The Attorney General of the State of Maryland is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of Maryland, serving as the state's primary prosecutor and legal representative.
The current attorney general is Anthony Brown, who was elected in 2022 and has served since 2023.
Selection and qualifications Like most state attorneys general, the attorney general is elected by statewide vote every four years. The officeholder serves a four-year term and is eligible for re-election with no term limits. As with all statewide offices in Maryland, the attorney general is elected on even-numbered years when there is no election for the president of the United States.
To run for the office, a person must be a citizen of and qualified voter in Maryland and must have lived and practiced law in the state for at least ten years. If the office becomes vacant, the Governor appoints a replacement to serve the remainder of the term.
Functions and responsibilities The attorney general has general charge, supervision and direction of the legal business of the State. The main constitutional duties of the attorney general are to enforce the rule of law and to provide legal counsel and representation to the state of Maryland.
The attorney general is the legal advisor and representative of the governor, the General Assembly, the judiciary, and all state departments, various boards, commissions, officials, and institutions of state government. Notably, the governor cannot employ additional legal counsel without legislative authorization.
The office consists of fourteen Central Divisions and fifty-six state agency client units. The office provides written legal opinions interpreting state law to the General Assembly, the governor, and other state and local elected officials. Administrative rules and regulations promulgated by state agencies, and bills passed by the General Assembly, are reviewed by the office and defended in court when necessary.
Litigation The attorney general and assistant attorneys general represent the state of Maryland in all legal cases. This includes representing the state before the Maryland Circuit Courts, the Appellate Court of Maryland, the Supreme Court of Maryland, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, and in the United States Supreme Court.
The attorney general represents state agencies, officials, and employees in civil lawsuits and defends the constitutionality of state laws when challenged.
Law enforcement The attorney general is charged with the enforcement of various laws and to investigate and prosecute a broad range of criminal acts occurring against and within state government.
Criminal Division The Criminal Division investigates and prosecutes crimes by state employees, fraud against the state, public corruption, gun trafficking, and organized or multi-jurisdictional crimes.
Independent Investigations Division Established by the General Assembly in 2021, the Independent Investigations Division investigates police-involved deaths or critical injuries that occur in Maryland. Since October 1, 2023, the Division has the authority to prosecute involved law enforcement officers.
Support to local prosecutors The attorney general is charged with providing assistance to local state's attorneys when they require additional resources or specialized expertise, or when directed by the governor or General Assembly.
Consumer and public protection Consumer Protection Division The Consumer Protection Division offers mediation between complainants and businesses, investigates and prosecutes illegal business practices, and registers home builders and health clubs. The division also provides educational materials for Maryland residents.
The attorney general may bring an action to restrain a foreign limited liability company from doing business in this state. The attorney general may obtain a court order prohibiting the guarantor or service contract provider from further violations in this state.
Securities and investment protection The Securities Division protects Maryland investors from fraud, and administers the Maryland Securities Act, Franchise Registration and Disclosure Law, and Business Opportunities Sales Act.
Healthcare fraud prevention The Medicaid Fraud and Vulnerable Victims Unit investigates and prosecutes healthcare provider Medicaid fraud, waste, and abuse.
Board and commission memberships By law, the attorney general, or his or her designee, serves on the School Safety Subcabinet and chairs the Maryland Cybersecurity Council, the Commission on Hate Crimes Response and Prevention, and the Maryland Sexual Assault Evidence Kit Policy and Funding Committee.
Notable actions
Tobacco Master Settlement Maryland was the eighth state to sue the major tobacco manufacturers over the public health costs of smoking. Under Attorney General J. Joseph Curran Jr., the state joined the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, under which the four largest cigarette makers agreed to pay Maryland more than $4 billion over 25 years, beginning with an initial payment of $54 million.
Litigation against the first Trump administration Until 2017, Maryland law required the attorney general to obtain permission from the governor or General Assembly before suing the federal government, a requirement dating to the office's restoration under the Constitution of 1864. In February 2017, after Governor Larry Hogan did not respond to Attorney General Brian Frosh's request to challenge the Trump administration's travel ban, the General Assembly passed the Maryland Defense Act of 2017, a joint resolution granting the attorney general independent authority to sue the federal government. Frosh subsequently joined or filed more than 20 lawsuits against the federal government by late 2018, on subjects including the 2020 census citizenship question, environmental rollbacks, and immigration policy. In District of Columbia and Maryland v. Trump (2017), Frosh and D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine alleged that President Trump's business holdings violated the Constitution's foreign and domestic emoluments clauses; the case was dismissed as moot after Trump left office in 2021.
