The Office of Legal Policy (OLP) is a division within the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...

which describes itself as the "focal point for the development and coordination of Departmental policy." In addition to rendering legal advice to the

United States Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

and subordinate offices within the Justice Department, it serves as a nexus where major policy decisions within the Department can be developed, coordinated, and implemented. The Office is currently led by

Hampton Dellinger Hampton Yeats Dellinger (born April 30, 1967) is an American attorney and political candidate serving as the United States Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy. He was previously a partner at Boies, Schiller & Flexner and Robinson, Brads ...

History

The Office of Legal Policy (OLP) was established by Attorney General

William French Smith William French Smith II (August 26, 1917 – October 29, 1990) was an American lawyer and the 74th United States Attorney General. After attaining his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1942, Smith went on to join the law firm of Gibson, Du ...

in 1981 as the principal Department office to plan, develop, and coordinate the implementation of major policy initiatives of high priority to the Department and to the Administration, and to assist the President and the Attorney General in the Administration's judicial selection process for

Article III judges Federal tribunals in the United States are those tribunals established by the federal government of the United States for the purpose of resolving disputes involving or arising under federal laws, including questions about the constitutionality ...

. OLP devoted considerable efforts to the areas of criminal and civil justice reform, as had some of its predecessor policy offices (among them, the Office of Criminal Justice, the Office of Policy and Planning, and the Office for Improvements in the Administration of Justice). OLP also supervised the work of the Office of Information and Privacy (OIP) with respect to

Freedom of Information Freedom of information is freedom of a person or people to publish and consume information. Access to information is the ability for an individual to seek, receive and impart information effectively. This sometimes includes "scientific, indigen ...

and Privacy Act matters. In 1989, the office was renamed as the Office of Policy Development (OPD), and OIP was established as a separate Department component. For a one-year period, OPD was organized as a component of the newly created Office of Policy and Communications, together with the Office of Public Affairs and the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. In 1993, that structure was discontinued and OPD was established again as an independent component. In May 2001, Attorney General

John Ashcroft John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer, lobbyist and former politician who served as the 79th U.S. Attorney General in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2005. A former U.S. Senator from Missouri and the 50th ...

restored the name of the office as the Office of Legal Policy and confirmed its principal policy role within the Department.

External links

*
Office of Legal Policy Announces Leadership Changes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Office Of Legal Policy United States Department of Justice agencies