An Educational Resource on the Office of State Attorney General
Media engagements by James Tierney on news involving state attorneys general.
“The offices of state attorneys general are supposed to serve as a check on power, which has historically triggered fights and lawsuits with governors—including some battles within party lines. ‘The friction is there on purpose, it’s there in the Constitution,’ said James Tierney, a lecturer at Harvard Law School.”
“James Tierney, who fought the Reagan administration on acid rain prevention as Maine’s Democratic attorney general, said the legal fights have grown more partisan over the years.
‘It used to be we did this all on a bipartisan basis,’ he said.
‘I was a Democrat, but the Vermont AG [John Easton] was a Republican, and we frankly didn’t notice much whether somebody was a Democrat or Republican, we just went in and did it.’”
“‘It’s actually much less complicated than reporters think it is,’ Tierney says. ‘If someone does not enforce the law, then someone has to do something about it. We haven’t even begun to see what cases will be dropped, what unfair settlements will be struck—but people are watching very closely. And if [Trump] operates in a way that impacts the sovereignty or the proprietary interests of the citizens of the state, AGs will sue.’”
“James E. Tierney, a former attorney general of Maine who works extensively with current state attorneys general, said most Democrats were approaching Mr. Trump’s new order cautiously.
Mr. Tierney, a Democrat, said state lawyers were “researching the constitutionality” of the order before settling on a public course of action.
“They believe strongly that just because they don’t like something, doesn’t mean it is unconstitutional,” Mr. Tierney said.”
“‘The AGs consider themselves a thin blue line against federal overreach, there’s no question about it,’ said James Tierney, the former attorney general of Maine who runs a blog about state attorneys general.
There are 23 Democratic state attorneys general, including the District of Columbia, and 27 Republicans. Alaska’s attorney general is an independent.
About 10 Democratic AGs, grouped on the East and West coasts, are known to take a more activist role in suing the federal government, Tierney said. Some others would be more active but Republican Legislatures have curtailed their power and resources.
Tierney advises many of the Democrats coordinating their efforts against Trump. The group is braced to file more suits in coming months.
‘It’s actually an essential part of federalism in that attorneys general will hold the president’s feet to the fire,’ Tierney said.”
“Trump doesn’t come to office with a clean slate when it comes to relations with attorneys general. [New York Attorney General Eric] Schneiderman helped negotiate a $25 million settlement immediately after the election regarding allegations of fraud involving Trump University….
‘Donald Trump, citizen, not Donald Trump, president, enters the world of AGs on a watch list,’ says James Tierney, a former Maine attorney general who now teaches at Harvard University. ‘He ran a routine, garden-variety fraud — Trump University — and he was caught. Every attorney general I’ve talked to has had complainants in his state. Everybody opened files. When somebody’s a fraudster, they get on everybody’s agenda. It changes the way you look at him or her.’”
Bloomberg Law podcast, featuring Director James E. Tierney and Professor Paul Nolette of Marquette University, looks at the possible enforcement focus of state attorneys general, particularly Democratic AGs, under the Trump administration.
“People are coming up to me and saying, ‘What’s going to happen?’ said James E. Tierney, a former attorney general of Maine, who ran a program studying attorneys general at Columbia Law School. Mr. Tierney, a Democrat, now lectures at Harvard Law School. ‘There’s a lot of eye-rolling down here, in both parties, like, ‘Oh my God.’”
“‘The implications of this are really, really serious,’ said Mr. Tierney, a Democrat who has worked with attorneys general of both political parties, noting that he believes the effect is that it ‘chills all legitimate investigations. ‘This isn’t about Exxon. This is about an attempt to chill government’s ability to investigate malfeasance.’”
“‘The amount of money is staggering,”’ said James Tierney, a former Maine attorney general and an adjunct professor at Harvard Law School who blames the Citizens United ruling, which lifted limits on corporate political contributions. ‘But that’s because it’s legal, and it’s legal because the Supreme Court said it was legal.’”
James Tierney discusses the reality of perceived conflicts of interest when a state attorney general launches an investigation into a nonprofit organization for potential violations of state laws.
In light of the sudden passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, James Tierney notes that decisions on pending cases involving a coalition of Republican attorneys general are now up in the air.
Using the investigation into Flint’s water crisis, James Tierney explains that state attorneys general often find themselves on opposite sides of the same case. Tierney discusses the options available to a state attorney general under such circumstances.
“‘The issue with Exxon, just as it was with tobacco, is what did they know and when did they know it,’ Mr. Tierney said. ‘If internal documents at Exxon show that they deliberately misled consumers and investors, then Exxon has potential liability.’ But, he added, ‘If the documents do not exist, then Exxon has nothing to worry about.’”
Tierney tells the New York Times that the “law in Illinois is clearly on the side of the attorney general” when it comes to who represents the state its officials, and the state’s litigation positions in court.
As the states begin their investigation into the Volkswagen emissions scandal, James Tierney tells the PBS News Hour that a large-scale civil settlement is likely, but only after any and all criminal investigation and cases have been resolved.
Despite party disparities, James Tierney explains that, historically, disputes between a state’s governor and attorney general are common and rarely based on partisan politics.
James Tierney tells Pro Publica that is common for state attorneys general to seek outside counsel in certain cases.
In this series of articles by Eric Lipton, James Tierney is asked to discuss the ethical considerations for state attorneys general, in light of concerted and aggressive lobbying efforts by lawyers and industry lobbyists.
On the long-running nightly PBS interview program Charlie Rose, a conversation about the process of building consensus among state attorneys general in the fight against tobacco companies. Full transcript available.