Gurbir Singh Grewal (; born June 23, 1973) is an American attorney and

prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...

who was formerly the Director of the Division of Enforcement for the

Securities and Exchange Commission The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street crash of 1929. Its primary purpose is to enforce laws against market m ...

from July 2021 until his resignation, which became effective in October 2024. In October 2024, Grewal joined Milbank LLP’s New York office as a partner specializing in SEC enforcement matters. Prior to his service with the SEC as the Director of Enforcement, Grewal served as the sixty-first attorney general of the State of New Jersey from January 2018 until July 2021. Appointed by

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Phil Murphy Philip Dunton Murphy (born August 16, 1957) is an American politician, diplomat, and financier serving as the 56th governor of New Jersey since 2018. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was elected governor i ...

, he was confirmed by the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate is the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232,225 (2020 figure ...

on January 16, 2018. He was the first Sikh-American attorney general in United States history. Grewal was formerly the county

Bergen County, New Jersey Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. He was the second South Asian to be a state attorney general after California's

Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...

in 2011.

Early life and career

Grewal is the son of

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

immigrants to the United States. He grew up in

Fairfield Township, Essex County, New Jersey Fairfield is a township in far northwestern Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 7,872, an increase of 406 (+5.4%) from the 2010 census count of 7,466, which in tu ...

and graduated from

West Essex High School West Essex High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in North Caldwell. The high school is part of the West Essex Regional School District, which is comprised of the constituent municipalities of Essex Fells, Fairfi ...

. Grewal attended

Bates College Bates College () is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian ...

for one semester before transferring to the

Georgetown University School of Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It grants degrees at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Founded in 1919, SFS is the oldest continuo ...

, receiving his

B.S.F.S. The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It grants degrees at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Founded in 1919, SFS is the oldest continuo ...

degree in 1995. He earned a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from

William & Mary Law School William & Mary Law School, formally the Marshall-Wythe School of Law, is the law school of the College of William & Mary, a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. It is the oldest extant law school in the United States, having be ...

in 1999. He has served as president of the South Asian Bar Association of New York and a member of the New Jersey Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association.

Career

Before becoming Bergen County's top

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of the government or other social institutions who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by investigating, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms gove ...

officer, Gurbir Grewal served as the chief of the Economic Crimes Unit at the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey under former federal prosecutor

Paul Fishman Paul J. Fishman (born February 26, 1957) is an American attorney and former United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey from 2009 to 2017. Early life and education Fishman was born on February 26, 1957, in New York City to a Jewish fa ...

. New Jersey Governor

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...

nominated Grewal to lead the Bergen County Prosecutor's office in 2013, but Grewal was never scheduled for a

confirmation hearing then. Grewal was confirmed by the State Senate when tapped by Christie the second time around in January 2016 as acting prosecutor, and was finalized in the role in November 2016. In this capacity, Grewal concentrated on fighting the

opioid Opioids are a class of Drug, drugs that derive from, or mimic, natural substances found in the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy plant. Opioids work on opioid receptors in the brain and other organs to produce a variety of morphine-like effects, ...

epidemic and

white-collar crime The term "white-collar crime" refers to financially motivated, nonviolent or non-directly violent crime committed by individuals, businesses and government professionals. The crimes are believed to be committed by middle- or upper-class indivi ...

s, and strengthening relations between police and communities. In July 2017, while Bergen County prosecutor, Grewal ordered the

Mahwah, New Jersey Mahwah is the northernmost and largest municipality by geographic area () in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 25,487, a decrease of 403 ...

police department not to enforce a ban on non-New Jersey residents using Mahwah parks, stating his concern that a ban could lead to

anti-Semitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

religious profiling against

Orthodox Jews Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tr ...

visiting from neighboring

Rockland County Rockland County is the southernmost county on the west side of the Hudson River in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population is 338,329, making it the state's ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. On July 26, 2018, two

WKXW WKXW (101.5 FM, "New Jersey 101.5") is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Trenton, and broadcasting to most of the state of New Jersey. It is owned by Townsquare Media with studios and offices on Walters Avenue in Ewing. On weekdays ...

radio show hosts were suspended for calling Grewal "turban man" on air. In September 2018, then-Bergen County

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

Michael Saudino resigned under public official pressure, after secretly recorded comments were released disparaging Grewal's wearing a

turban A turban (from Persian language, Persian دولبند‌, ''dolband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Commun ...

alongside derogatory remarks about other groups of people.

