Attorney General of New York

Attorney General of New York
Attorney General of New York
	Seal of the attorney general of New York
	Flag of New York
	Incumbent; Letitia James ; since January 1, 2019
	Department of Law
Style	The Honorable
Term length	Four years; No limit
Constituting instrument	New York Constitution, Executive Law
Formation	1777
First holder	Egbert Benson
Succession	Election by joint session of New York State Legislature
Salary	$210,000 (2019)
Website	ag.ny.gov

Last updated October 30, 2024

The attorney general of New York is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of New York and head of the Department of Law of the state government.^[1] The office has existed in various forms since 1626, originally established under the Dutch colonial government of New Netherland.

Functions

The attorney general advises the executive branch of state government as well as defends actions and brings proceedings on its behalf. The attorney general acts independently of the governor of New York. The department's regulations are compiled in title 13 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations (NYCRR).

Organization

The legal functions of the Department of Law are divided primarily into five major divisions: Appeals and Opinions, State Counsel, Criminal Justice, Economic Justice and Social Justice.

Chief deputy attorney general

Harlan Levy^[3] (2011–2015)

Solicitors General

Ruth Kessler Toch (1966–1979)
Shirley Adelson Siegel (1979–1982)
Robert Hermann (1983–1986)
O. Peter Sherwood (1986–1991)^[4]
Jerry Boone (1991–1994)^[5]
Victoria A. Graffeo (1995–1996)
Barbara Gott Billet (1996–1998)^[6]
Preeta D. Bansal (1999–2001)
Caitlin Halligan (2001–2007)
Barbara D. Underwood (2007–present)

Terms of office

From 1684 to 1777, when New York was under the British colonial government, the attorney general was appointed by the British crown, or the colonial governor on its behalf. In 1693, the attorney general earned a salary of 50 pounds.
From 1777 to 1822, the attorney general was appointed by the Council of Appointment.
From 1823 to 1846, the attorney general was elected by the New York State Legislature for a three-year term.
Attorneys general have been elected by the voters since 1847.

List of attorneys general of New York

Province of New York (1684–1776)

Image	Attorney general	Tenure		Notes
Image	Attorney general	Took office	Left office	Notes
	Thomas Rudyard	1684	December 1685	Appointed by Gov. Thomas Dongan
	James Graham	10 December 1685	1688	Afterwards attorney general of Dominion of New England, 1688.^[7]^[8]
	Member of Dominion of New England, May 1668 – April 1689
	Jacob Milborne	1690	1691	Hanged for treason, 1691
	Thomas Newton	1691	April 1691	Removed from office by governor
	George Farewell	1691	1692	(Acting) Removed from office by governor
	James Graham	June 1692	21 January 1701	Died 27 January 1701
	Sampson Shelton Broughton	5 April 1701		Died February 1705
	John Rayner	12 July 1708		Absent in England. Died 1719.^[9]
	May Bickley	1708	1712	Acting AG in Rayner's absence. Removed from office by governor, 1712
	David Jamison	10 June 1712	1721	Acting AG in Rayner's absence, 1712–20
	James Alexander	1721	1723
	Richard Bradley	1723	28 August 1752
	William Smith the elder	August 1752
	William Kempe	November 1752	19 July 1759
	John Tabor Kempe	1759	c. 1783	^[9]
	James Duane	1767		Acting AG in Kempe's absence.

New York State (1777–present)

