Attorney General of Maryland

The Attorney General of the State of Maryland is the chief legal officer of the State of Maryland in the United States and is elected by the people every four years with no term limits. To run for the office a person must be a citizen of and qualified voter in Maryland and must have lived and practiced law in the state for at least ten years.

Attorney General of the State of Maryland
Great Seal of the State of Maryland
Flag of the State of Maryland
Incumbent Anthony Brown since January 3, 2023
Style	The Honorable
Term length	Four years, no term limit
Inaugural holder	James Tilghman 1777
Formation	Maryland Constitution of 1776 (originally) Maryland Constitution of 1864 (most recently)
Website	Maryland Attorney General

The attorney general has general charge, supervision and direction of the legal business of the State. The attorney general is the legal advisor and representative of the Governor, the General Assembly, the Judiciary, and the major departments, various boards, commissions, officials and institutions of State Government. The office further represents the State in all cases pending in the Appellate Courts of the State, and in the United States Supreme Court and lower Federal Courts. As of 2023, the attorney general is Democrat Anthony Brown.

Summary of powers

• The Attorney General serves as legal counsel to the Governor, the Legislature, and all State departments, boards, and most commissions.^[1]
• The Attorney General may bring an action to restrain a foreign limited liability company from doing business in this State.^[2]
• The Attorney General may obtain a court order prohibiting the guarantor or service contract provider from further violations in this State.^[3][4]

Colonial attorneys general

Colonial attorneys general of Maryland^[5]

Image	Name	Term	Home
	Lt. Richard Smith, Sr.	1657–1660/61	Calvert County
	Capt. Thomas Manning	1660/61–1666	Calvert County
	Col. William Calvert	1666–1670	St. Mary's City
	Col. Vincent Lowe	1670–1676	Talbot County
	Kenelm Cheseldyne	1676–1681	St. Mary's City
	Thomas Burford	1681–1686/87	Charles County
	Robert Carvile	1688	St. Mary's City
	Charles Carroll	1688–1689	St. Mary's City & Anne Arundel County
	Col. George Plater, I	1691–1692	St. Mary's County
	Edward Wynn	1692	St. Mary's County
	Col. George Plater, I	1692–1698	St. Mary's County
	Maj. William Dent	1698–1704	Charles County
	Col. William Bladen	1704–1718	Annapolis
	Thomas Bordley	1718–1721	Annapolis
	Daniel Dulany, Sr.	1721–1725	Annapolis
	Michael Howard	1725–1734	Talbot County
	Daniel Dulany, Sr.	1734–1744	Annapolis
	Henry Darnall, III	1744–1756	Prince George's County
	Stephen Bordley	1756–1763	Annapolis
	Edmund Key	1764–1766	Annapolis
	Robert Goldsborough, II	1766–1768	Dorchester County
	Thomas Jennings	1768–1776	Annapolis

Modern attorneys general

Modern attorneys general of Maryland

Image	Name	From	To	Party	Law school
	James Tilghman	1777	1778
	Luther Martin	1778	1805
	William Pinkney	1805	1806	Democratic-Republican
	John Thomson Mason	1806	1806
	John Johnson, Sr.	1806	1811
	John Montgomery	1811	1818	Democratic-Republican
	Luther Martin	1818	1822
	Thomas Beale Dorsey	1822	1824	Democratic-Republican
	Thomas Kell	1824	1827
	Roger B. Taney	1827	1831	Democratic
	Josiah Bayly	1831	1846
	George R. Richardson	1846	1851
	Robert J. Brent	1851	1864	Whig
	Alexander Randall	1864	1867	Whig
	Isaac Dashiell Jones	1867	1871	Whig
	Andrew K. Syester	1871	1875	Whig
	Charles J. M. Gwinn	1875	1883	Democratic
	Charles Boyle Roberts	1883	1887	Democratic
	William Pinkney Whyte	1887	1891	Democratic	Harvard Law School
	John Prentiss Poe	1891	1895	Democratic
	Harry M. Clabaugh	1895	1899	Republican	University of Maryland School of Law
	George Riggs Gaither Jr.	1899	1899	Republican
	Isidor Rayner	1899	1903	Democratic	University of Virginia School of Law
	William Shepard Bryan Jr.	1903	1907	Democratic	University of Virginia School of Law
	Isaac Lobe Straus	1907	1911	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Edgar Allan Poe	1911	1915	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Albert Ritchie	1915	1919	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Ogle Marbury (acting)	1918	1919	Democrat	University of Maryland School of Law
	Alexander Armstrong	1919	1923	Republican	University of Pennsylvania Law School
	Thomas H. Robinson	1923	1930	Democratic
	William Preston Lane Jr.	1930	1934	Democratic	University of Virginia School of Law
	Herbert O'Conor	1934	1938	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	William C. Walsh	1938	1945	Democratic	Catholic University School of Law
	William Curran	1945	1946	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Hall Hammond	1946	1952	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Edward D. E. Rollins	1952	1954	Republican	University of Maryland School of Law
	C. Ferdinand Sybert	1954	1961	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Thomas B. Finan	1961	1966	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Robert C. Murphy	1966	1966	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	Francis B. Burch	1966	1978	Democratic	Yale Law School
	Jon F. Oster	1979	1979	Democratic	University of Maryland School of Law
	George A. Nilson	1979	1979	Democratic	Yale Law School
	Stephen H. Sachs	1979	1987	Democratic	Yale Law School
	J. Joseph Curran Jr.	1987	2007	Democratic	University of Baltimore School of Law
	Doug Gansler	2007	2015	Democratic	University of Virginia School of Law
	Brian Frosh	2015	2023	Democratic	Columbia Law School
	Anthony Brown	2023		Democratic	Harvard Law School

References

1. "Maryland State Government". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
2. "2020 Maryland Statutes :: Corporations and Associations :: Title 4A – Limited Liability Company Act :: Subtitle 10 – Foreign Limited Liability Companies :: Section 4A-1008 – Action by Attorney General". Justia Law. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
3. "2020 Maryland Statutes :: Commercial Law :: Title 14 – Miscellaneous Consumer Protection Provisions :: Subtitle 4 – Maryland Service Contracts and Consumer Products Guaranty Act". Justia Law. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
4. "2020 Maryland Statutes :: Commercial Law :: Title 14 – Miscellaneous Consumer Protection Provisions :: Subtitle 4 – Maryland Service Contracts and Consumer Products Guaranty Act :: Section 14-406 – Action by Attorney General". Justia Law. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
5. "Maryland Attorneys General, 1657-". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-21.

External links

• Maryland Attorney General official website
• About the office and list of Attorneys General of Maryland, from the Maryland Archives.
• Maryland Attorney General articles at ABA Journal
• News and Commentary at FindLaw
• Maryland Code at Law.Justia.com
• U.S. Supreme Court Opinions – "Cases with title containing: State of Maryland" at FindLaw
• Maryland State Bar Association
• Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh profile at National Association of Attorneys General
• Press releases at Maryland Attorney General