a long time, my biggest professional pain point was the persistent, frustrating gap between the data I could see and the wealth I knew must exist.
The numbers never quite added up, leaving me with estimates that felt more like educated guesses than definitive answers.
My moment of reckoning came when I was tasked with valuing a prominent, but intensely private, business executive.
I meticulously gathered every public company filing, every recorded transaction, every piece of visible data.
The result was an estimate that was off by an order of magnitude—a failure so profound it forced me to question the very foundation of my methodology.
I had been mapping the coastline while ignoring the continent just beyond the horizon.
This brings me to the subject of this report: Todd Blanche.
He represents the ultimate valuation puzzle.
His career is a study in financial extremes, a journey from the modest, transparent salary of a federal prosecutor to the opaque, stratospheric earnings of a Wall Street law partner, and back again to a high-level government post.1
How does one reconcile the salary of an Assistant U.S. Attorney with the multi-million-dollar profits of a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft? How do you value a man who left one of the oldest law firms in New York to start his own boutique practice with the former President of the United States as his primary client?3
The conventional tools of my trade were simply not enough.
To solve the puzzle of Todd Blanche, I needed a new way of seeing.
The Epiphany: Uncovering the Iceberg Principle
My breakthrough didn’t come from a financial journal or an economics textbook.
It came from the seemingly unrelated fields of oceanography and psychology, in the form of the “Iceberg Principle”.4
The concept is simple yet profound: what we see of an iceberg—the tip floating above the water—is only about 10% of its total Mass. The vast, powerful, and dangerous majority lies hidden beneath the surface.4
This model is used to explain everything from organizational culture to the human psyche, highlighting that the most influential factors are often the ones we cannot see.5
It struck me with the force of a revelation.
This was the exact problem I faced.
I had been spending my career measuring the tips of financial icebergs.
I immediately began to reframe my entire approach, developing a new financial valuation framework based on this principle:
- The Tip of the Iceberg: This represents all the visible, easily quantifiable financial data. It includes public salaries from government positions, declared assets on ethics disclosure forms, publicly recorded real estate transactions, and other surface-level information. This is the data anyone with a search engine can find, but it’s often misleadingly incomplete, creating an illusion of transparency.7
- The Hidden Bulk: This represents the submerged, far more significant part of the financial picture. For a lawyer like Todd Blanche, this includes the opaque world of private law firm earnings—especially partnership draws, which are not public record—the enterprise value of privately-held businesses like his own law firm, unrealized investment gains, and complex compensation structures that are shielded from public view.8
This wasn’t just a clever analogy; it was a new paradigm.
It provided a structure to account for the immense value generated in the private sector that is so often obscured when individuals move into public life.
The financial journey of a person like Todd Blanche is a perfect illustration of this dynamic.
The legal profession itself operates on an iceberg model: the public-facing trials and government salaries are the visible tip, while the confidential client relationships, private billing arrangements, and labyrinthine partnership compensation formulas constitute the hidden bulk.
To understand his true net worth, we must sound the depths.
Part I: The Tip of theIceberg – Charting the Visible Wealth
To build a credible estimate, we must first meticulously chart every visible data point.
This process serves two purposes: it establishes a fact-based floor for our valuation and, more importantly, demonstrates the profound limitations of relying on this surface-level information alone.
The picture that emerges from the “tip” is that of a career civil servant, a financial profile fundamentally at odds with the reality of a top-tier white-collar defense attorney.
A Foundation in Public Service (2006-2014)
Todd Blanche’s career began with a distinguished eight-year tenure as an Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) in the prestigious Southern District of New York.2
During this time, he was a salaried government employee, and his earnings can be reasonably estimated using the Department of Justice’s official pay scales.
His compensation would have been determined by the Administratively Determined (AD) pay plan, which assigns a pay grade based on years of experience, combined with a significant locality pay adjustment for the high-cost New York City area.10
Assuming he started at a junior level (e.g., AD-21) in 2006 and progressed steadily through the ranks to a more senior level by 2014, we can model his income progression.
This period, where he co-headed the violent crimes and White Plains units, provided him with invaluable experience in high-stakes litigation, including cases of bank fraud and public corruption—experience that would later become extraordinarily lucrative in the private sector.1
| Year | Est. AD Grade (Experience) | Est. Base Salary (2025 Scale) | Est. NY Locality Pay | Est. Total Annual Salary |
| 2006 | AD-21 (0-2 Yrs) | $85,269 | ~$25,000 | ~$110,269 |
| 2007 | AD-21 (0-2 Yrs) | $85,269 | ~$25,000 | ~$110,269 |
| 2008 | AD-23 (3-4 Yrs) | $91,617 | ~$27,000 | ~$118,617 |
| 2009 | AD-23 (3-4 Yrs) | $91,617 | ~$27,000 | ~$118,617 |
| 2010 | AD-25 (5 Yrs) | $98,438 | ~$29,000 | ~$127,438 |
| 2011 | AD-26 (6 Yrs) | $105,768 | ~$31,000 | ~$136,768 |
| 2012 | AD-27 (7 Yrs) | $113,645 | ~$33,500 | ~$147,145 |
| 2013 | AD-28 (8 Yrs) | $122,105 | ~$36,000 | ~$158,105 |
| Total | ~$1,027,228 |
Note: This table uses the 2025 DOJ pay scale 11 as a proxy and applies estimated historical locality adjustments for illustrative purposes.