New Jersey attorney general

In March 2019, as New Jersey's attorney general, Grewal touted the first arrests resulting from a law signed in 2018 by New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy outlawing

privately made firearm A homemade firearm, also called a ghost gun or privately made firearm (PMF), is a firearm made by a private individual, in contrast to one produced by a corporate or government entity. The term ''ghost gun'' is used mostly in the United Stat ...

s, stating, "When you see repeatedly the same address, with the same individuals, at the same location continuing to order parts for the same types of guns, some red flags have to go up, that what’s going on here is not somebody who’s an enthusiast or a hobbyist, but rather somebody who’s engaged in illegal trafficking. And that is part of the problem with ghost gun manufacturers, that they are playing fast and loose with our rules." Days later, Grewal filed the first of its kind lawsuit against a receiver blank manufacturer, U.S. Patriot Armory, accusing the company of violating New Jersey's privately made firearm ban by ignoring a

cease-and-desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the other ...

order to stop selling rifle-assembly kits to New Jersey buyers. Also in March 2019, Grewal filed lawsuits against

ExxonMobil Exxon Mobil Corporation ( ) is an American multinational List of oil exploration and production companies, oil and gas corporation headquartered in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston. Founded as the Successors of Standard Oil, largest direct s ...

DuPont Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, duPont, or du Pont may refer to: People * Dupont (surname) Dupont, also spelled as DuPont, duPont, Du Pont, or du Pont is a French surname meaning "of the bridge", historically indicating that the holder of the surname re ...

, and 3M, accusing the companies of polluting sites in New Jersey; he stated, "We’re sending a strong message to polluters that no matter how big you are, or how powerful you are, or how long you’ve been getting away with contaminating your state’s natural resources, we are going to hold you accountable in court." On March 28, 2019, Grewal announced a directive to all 21 New Jersey county prosecutors to institute college campus outreach protocols to impede

sexual violence Sexual violence is any harmful or unwanted Human sexual activity, sexual act, an attempt to obtain a sexual act through violence or coercion, or an act directed against a person's sexuality without their consent, by any individual regardless of ...

at the collegiate level. In April 2019, Grewal announced updated standards for dealing with bias incidents. Also in April 2019, he called for monitoring of comments on the

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

page of "Rise Up Ocean County", a group which has been called a home for anti-Semitic sentiment targeting the rapidly growing Orthodox Jewish population of Lakewood and surrounding

Ocean County, New Jersey Ocean County is a List of counties in New Jersey, county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the southernmost county in the New York metropolitan area. The county borders the Atlantic Ocean on the east and in terms of total area is the ...

. On April 26, 2019, Grewal asked for the resignation of the director of the

Elizabeth, New Jersey Elizabeth is a City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Union County county prosecutor. On May 1, 2019, Grewal announced the dismantling of an

organized crime Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a f ...

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of Value (economics), value ("the stakes") on a Event (probability theory), random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy (ga ...

and

loansharking A loan shark is a person who offers loans at extremely high or illegal interest rates, has strict terms of collection, and generally operates outside the law, often using the threat of violence or other illegal, aggressive, and extortionate ...

operation and also launched an investigation into prior corporate

tax loophole Tax break also known as tax preferences, tax concession, and tax relief, are a method of reduction to the tax liability of taxpayers. Government usually applies them to stimulate the economy and increase the solvency of the population. By this fis ...

s afforded at the time by the New Jersey Development Authority. On May 6, 2019, Grewal filed suit against the

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

to force disclosure of any evidence of influence-peddling upon the Justice Department's decision to oppose legalized online gambling across the U.S. On May 8, 2019, Grewal indicated that the

City of Newark Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

had exceeded its statutory authority by affording civilians

subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...

powers over the city's police department. On May 10, 2019, Grewal joined state attorneys general from across the country in filing a lawsuit against 20

generic pharmaceuticals A generic drug is a pharmaceutical drug that contains the same chemical substance as a drug that was originally protected by chemical patents. Generic drugs are allowed for sale after the patents on the original drugs expire. Because the active ch ...

