The secretary of justice of Puerto Rico () (known as the attorney general of Puerto Rico () prior to the Constitution of Puerto Rico in 1952) is the chief legal officer and the attorney general of the government of Puerto Rico. The secretary of justice is second in line of succession to the governorship of Puerto Rico.
Attorneys general The attorney general was appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
1908–1910: Henry W. HoytVICTIM OF BALLINGER FEUD; Attorney General Hoyt of Puerto Rico Resigns in NYT on April 24, 1910 1910–1912: Foster H. Brown 1912–1914: Walcott H. Pitkin 1914–1919: Howard L. Kern 1919–1923: Salvador Mestre 1923–1925: Herbert P. Coats 1925–1928: George C. Butte 1928–1932: James R. Beverley 1932–1933: Charles E. Winter 1933–1935: Benjamin Jason Horton 1935–1939: Benigno Fernández García 1940–1942: George A. Malcolm 1943–1944: Manuel Rodríguez Ramos - Interim 1944: Jesús A. González - Interim 1945: Luis Negrón Fernández - Interim 1945–1946: Enrique Campos del Toro 1947–1948: Luis Negrón Fernández 1949–1951: Vicente Geigel Polanco 1951–1952: Víctor Gutiérrez Franqui
Secretaries Under the Constitution of Puerto Rico, adopted in 1952, the office of Attorney General was renamed to Secretary of Justice. The secretary is appointed by the Governor of Puerto Rico and confirmed by the Senate of Puerto Rico. 1952–1953: Víctor Gutiérrez Franqui 1953–1957: José Trías Monge 1957–1958: Juan B. Fernandez-Badillo 1959–1965: Hiram Rafael Cancio 1965–1967: Rafael Hernández Colón 1967–1968: José C. Aponte García 1969–1970: Santiago C. Soler Favale 1970–1971: Blás C. Herrero Marrero 1972: Wallace González Oliver 1973–1975: Francisco De Jesús-Schuck 1975–1976: Carlos R. Rios-Gautier 1977–1981: Miguel Giménez Muñoz 1981–1983: Hector Reichard De Cardona 1983–Sept.1983: Gerardo Carlo Altieri Sept.–Dec. 1983:Carmen Rita Velez Borras 1984–1991: Héctor Rivera Cruz 1991–1992: Jorge E. Pérez-Díaz 1993–1997: Pedro Pierluisi 1997–2000: José Fuentes Agostini January 2, 2001 – July 31, 2004: Anabelle Rodríguez August 11, 2004 – December 31, 2004: William Vazquez Irizarry January 2, 2005 – December 31, 2008: Roberto Sánchez Ramos January 2, 2009 – October 24, 2010: Antonio Sagardía October 24, 2010 – December 31, 2012: Guillermo Somoza January 2, 2013 – December 28, 2013: Luis Sánchez Betances January 23, 2014 – January 2, 2017: César Miranda January 2, 2017 – August 2, 2019: Wanda Vázquez Garced August 2, 2019 – July 16, 2020: Dennise Longo Quiñones July 16, 2020 – January 2, 2021 (Acting): Inés Del C. Carrau Martínez January 2, 2021 – January 1, 2025 (Acting: January 2, 2021 – March 25, 2021): Domingo Emanuelli January 2, 2025 – May 8, 2025 (Acting): Janet Parra Mercado May 27, 2025 – present (Acting: May 27, 2025 – June 9, 2025): Lourdes Gómez
Further reading Opinions of the Attorney General of Puerto Rico
References