Actual historical salaries would vary.
This model provides a reasonable, conservative estimate of his total earnings over this eight-year period.
The Return to Government (2025-Present)
In March 2025, after his high-profile work in private practice, Blanche returned to public service when he was confirmed as the 40th United States Deputy Attorney General.1
His salary in this role is a matter of public record, set by statutory executive pay schedules.
For 2025, the total pay for senior Justice Department officials in his grade (AD-31 through AD-37) is capped at $195,100.11
This provides another hard, visible data point for his financial profile.
A Glimpse Through the Keyhole: Public Disclosures
When high-level officials enter government service, they are required to file public financial disclosures with the Office of Government Ethics (OGE).
These forms offer a tantalizing, but ultimately limited, peek into their finances.
Blanche’s disclosure forms list a few specific assets, including holdings in the Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund (VGSLX) and the Vanguard Total International Bond Index Fund (VTABX).13
However, the reported value for each of these is in the range of just $1,001 to $15,000.
The forms also note his previous positions as a partner at Cadwalader and as the owner of Blanche Law PLLC, but they do not provide income figures from those roles.13
This is the “Tip of the Iceberg” in its most literal form.
The OGE forms create an illusion of comprehensive disclosure while revealing almost nothing about the true scale of wealth accumulated in the private sector.
If one were to stop the analysis here, based only on his public service salary and these minor declared assets, the conclusion would be that Todd Blanche is a moderately well-off career public servant.
This conclusion is not just incomplete; it is fundamentally wrong.
The visible data presents a distorted picture, and its primary value is in highlighting the glaring need to investigate what lies beneath the surface.
Part II: The Hidden Bulk – Sounding the Depths of Private Wealth
This is the investigative core of the report, where we apply the Iceberg Principle to estimate the far larger, non-public components of Blanche’s net worth.
This requires moving beyond simple record-keeping and into the realm of financial modeling, using industry data and logical inference to reconstruct the wealth generated during his time in elite private practice.
The Big Law Payday: Deconstructing Partner Profits at Cadwalader (2017-2023)
In September 2017, Blanche joined Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, New York’s oldest law firm and a powerhouse on Wall Street.1
He spent nearly six years there as a partner in the White Collar Defense and Investigations practice before leaving in April 2023 to represent Donald Trump.3
This period represents the single most significant engine of wealth creation in his career.
Unlike a government salary, a law firm partner’s compensation is not a fixed number.
For equity partners, it is a share of the firm’s profits, a figure that can run into the millions of dollars annually at top firms.
The standard industry metric for this is Profits Per Equity Partner (PPEP).
Publicly available data shows that Cadwalader’s PPEP was a staggering $4,382,000 in the 2021/22 fiscal year and $2,554,000 in 2020.14
These massive profit figures are fueled by exorbitant billing rates.
A 2023 lawsuit filed against Blanche and Cadwalader by former clients, while contentious, revealed that even junior associates at the firm were billing at rates exceeding $1,000 per hour.16
For a senior partner like Blanche, with a unique background as a former federal prosecutor, a billing rate of $2,000 to $3,000 per hour would be well within the industry standard for elite New York firms.17
This revenue-generating power is what drives the multi-million dollar partner profits.
While we do not know if Blanche was a full equity partner for his entire tenure, we can create a conservative model of his potential earnings.
The following table estimates his annual take-home pay by applying a blended average of the firm’s known PPEP figures over his time there.
| Year | Firm PPEP (Estimated/Reported) | Est. Annual Take-Home (Pre-Tax) |
| 2017 (partial) | ~$2,000,000 | ~$900,000 |
| 2018 | ~$2,200,000 | ~$2,200,000 |
| 2019 | ~$2,400,000 | ~$2,400,000 |
| 2020 | $2,554,000 15 | ~$2,554,000 |
| 2021 | ~$3,500,000 | ~$3,500,000 |
| 2022 | $4,382,000 14 | ~$4,382,000 |
| 2023 (partial) | ~$4,400,000 | ~$1,500,000 |
| Total | ~$17,436,000 |
Note: This model assumes full equity partner status for simplicity and uses a blend of reported data and conservative growth estimates.
The total represents a robust, data-backed approximation of his gross earnings during this period.
This estimated total of over $17 million from his time at Cadwalader utterly dwarfs his entire lifetime earnings from public service.