companies, 11 of which were based in New Jersey, along with several individuals, accusing them of

collusion Collusion is a deceitful agreement or secret cooperation between two or more parties to limit open competition by deceiving, misleading or defrauding others of their legal right. Collusion is not always considered illegal. It can be used to att ...

and

price-fixing Price fixing is an anticompetitive agreement between participants on the same side in a market to buy or sell a product, service, or commodity only at a fixed price, or maintain the market conditions such that the price is maintained at a given ...

. On May 14, 2019, Grewal announced a lawsuit against several large chemical companies, accusing them of selling toxic

firefighting Firefighting is a profession aimed at controlling and extinguishing fire. A person who engages in firefighting is known as a firefighter or fireman. Firefighters typically undergo a high degree of technical training. This involves structural fir ...

foam Foams are two-phase materials science, material systems where a gas is dispersed in a second, non-gaseous material, specifically, in which gas cells are enclosed by a distinct liquid or solid material. Note, this source focuses only on liquid ...

for decades while knowing the health risks they posed to the public and to the environment. In June 2019, Grewal's office forced a Bloomfield restaurant which had posted a "males only" hiring sign to pay $1,000 and implement an anti-discrimination policy that explains how workers can file complaints, as well as training managers and staff about the anti-discrimination law; Grewal stated that

gender discrimination Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but primarily affects women and girls. It has been linked to gender roles and stereotypes, and may include the belief that one sex or gender is in ...

would not be tolerated in the overall hiring process. In mid-June, Grewal filed a lawsuit against a

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

gun dealer for selling high-capacity gun magazines illegally to an

undercover agent A covert operation or undercover operation is a military or police operation involving a covert agent or troops acting under an assumed cover to conceal the identity of the party responsible. US law Under US law, the Central Intelligence Ag ...

in New Jersey, despite a prior cease-and-desist order issued to the company barring the marketing, selling, and shipping of high-capacity gun magazines to New Jersey residents. On August 6, 2019, Grewal announced the creation of the first U.S. statewide program to support the

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

police officer A police officer (also called policeman or policewoman, cop, officer or constable) is a Warrant (law), warranted law employee of a police, police force. In most countries, ''police officer'' is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. ...

s. The goal of the program would be to train officers in emotional resiliency and to help destigmatize mental health issues. On August 8, Grewal announced the dismantling of two major drug- and gun-trafficking criminal organizations, accompanied by the arrests of 28 individuals and the seizure of significant amounts of narcotics, ammunition, and cash. In 2021, Grewal abolished mandatory minimums for six non-violent drug offenses, and allowed inmates who were serving mandatory minimum sentences for those crimes to request a court review and a new sentence.

U.S. SEC

On June 29, 2021, Grewal announced he would be resigning as New Jersey’s attorney general to take an appointment as Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement. His resignation as attorney general was effective July 16, 2021. His SEC appointment was effective July 26, 2021. Grewal worked to bring the

cryptocurrency A cryptocurrency (colloquially crypto) is a digital currency designed to work through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it. Individual coin ownership record ...

industry and

Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...

traders into compliance, and advocated for attorneys and auditors to protect investor interests. Under Grewal, the SEC imposed over $20 billion in fines and disgorgement in its enforcement actions. In October 2024, Grewal announced that he would be resigning from the SEC to enter private practice, effective October 11, 2024.

Personal life

Gurbir Grewal is a resident of

Glen Rock, New Jersey Glen Rock is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 12,133, an increase of 532 (+4.6%) from the 2010 United ...

, in Bergen County. Grewal is a father of three, with his wife Amrit. He is also fluent in the

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...

and

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

languages.

References

External links

Official Bio at the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grewal, Gurbir 1973 births American politicians of Indian descent Asian-American people in New Jersey politics American prosecutors American Sikhs Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni Living people New Jersey attorneys general New Jersey Democrats People from Fairfield Township, Essex County, New Jersey People from Glen Rock, New Jersey West Essex High School alumni William & Mary Law School alumni U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission personnel