Brian Lawrence Schwalb (born 1967) is an American attorney and politician serving as the

attorney general of the District of Columbia The attorney general for the District of Columbia is the chief legal officer of the District of Columbia. While attorneys general previously were appointed by the mayor, District of Columbia voters approved a charter amendment in 2010 that m ...

. Prior to becoming attorney general, Schwalb was the partner-in-charge of

Venable LLP Venable LLP is an American law firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. It is the largest law firm in the state of Maryland. Founded in 1900 by Richard Venable in Baltimore, Venable operates 13 offices across the United States and employs about 85 ...

's D.C. office. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Schwalb was born to a Jewish family at the

Washington Hospital Center MedStar Washington Hospital Center is the largest private hospital in Washington, D.C. A member of MedStar Health, the not-for-profit Hospital Center is licensed for 926 beds. Health services in primary, secondary and tertiary care are offer ...

in Washington, D.C., in 1967. He earned a bachelor's degree from

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

and a juris doctor from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

Legal career

Schwalb served as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge John R. Hargrove in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

. After completing service as a law clerk, Schwalb joined the Department of Justice Honor Program and became a trial attorney in the

United States Department of Justice Tax Division The United States Department of Justice Tax Division is responsible for the prosecution of both Civil law (common law), civil and Criminal law, criminal cases arising under the Internal Revenue Code and other Taxation in the United States, tax ...

. After leaving the Department of Justice, Schwalb formed Schwalb, Donnenfeld & Schwalb, a

boutique law firm A boutique law firm is a law firm specializing in a niche area of law practice. While a general practice law firm includes various unrelated practice areas within a single firm, a boutique firm specializes in one or a select few practice areas. Th ...

. In 2005 he joined

, where he worked as the firm's vice chairman for four years and was subsequently partner-in-charge of the D.C. office.

Attorney General of the District of Columbia

Schwalb ran in the 2022 District of Columbia Attorney General election to succeed incumbent Karl Racine. Schwalb was endorsed by the two previous District of Columbia attorneys general. In the primary, Schwalb ran against Bruce Spiva and Ryan Jones and won with 45% of the vote. He was unopposed in the general election. In 2023, Schwalb began investigating the political funding networks of

Leonard Leo Leonard Anthony Leo (born November 1965) is an American lawyer, businessman, and conservative legal activist. He was the longtime vice president of the Federalist Society and is currently, along with Steven Calabresi, the co-chairman of the or ...

and

Arabella Advisors Arabella Advisors is a Washington, D.C.–based for-profit consulting company that advises left-leaning donors and nonprofits about where to give money and serves as the hub of a Modern liberalism in the United States, politically liberal "dark m ...

. In March of 2025, Schwalb dropped the lawsuit initiated by his predecessor,

Karl Racine Karl Anthony Racine (born December 14, 1962) is a Haitian-American lawyer and politician. He was the first independently elected Attorney General for the District of Columbia, a position he held from 2015 to 2023. Before that, he was the managi ...

, against the

Oath Keepers Oath Keepers is an American far-right anti-government militia whose leaders have been convicted of violently opposing the government of the United States, including the transfer of presidential power as prescribed by the United States co ...

and

Proud Boys The Proud Boys is an American far-right politics, far-right, Neo-fascism, neo-fascist militant organization that promotes and engages in political violence.Far-right: * * Fascist: * * * * * Men only: * * * Political violence and militancy: ...

for their participation in the events that unfolded on

January 6, 2021 On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of Donald Trump, President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup,Multiple sources: * * * * * * * * * * * * * two months afte ...

, explaining that AG resources would be better spent on other issues.

Personal life

Schwalb lives in the

Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He became the breakout cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1976), where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment b ...

neighborhood of Washington, D.C. He and his wife, Mickie, have three daughters. Schwalb is Jewish and is a member and trustee of Adas Israel Congregation.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwalb, Brian 1967 births 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews Attorneys general for the District of Columbia Duke University alumni Harvard Law School alumni American lawyers Jewish American people in Washington, D.C., politics Lawyers from Washington, D.C. Living people Washington, D.C., Democrats