Attorney general	Tenure	Party	Notes
Egbert Benson	May 8, 1777 – May 14, 1788
Richard Varick	May 14, 1788 – September 29, 1789	Federalist
Aaron Burr	September 29, 1789 – November 8, 1791	Dem.-Rep.	Third vice president of the United States
Morgan Lewis	November 8, 1791 – December 24, 1792	Dem.-Rep.
Nathaniel Lawrence	December 24, 1792 – November 13, 1795	Dem.-Rep.
Josiah Ogden Hoffman	November 13, 1795 – February 3, 1802	Federalist
Ambrose Spencer	February 3, 1802 – February 3, 1804	Dem.-Rep.
John Woodworth	February 3, 1804 – March 18, 1808	Dem.-Rep.
Matthias B. Hildreth	March 18, 1808 – February 2, 1810	Dem.-Rep.
Abraham Van Vechten	February 2, 1810 – February 1, 1811	Federalist
Matthias B. Hildreth	February 1, 1811 – July 11, 1812	Dem.-Rep.	Died in office
Thomas Addis Emmet	August 12, 1812 – February 13, 1813	Dem.-Rep.
Abraham Van Vechten	February 13, 1813 – February 17, 1815	Federalist
Martin Van Buren	February 17, 1815 – July 8, 1819	Dem.-Rep.	Eighth president of the United States
Thomas Jackson Oakley	July 8, 1819 – February 12, 1821	Federalist
Samuel A. Talcott	February 12, 1821 – January 27, 1829	Dem.-Rep.	First appointed, in 1823 elected by State Legislature, resigned shortly before the end of his second term
Greene C. Bronson	January 27, 1829 – January 12, 1836	Democratic	Elected a justice of the State Supreme Court during his third term
Samuel Beardsley	January 12, 1836 – February 4, 1839	Democratic
Willis Hall	February 4, 1839 – February 7, 1842	Whig
George P. Barker	February 7, 1842 – February 3, 1845	Democratic
John Van Buren	February 3, 1845 – January 1, 1848	Democratic	Legislated out of office by the Constitution of 1846
Ambrose L. Jordan	January 1, 1848 – December 31, 1849	Whig	First attorney general elected by general ballot
Levi S. Chatfield	January 1, 1850 – November 23, 1853	Democratic	Resigned shortly before the end of his second term
Gardner Stow	December 8, 1853 – December 31, 1853	Democratic	Appointed to fill the unexpired term
Ogden Hoffman	January 1, 1854 – December 31, 1855	Whig
Stephen B. Cushing	January 1, 1856 – December 31, 1857	American
Lyman Tremain	January 1, 1858 – December 31, 1859	Democratic
Charles G. Myers	January 1, 1860 – December 31, 1861	Republican
Daniel S. Dickinson	January 1, 1862 – December 31, 1863	Union
John Cochrane	January 1, 1864 – December 31, 1865	Union
John H. Martindale	January 1, 1866 – December 31, 1867	Republican
Marshall B. Champlain	January 1, 1868 – December 31, 1871	Democratic	Two terms
Francis C. Barlow	January 1, 1872 – December 31, 1873	Republican
Daniel Pratt	January 1, 1874 – December 31, 1875	Democratic
Charles S. Fairchild	January 1, 1876 – December 31, 1877	Democratic
Augustus Schoonmaker Jr.	January 1, 1878 – December 31, 1879	Democratic
Hamilton Ward Sr.	January 1, 1880 – December 31, 1881	Republican
Leslie W. Russell	January 1, 1882 – December 31, 1883	Republican
Denis O'Brien	January 1, 1884 – December 31, 1887	Democratic	Two terms
Charles F. Tabor	January 1, 1888 – December 31, 1891	Democratic	Two terms
Simon W. Rosendale	January 1, 1892 – December 31, 1893	Democratic
Theodore E. Hancock	January 1, 1894 – December 31, 1898	Republican	Two terms (1894–1895; 1896–1898)
John C. Davies	January 1, 1899 – December 31, 1902	Republican	Two terms
John Cunneen	January 1, 1903 – December 31, 1904	Democratic
Julius M. Mayer	January 1, 1905 – December 31, 1906	Republican
William S. Jackson	January 1, 1907 – December 31, 1908	Democratic
Edward R. O'Malley	January 1, 1909 – December 31, 1910	Republican
Thomas Carmody	January 1, 1911 – September 2, 1914	Democratic	Resigned shortly before the end of his second term
James A. Parsons	September 2, 1914 – December 31, 1914	Democratic	Appointed to fill the unexpired term
Egburt E. Woodbury	January 1, 1915 – April 19, 1917	Republican	Resigned during his second term
Merton E. Lewis	April 19, 1917 – December 31, 1918	Republican	As first deputy AG acted until being elected by the State Legislature on April 25 to fill unexpired first half of term, then re-elected in special election (Nov. 1917) for the other half (1918)
Charles D. Newton	January 1, 1919 – December 31, 1922	Republican	Two terms
Carl Sherman	January 1, 1923 – December 31, 1924	Democratic	Defeated for reelection in 1924
Albert Ottinger	January 1, 1925 – December 31, 1928	Republican	Two terms; unsuccessful Republican nominee for governor in 1928
Hamilton Ward Jr.	January 1, 1929 – December 31, 1930	Republican	Son of Hamilton Ward Sr. (AG from 1880 to 1881)
John J. Bennett Jr.	January 1, 1931 – December 31, 1942	Democratic	Five terms
Nathaniel L. Goldstein	January 1, 1943 – December 31, 1954	Republican	Three terms
Jacob K. Javits	January 1, 1955 – January 9, 1957	Republican	Resigned having been elected U.S. senator
Louis J. Lefkowitz	January 9, 1957 – December 31, 1978	Republican	Re-elected by the State Legislature to fill the unexpired term, then re-elected to five more terms, longest-serving attorney general (8 days short of 22 years)
Robert Abrams	January 1, 1979 – December 31, 1993	Democratic	Elected to four terms, resigning a year before the end of his fourth term
G. Oliver Koppell	January 1, 1994 – December 31, 1994	Democratic	Elected by the State Legislature to fill unexpired term
Dennis Vacco	January 1, 1995 – December 31, 1998	Republican	Defeated for reelection in 1998. Joined Waste Management, Inc. as vice president for New York government affairs. Became a partner in Buffalo law firm, Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman.
Eliot Spitzer	January 1, 1999 – December 31, 2006	Democratic	Two terms, then elected governor
Andrew Cuomo	January 1, 2007 – December 31, 2010	Democratic	One term, then elected governor
Eric Schneiderman	January 1, 2011 – May 8, 2018	Democratic	Resigned during his second term
Barbara D. Underwood	May 8, 2018 – December 31, 2018	Democratic	Served as acting attorney general from May 8 to May 22, when she was confirmed by the New York State Legislature.
Letitia "Tish" James	January 1, 2019 – present	Democratic

