Generic State Attorney General’s Office Organization Chart

Offices of state attorney general vary in size from California, with over a thousand lawyers, to a few who have less than a hundred.  The majority run between 125 and 200 lawyers with offices located in the State Capitol.  Some (New York, Maryland, California, Florida, Washington) also have major offices away from the Capitol and all have a scattering of small branch offices often necessary to fulfill specific local needs. 

Regardless of the size or location, the actual functional organization of attorney general offices are remarkably similar.  This Generic Organization Chart, drafted by the author, is very familiar to all attorneys general and staff and has been used for years as a guide for newly elected attorneys general as they work to understand the operations of their newly won office.  While appearing deceptively simple, a careful analysis of this chart reveals both the functionality and priorities for every attorney general.

The Chart

Civil Division:  The largest division in every attorney general office is the civil divison.   Its attorneys represent the myriad of state agencies that provide the many services of state government.   In larger states (New York, California, Massachusetts) state agencies have in-house counsel who report not to their attorney general but to the Governor’s Counsel. The attorney general generally controls office litigation although legislative and budgetary pressure to curtail the independence of attorney general decision making is rising.  In most states, assistant attorneys general provide both in-house counseling advice and rule drafting as well as litigation support. 

Crucially, in virtually all states and for most agencies, assistant attorneys general are the state’s litigators.  As indicated in the Chart, they report up through the line of command established by the attorney general.

It is important to understand that assistant attorneys general in the Civil Division are almost always paid from the budget of the agency they represent.   They also often have offices physically located within their agency.  This means that assistant attorneys general, who are almost always career and serve through the administrations of multiple attorneys general, will identify with that agency giving rise to “captive agency” issues when agencies disagree among themselves or with legal directives from the attorney general.

Public Protection:  Public Protection Divisions were first created in the 1980’s by attorneys general anxious to take affirmative actions in the fields of consumer protection, civil rights, antitrust and charities.   Public Protection Divisions are generally “unencumbered” with agency representation responsibilities and are able to focus on affirmative enforcement.   The size of these divisions will directly reflect the commitment of the attorney general to the issues they are asked to handle.  Assistant attorneys general in the Public Protection Division were traditionally paid from direct legislative appropriations but over the years have to come to rely on settlement money from cases they bring to fund their salaries and investigations.  Almost all Public Protection Divisions return for more in settlements to the state coffers than they cost.  They are “profit centers” especially on large multistate cases.

Criminal Division:  All but a very few attorneys general have criminal jurisdiction that is shared to varying degrees with elected District Attorneys.  The Criminal Divisions are almost always career employees with substantial trial and appellate experience.  They are paid by general revenues or matching federal grants.

Rhode Island, Delaware and Alaska have no District Attorneys.  All prosecution matters in these states are handled by the Attorney General. 

Solicitor General Division:  Almost all attorneys general now have a cadre of skilled lawyers who oversee appellate matters that arise out of the entire Office of Attorney General.   A solicitor general’s division allows an attorney general to be sure that all state appellate litigation is consistent and of the highest quality.  The solicitor general’s staff is able to weigh in on matters in both state and federal court that might arise from either the Civil or Criminal Division. The solicitor general also is often involved in the issuing of Formal Opinions as well as much of the increasing appearances of state government in very high profile federal challenges to the federal government.  Solicitor general divisions are generally small and are paid by state general revenues. 

The past practice of filling the position of solicitor general from within the ranks of the Office has been significantly diminished in recent years.  Indeed, in an increasing number of states, the solicitor general is brought in from other states for the express purpose of carrying out national impact litigation.  

Chief of Staff Divison:  The Chief of Staff Division supervises the non-legal aspects of the entire Office.   The Chief of Staff, who is always personally close to the attorney general and may not be a lawyer, is responsible for the budget, media outreach, interest group consultation, legislative relations and for overseeing various initiatives of the attorney general.  Because forty-three attorneys general are elected statewide and all have partisan ties, it is the Chief of Staff who keeps the public priorities of the attorney general before the public.

Chief Deputy:  Other than the attorney general, the Chief Deputy is by far the most important person within any Office of Attorney General.   The Chief Deputy reports directly to the attorney general on all of the Office’s activities and must often mediate among staff members with differing legal conclusions and priorities.  The Chief Deputy is also the person most likely to deal with the Governor, legislative leaders, the Congressional delegation and the Judiciary.

The jurisdiction of attorneys general is so broad and the stakes often so high that it essential that the Chief Deputy be a lawyer with significant administrative skills while having the complete confidence of the attorney general. 

Multistate:  The Chart depicts the functionality of virtually every Office,  It also provides a key tool for analyzing how attorneys general are interact across state lines.   Attorneys general know all of their colleagues, but so too all chief deputies, solicitors general, and public protection division chiefs know and work closely with similarly tasked assistant attorneys general from other states.  Understanding the organization chart is therefore critical in understanding the actions both within their state but also nationally.