Week 2 – Jan. 28, 2019
The Structure of the Office of the Attorney General
Syllabus: The Role of the State Attorney General
State Attorneys General have never fit easily into the existing framework of state government. States generally have rejected the federal model in which the Attorney General serves at the pleasure of the Chief Executive, and this “divided executive” approach results in numerous possible conflicts as the Attorney General attempts to represent the “client,” which could be the Governor, the state agency, or the public interest. This week explores the independence inherent in the office of a modern Attorney General.
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- Feeney v. Commonwealth, 373 Mass. 359, 366 N.E.2d 1266 (1977)
- People ex rel. Deukmejian v. Brown, 29 Cal.3d 150, 624 P.2d 1206 (1981)
- William P. Marshall, Break Up the Presidency? Governors, State Attorneys General and Lessons from the Divided Executive, 115 Yale L.J. 2445-2469 (2006)
- Scott M. Matheson, Jr.,Constitutional Status and Role of the State Attorney General, 6 U. Fla. J.L. & Pub. Pol'y 1 (1993) (supplemental reading)
- Generic State Attorney General's Office Organization Chart.
- Delaware AG Investigates Own Client, Celia Cohen, Grapevine Political Writer, Sept. 15, 2007
- People ex rel. Salazar v. Davidson, 79 P.3d 1221 (Colo. 2003) (Edited) (supplemental reading)
- "AGs' powers a subject of contention."Denver Post Capitol Bureau,Martinez, J. C. (2003, December 7).
- Hickenlooper Order, Colorado Supreme Court (2015) (supplemental reading)
- "High Court to Hickenlooper: We're not getting involved". Colorado Independent, Corey Hutchins (December 03, 2015)
- Loftus, T.,Kentucky attorney general skewers health cabinet for failing to release child death records, The Courier-Journal (Oct. 15, 2012); Connelly, Cara,R.I. Attorney General Steps Up for Press,Courthouse News Service (July 16, 2014) (supplemental reading)
- No Charges to Be Filed In Prison Sentence Screw-Up, Nebraskawatchdog.Org, November 24, 2014
- Terrie, Morgan-Besecker, "DA refers prison sex abuse probe to state attorney general's office,"The Times-Tribune, Jan. 7, 2017
- "Who is the Client?" – A Role Playing Hypothetical