Related Research Articles

The False Claims Act of 1863 (FCA) is an American federal law that imposes liability on persons and companies who defraud governmental programs. It is the federal government's primary litigation tool in combating fraud against the government. The law includes a qui tam provision that allows people who are not affiliated with the government, called "relators" under the law, to file actions on behalf of the government. This is informally called "whistleblowing", especially when the relator is employed by the organization accused in the suit. Persons filing actions under the Act stand to receive a portion of any recovered damages.

In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enforcement, prosecutions or even responsibility for legal affairs generally. In practice, the extent to which the attorney general personally provides legal advice to the government varies between jurisdictions, and even between individual office-holders within the same jurisdiction, often depending on the level and nature of the office-holder's prior legal experience.

The solicitor general of the United States, the fourth-highest-ranking official within the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), represents the federal government in cases before the Supreme Court of the United States. The solicitor general is appointed by the president and reports directly to the United States attorney general.

A solicitor general or solicitor-general, in common law countries, is usually a legal officer who is the chief representative of a regional or national government in courtroom proceedings. In systems that have an attorney-general, the solicitor general is often the second-ranked law officer of the state and a deputy of the attorney-general. The extent to which a solicitor general actually provides legal advice to or represents the government in court varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and sometimes between individual office holders in the same jurisdiction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom</span> International law firm

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates is an American multinational law firm headquartered in New York City.

In the United States, a special counsel is a lawyer appointed to investigate, and potentially prosecute, a particular case of suspected wrongdoing for which a conflict of interest exists for the usual prosecuting authority. Other jurisdictions have similar systems. For example, the investigation of an allegation against a sitting president or attorney general might be handled by a special prosecutor rather than by an ordinary prosecutor who would otherwise be in the position of investigating his or her own superior. Special prosecutors also have handled investigations into those connected to the government but not in a position of direct authority over the Justice Department's prosecutors, such as cabinet secretaries or election campaigns.

A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial against the defendant, an individual accused of breaking the law. Typically, the prosecutor represents the state or the government in the case brought against the accused person.

The North Carolina General Assembly of 1777 met in two sessions in New Bern, North Carolina, from April 7 to May 9, 1777, and from November 15 to December 24, 1777. This was the first North Carolina legislature elected after the last provincial congress wrote the first North Carolina Constitution. This assembly elected Richard Caswell as the state's first constitutional governor.

Benjamin Richard Civiletti was an American lawyer who served as the United States Attorney General during the Carter administration, from 1979 to 1981. The first Italian American to lead the U.S. Department of Justice, he previously served as the Deputy Attorney General and Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division. Later he was a senior partner in the Baltimore-based law firm of Venable LLP. He specialized in commercial litigation and internal investigations working at Venable LLP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Carolina Attorney General</span> Attorney general for the U.S. state of North Carolina

The attorney general of North Carolina is a statewide elected office in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The attorney general is a constitutional officer responsible for representing state agencies in legal matters, supplying other state officials and prosecutors with legal advice, and leading the North Carolina Department of Justice. The incumbent attorney general, Josh Stein, assumed office on January 1, 2017. The position of attorney general dates back to North Carolina's colonial history. North Carolina's 1776 constitution established the office as an official appointed by the North Carolina General Assembly. The state's 1868 constitution made the attorney general an elected executive official with their duties prescribed by law. Since 1971, the officer has sat on the North Carolina Council of State.