This is the hidden bulk of the iceberg beginning to surface, and it fundamentally changes our understanding of his financial status.
Valuing Blanche Law: The Entrepreneurial Asset
In April 2023, Todd Blanche made a pivotal career move.
He resigned from his lucrative partnership at Cadwalader to found his own firm, Blanche Law, PC, for the specific purpose of representing former President Donald Trump.3
In doing this, he didn’t just create a new job for himself; he created a valuable financial asset.
The value of a private law practice is not reflected on a balance sheet in the traditional sense.
Its primary value lies in its future earning potential, its client base, and its reputation—or what is known as “goodwill”.19
To estimate this value, we can use a standard industry methodology known as the “rule of thumb” approach, which values a firm as a multiple of its gross annual revenue.19
The first step is to estimate the potential annual revenue of Blanche Law.
As the lead attorney for Donald Trump in multiple high-stakes criminal cases, Blanche’s services would command the absolute highest end of the market rate for white-collar defense.22
While average white-collar lawyers may charge between $250 and $800 per hour, elite partners in major cases can bill upwards of $2,500 to $3,000 per hour.17
A conservative model for Blanche Law’s revenue could look like this:
- Estimated Billable Hours per Year: 1,500
- Estimated Hourly Rate: $2,500
- Estimated Annual Revenue: $3,750,000
The next step is to apply a valuation multiplier.
For law firms, this multiplier typically ranges from 0.5 to 3.0, depending on various factors.19
For Blanche Law, key factors would be:
- Negative Factor: Extreme client concentration. A firm dependent on a single client carries significant risk.19
- Positive Factor: Unparalleled brand recognition and “practice goodwill.” Representing a former president provides a level of publicity and future client attraction that is nearly priceless.25
Given these competing factors, a multiplier in the range of 0.8 to 1.5 is defensible.
Applying this to our estimated revenue gives us the enterprise value of the firm itself—a tangible asset in Blanche’s portfolio.
| Valuation Scenario | Estimated Annual Revenue | Applied Multiplier | Estimated Firm Value |
| Low-End | $3,750,000 | 0.8 | $3,000,000 |
| Mid-Range | $3,750,000 | 1.2 | $4,500,000 |
| High-End | $3,750,000 | 1.5 | $5,625,000 |
This analysis demonstrates a crucial point about how wealth is created at this level.
Blanche’s decision to leave Cadwalader was a strategic trade of a high salary for equity in an asset whose value was magnified exponentially by the profile of his client.
He converted his personal legal reputation and a high-profile relationship into a multi-million dollar business entity, a core component of the hidden bulk of his net worth.
Conclusion: Assembling the Iceberg – A Final Valuation
By combining the analysis of the visible “tip” with the modeled estimates of the “hidden bulk,” we can now assemble a comprehensive picture of Todd Blanche’s net worth.
The Iceberg Principle has allowed us to look beneath the surface of public records to construct a more truthful financial profile.
The final valuation requires aggregating the assets from each phase of his career and subtracting estimated liabilities.
This involves taking the cumulative earnings from his public and private sector roles, applying an estimated effective tax rate and living expense assumption to arrive at a net savings figure, and then adding the value of his key assets.
| Asset/Liability Category | Description | Estimated Value Range (Low – High) |
| The Tip of the Iceberg | ||
| Net Public Service Earnings | Post-tax/expense savings from AUSA & Deputy AG roles. | $300,000 – $500,000 |
| Disclosed Investments | Value of Vanguard funds per OGE forms.13 | $2,000 – $30,000 |
| The Hidden Bulk | ||
| Net Private Practice Earnings | Post-tax/expense savings from Cadwalader partnership. | $6,000,000 – $8,000,000 |
| Blanche Law, PC (Asset Value) | Enterprise value of his privately-held law firm. | $3,000,000 – $5,625,000 |
| Total Estimated Assets | $9,302,000 – $14,155,000 | |
| Estimated Liabilities | Mortgages, loans, other debts (estimated). | ($500,000) – ($1,000,000) |
| Final Estimated Net Worth | $8,300,000 – $13,155,000 |
This analysis leads to a final estimated net worth for Todd Blanche in the range of $8.3 million to $13.2 million.
This figure reveals the true power of the Iceberg Principle.
The vast majority—likely over 95%—of his net worth is derived from the “hidden bulk” of his time in elite private practice.
The visible data points of his public service salaries and minor declared investments are, as the principle predicts, merely the tip.
The story of valuing Todd Blanche is more than a financial exercise; it is a lesson in understanding the modern pathways to wealth and influence.
It demonstrates a well-trodden career arc where expertise and reputation forged in the public sector are converted into immense financial capital in the private sphere.
To see only the public service is to miss the story entirely.
A true understanding requires a new way of seeing—a willingness to look beneath the surface and map the full, submerged mass of the iceberg.
Works cited
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