The attorney general of California is the

state attorney general The state attorney general in each of the 50 U.S. states, of the federal district, or of any of the territories is the chief legal advisor to the state government and the state's chief law enforcement officer. In some states, the attorney gener ...

of the Government of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" (

Constitution of California The Constitution of California ( es, Constitución de California) is the primary organizing law for the U.S. state of California, describing the duties, powers, structures and functions of the government of California. California's original ...

, Article V, Section 13). The California attorney general carries out the responsibilities of the office through the

California Department of Justice The California Department of Justice is a statewide investigative law enforcement agency and legal department of the California executive branch under the elected leadership of the California Attorney General (AG) which carries out complex cri ...

. The department employs over 1,100 attorneys and 3,700 non-attorney employees. The California attorney general is elected to a four-year term, with a maximum of two terms. The election is held at the same statewide election as the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

controller Controller may refer to: Occupations * Controller or financial controller, or in government accounting comptroller, a senior accounting position * Controller, someone who performs agent handling in espionage * Air traffic controller, a person w ...

, secretary of state,

treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury ...

superintendent of public instruction A state education agency or state department of education is the state-level government organization within each U.S. state or territory responsible for education, including providing information, resources, and technical assistance on educationa ...

, and insurance commissioner. A few individual attorneys general have gone on to higher offices on the state and federal level, including the offices of governor,

United States Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and po ...

, chief justice of the United States Supreme Court, and

vice president of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice p ...

. On March 24, 2021, Governor

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California f ...

announced that he would be appointing Rob Bonta as attorney general to succeed

Xavier Becerra Xavier Becerra ( ; ; born January 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 25th United States secretary of health and human services since March 2021. Becerra previously served as the attorney general of California from Ja ...

, who resigned the position to become Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Joe Biden. Bonta's appointment was subject to confirmation by both houses of the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legislatu ...

, and he was sworn in on April 23, 2021.

Duties

According to the state Constitution, the

Code of Civil Procedure Civil procedure is the body of law that sets out the rules and standards that courts follow when adjudicating civil lawsuits (as opposed to procedures in criminal law matters). These rules govern how a lawsuit or case may be commenced; what kind ...

, and the Government Code, the attorney general: *As the state's chief law officer, ensures that the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced.California Constitution, Article V, Section 13
*Heads the Department of Justice, which is responsible for providing state legal services and support for local law enforcement. *Acts as the chief counsel in state litigation. *Oversees law enforcement agencies, including district attorneys and sheriffs.

History

Although the office of attorney general dates to the admission of California to the Union, the office in its modern form dates to Proposition 4 of 1934, sponsored by Alameda County District Attorney

Earl Warren Earl Warren (March 19, 1891 – July 9, 1974) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist who served as the 14th Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. The Warren Court presided over a major shift in American constitutio ...

as one of four initiatives he sponsored to substantially reform law enforcement and the judiciary. Previously, the attorney general lacked jurisdiction over matters in the jurisdiction of locally elected district attorneys and sheriffs. Warren went on to become attorney general himself in 1938, reorganizing's the state's law enforcement into districts.

Diversity

* Stanley Mosk was the first adherent of

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in th ...

to hold the office. * George Deukmejian was the first

Armenian American Armenian Americans ( hy, ամերիկահայեր, ''amerikahayer'') are citizens or residents of the United States who have total or partial Armenian ancestry. They form the second largest community of the Armenian diaspora after Armenians ...

to hold the office. *

Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...

was the first woman, the first

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous peopl ...

, and the first

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

to hold the office. *

was the first Latino to hold the office. * Rob Bonta is the first

Filipino American Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New ...

to hold the office.

List of attorneys general of California

;Major other offices held *

(2017–2021) – 25th Secretary of Health and Human Services (2021–present) *

Jerry Brown Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...

(2007–2011) – 34th and 39th

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, t ...

(1975–1983; 2011–2019) * Pat Brown (1951–1959) – 32nd Governor of California (1959–1967) * George Deukmejian (1979–1983) – 35th Governor of California (1983–1991) *

William F. Fitzgerald William Francis Fitzgerald (February 7, 1846 – May 12, 1903) was an American jurist who served on the Federal bench as an associate justice of the Arizona Territorial Supreme Court, as well as at the state level as an associate justice of t ...

(1895–1899) – Associate Justice of the

California Supreme Court The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sac ...

(1893–1895); Associate Justice of the Arizona Territorial Supreme Court (1884–1885) *

(2011–2017) – 49th

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice p ...

(2021–present);

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...

from California (2017–2021) * S. Clinton Hastings (1852–1854) – 1st

Chief Justice of California The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sac ...

(1849–1851); 3rd Chief Justice of the

Iowa Supreme Court The Iowa Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Iowa. The Court is composed of a Chief Justice and six Associate Justices. The Court holds its regular sessions in Des Moines in the Iowa Judicial Branch Building located at 1111 ...

(1848–1849) *

Bill Lockyer William Westwood Lockyer (born May 8, 1941) is a retired American politician from California, who held elective office from 1973 to 2015, as State Treasurer of California, California Attorney General, and President Pro Tempore of the Californi ...

(1999–2007) – 32nd California State Treasurer (2007–2015); 46th President pro tempore of the California State Senate (1994–1998) *

John G. McCullough John Griffith McCullough (September 16, 1835 – May 29, 1915) was an American state legislator, businessperson and attorney. He served as Attorney General of California during the Civil War, and the 49th governor of Vermont from 1902 to 1904. ...

(1863–1867) – 49th

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of 2 years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold gubernatorial elections every ...

(1902–1904) * James A. McDougall (1850–1851) – U.S. Senator from California (1861–1867); 14th

Illinois Attorney General The Illinois Attorney General is the highest legal officer of the state of Illinois in the United States. Originally an appointed office, it is now an office filled by statewide election. Based in Chicago and Springfield, Illinois, the attorn ...

(1843–1846) * Stanley Mosk (1959–1964) – Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court (1964–2001) *

William T. Wallace William Thompson Wallace (March 22, 1828 – August 11, 1909) was the 12th Chief Justice of California and the 6th Attorney General of California. He served on the Supreme Court of California from 1871 to 1879 and as Attorney General from 1856 to ...

(1856–1858) – 12th Chief Justice of California (1872–1879); Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court (1871–1872) *

(1939–1943) – 14th Chief Justice of the United States (1953–1969); 30th Governor of California (1943–1953) *

Ulysses S. Webb Ulysses Sigel Webb (September 29, 1864 – July 31, 1947) was an American lawyer and politician affiliated with the Republican Party. He served as the 19th Attorney General of California for the lengthy span of 37 years. Webb's parents were C ...

(1902–1939) – longest serving at 37 years

References

External links

*
California Attorney General
articles at ''ABA Journal''

at

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Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...