The Constitution of the State of Connecticut is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was approved by referendum on December 14, 1965, and proclaimed by the governor as adopted on December 30. It comprises 14 articles and has been amended 31 times.

The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constitution's provisions tend to be more detailed and amended more often than its federal counterpart. Because the history of the state constitution differs from the federal constitution, the New York Court of Appeals has seen fit to interpret analogous provisions differently from United States Supreme Court's interpretation of federal provisions.

The Office of Special Counsel was an office of the United States Department of Justice established by provisions in the Ethics in Government Act that expired in 1999. The provisions were replaced by Department of Justice regulation 28 CFR Part 600, which created the successor office of special counsel. The current regulations were drafted by former acting solicitor general Neal Katyal.

The Ministry of Law and Justice in the Government of India is a cabinet ministry which deals with the management of the legal affairs, legislative activities and administration of justice in India through its three departments namely the Legislative Department and the Department of Legal Affairs and the Department of Justice respectively. The Department of Legal Affairs is concerned with advising the various Ministries of the Central Government while the Legislative Department is concerned with drafting of principal legislation for the Central Government. The ministry is headed by Cabinet Minister of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal appointed by the President of India on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of India. The first Law and Justice minister of independent India was Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, who served in the Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet during 1947–51.

Barbara Dale Underwood is an American lawyer serving as the solicitor general of New York. She was first appointed to the position in January 2007 by Andrew Cuomo, who was then serving as the state's attorney general. Underwood was reappointed in 2011 by Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

The New York City Law Department, also known as the Office of the Corporation Counsel, is the department of the government of New York City responsible for most of the city's legal affairs. The department is headed by the Corporation Counsel, most recently Sylvia Hinds-Radix, the 81st official to hold this position, who resigned on June 1, 2024.

The Judiciary of New York is the judicial branch of the Government of New York, comprising all the courts of the State of New York.

The Office of the Solicitor General of the Philippines, formerly known as the Bureau of Justice, is an independent and autonomous office attached to the Department of Justice. The OSG is headed by Menardo Guevarra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law of New York (state)</span>

The law of New York consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory and case law, and also includes local laws, ordinances, and regulations. The Consolidated Laws form the general statutory law.

The Attorney General of the Gambia is a cabinet-level position in the Gambia responsible for providing legal advice to the Gambian government and appearing on its behalf in the courts of the land. In recent years, the post has been held in conjunction with that of Minister of Justice, who is the head of the Ministry of Justice and responsible for legal affairs. The current Attorney General is Dawda A. Jallow.

References

↑ Executive Law § 60. "There shall continue to be in the state government a department of law. The head of the department of law shall be the attorney-general."
↑ Westerman, Ashley (January 1, 2019). "N.Y. Swears In New Attorney General After A Tumultuous Year For The Office". NPR. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
↑ Schneiderman Fills Six Top Posts, NY Law Journal.com, 23 December 2010, Stashenko, J., Retrieved 1 November 2013.
↑ New York State Unified Court System: Judges of the Trial Courts: Hon. O. Peter Sherwood, NYCourts.gov, Retrieved 1 November 2013.
↑ Jerry Boone Named Harrah's Entertainment Senior Vice President of Human Resources Archived 2013-07-05 at the Wayback Machine , TheFreeLibrary.com, Retrieved 1 November 2013.
↑ New York State Commissioner of Taxation and Finance Barbara G. Billet Archived 2013-11-03 at the Wayback Machine , FreedomSpeaks.com, Retrieved 1 November 2013.
↑ Brodhead, Esq., John Romeyn (1853). Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New York; Procured in Holland, England and France. Albany: Weed, Parsons & Co. p. 351. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
↑ Denton, Daniel (2009). A Brief Description of New York. Applewood Books. p. 69. ISBN 9781429022217 . Retrieved 30 October 2019.
1 2 Eisenstadt, Peter (2005). Encyclopedia of New York State. Syracuse University Press. p. 134. ISBN 9780815608080 . Retrieved 30 October 2019.

External links

Official website
Department of Law in the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
New York Attorney General articles at ABA Journal
News and Commentary at FindLaw
New York Consolidated Laws at Law.Justia.com
U.S. Supreme Court Opinions - "Cases with title containing: State of New York" at FindLaw
New York State Bar Association
Press releases at New York Attorney General

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Executive Law § 60. "There shall continue to be in the state government a department of law. The head of the department of law shall be the attorney-general."

[2] Westerman, Ashley (January 1, 2019). "N.Y. Swears In New Attorney General After A Tumultuous Year For The Office". NPR. Retrieved January 1, 2019.

[Schneiderman-3] Schneiderman Fills Six Top Posts, NY Law Journal.com, 23 December 2010, Stashenko, J., Retrieved 1 November 2013.

[4] New York State Unified Court System: Judges of the Trial Courts: Hon. O. Peter Sherwood, NYCourts.gov, Retrieved 1 November 2013.

[5] Jerry Boone Named Harrah's Entertainment Senior Vice President of Human Resources Archived 2013-07-05 at the Wayback Machine , TheFreeLibrary.com, Retrieved 1 November 2013.

[6] New York State Commissioner of Taxation and Finance Barbara G. Billet Archived 2013-11-03 at the Wayback Machine , FreedomSpeaks.com, Retrieved 1 November 2013.

[Brodhead1853-7] Brodhead, Esq., John Romeyn (1853). Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New York; Procured in Holland, England and France. Albany: Weed, Parsons & Co. p. 351. Retrieved 30 October 2019.

[Denton2009-8] Denton, Daniel (2009). A Brief Description of New York. Applewood Books. p. 69. ISBN 9781429022217 . Retrieved 30 October 2019.

[Eisenstadt2005-9] 1 2 Eisenstadt, Peter (2005). Encyclopedia of New York State. Syracuse University Press. p. 134. ISBN 9780815608080 . Retrieved 30 October 2019.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

v t e Officers in the State of New York
Current offices	Governor Lieutenant Governor Speaker of the Assembly Temporary President of the Senate Secretary of State Attorney General State Comptroller Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals Clerk of the Court of Appeals Clerk of the State Assembly
Defunct offices	State Treasurer State Engineer Superintendent of Public Works Chancellor Canal Commissioner Inspector of State Prisons

v t e Attorneys general of the United States
United States Attorney General:▌ Merrick Garland (NP)
AL ▌ Steve Marshall (R) AK ▌ Treg Taylor (R) AZ ▌ Kris Mayes (D) AR ▌ Tim Griffin (R) CA ▌ Rob Bonta (D) CO ▌ Phil Weiser (D) CT ▌ William Tong (D) DE ▌ Kathy Jennings (D) FL ▌ Ashley Moody (R) GA ▌ Christopher M. Carr (R) HI ▌ Anne E. Lopez (D) ID ▌ Raúl Labrador (R) IL ▌ Kwame Raoul (D) IN ▌ Todd Rokita (R) IA ▌ Brenna Bird (R) KS ▌ Kris Kobach (R) KY ▌ Russell Coleman (R) LA ▌ Liz Murrill (R) ME ▌ Aaron Frey (D) MD ▌ Anthony Brown (D) MA ▌ Andrea Campbell (D) MI ▌ Dana Nessel (D) MN ▌ Keith Ellison (DFL) MS ▌ Lynn Fitch (R) MO ▌ Andrew Bailey (R) MT ▌ Austin Knudsen (R) NE ▌ Mike Hilgers (R) NV ▌ Aaron D. Ford (D) NH ▌ John Formella (R) NJ ▌ Matt Platkin (D) NM ▌ Raúl Torrez (D) NY ▌ Letitia James (D) NC ▌ Josh Stein (D) ND ▌ Drew Wrigley (R) OH ▌ Dave Yost (R) OK ▌ Gentner Drummond (R) OR ▌ Ellen Rosenblum (D) PA ▌ Michelle Henry (D) RI ▌ Peter Neronha (D) SC ▌ Alan Wilson (R) SD ▌ Marty Jackley (R) TN ▌ Jonathan Skrmetti (R) TX ▌ Ken Paxton (R) UT ▌ Sean Reyes (R) VT ▌ Charity Clark (D) VA ▌ Jason Miyares (R) WA ▌ Bob Ferguson (D) WV ▌ Patrick Morrisey (R) WI ▌ Josh Kaul (D) WY ▌ Bridget Hill (R) Federal districts: DC ▌ Brian Schwalb (D) Territories: AS ▌ Fainu'ulelei Alailima-Utu GU ▌ Doug Moylan (R) MP ▌ Ed Manibusan (D) PR ▌ Domingo Emanuelli (NPP) VI ▌ Gordon Rhea
Political party affiliations ▌28 Republicans (27 states, 1 territory) ▌25 Democrats (23 states, 1 territory, 1 district) ▌1 New Progressive (1 territory) ▌2 Unknown (2 territories) An asterisk (*) indicates that the officeholder is serving in an acting capacity. State abbreviations link to position articles.