Archdiocese of Baltimore report In April 2023, following a four-year grand jury investigation begun under Frosh in 2018, Attorney General Anthony Brown released a report finding that 156 clergy and other personnel of the Archdiocese of Baltimore had sexually abused more than 600 children from the 1940s through 2002, and that archdiocese leadership had failed to report allegations or remove abusers. In April 2026, the Supreme Court of Maryland ruled that the state could not publicly identify individuals named in the report who had not been indicted.
Litigation against the second Trump administration Brown first sued the second Trump administration on January 21, 2025, the day after the president's inauguration, joining a multistate suit challenging an executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants. As of May 2026, Brown had filed or joined 62 lawsuits against the administration, typically in coalitions of Democratic state attorneys general, on subjects including federal funding conditions, immigration enforcement, and education policy. Critics, including Maryland Republicans, have characterized the volume of litigation as politically motivated.
List of Maryland attorneys general Colonial period
+Colonial attorneys general of MarylandImageNameTermHomeLt. Richard Smith, Sr.1657–1660/61Calvert CountyCapt. Thomas Manning1660/61–1666Calvert CountyCol. William Calvert1666–1670St. Mary's CityCol. Vincent Lowe1670–1676Talbot CountyKenelm Cheseldyne1676–1681St. Mary's CityThomas Burford1681–1686/87Charles CountyRobert Carvile1688St. Mary's CityCharles Carroll1688–1689St. Mary's City & Anne Arundel CountyCol. George Plater, I1691–1692St. Mary's CountyEdward Wynn1692St. Mary's CountyCol. George Plater, I1692–1698St. Mary's CountyMaj. William Dent1698–1704Charles CountyCol. William Bladen1704–1718AnnapolisThomas Bordley1718–1721AnnapolisDaniel Dulany, Sr.1721–1725AnnapolisMichael Howard1725–1734Talbot CountyDaniel Dulany, Sr.1734–1744AnnapolisHenry Darnall, III1744–1756Prince George's CountyStephen Bordley1756–1763AnnapolisEdmund Key1764–1766AnnapolisRobert Goldsborough, II1766–1768Dorchester CountyThomas Jennings1768–1776Annapolis
Modern attorneys general
+ Modern attorneys general of MarylandImageNameFromToPartyLaw schoolJames Tilghman17771778 Luther Martin17781805 William Pinkney18051806 Democratic-RepublicanJohn Thomson Mason18061806 John Johnson, Sr.18061811John Montgomery18111818 Democratic-RepublicanLuther Martin18181822Thomas Beale Dorsey18221824 Democratic-RepublicanThomas Kell18241827Roger B. Taney18271831DemocraticJosiah Bayly18311846George R. Richardson18461851Robert J. Brent18511864WhigAlexander Randall18641867WhigIsaac Dashiell Jones18671871WhigAndrew K. Syester18711875WhigCharles J. M. Gwinn18751883DemocraticCharles Boyle Roberts18831887DemocraticWilliam Pinkney Whyte18871891DemocraticHarvard Law SchoolJohn Prentiss Poe18911895DemocraticHarry M. Clabaugh18951899RepublicanUniversity of Maryland School of LawGeorge Riggs Gaither Jr.18991899RepublicanIsidor Rayner18991903DemocraticUniversity of Virginia School of LawWilliam Shepard Bryan Jr.19031907DemocraticUniversity of Virginia School of LawIsaac Lobe Straus19071911DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawEdgar Allan Poe19111915DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawAlbert Ritchie19151919DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawOgle Marbury (acting)19181919 DemocratUniversity of Maryland School of LawAlexander Armstrong19191923RepublicanUniversity of Pennsylvania Law SchoolThomas H. Robinson19231930DemocraticWilliam Preston Lane Jr.19301934DemocraticUniversity of Virginia School of LawHerbert O'Conor19341938DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawWilliam C. Walsh19381945DemocraticCatholic University School of LawWilliam Curran19451946DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawHall Hammond19461952DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawEdward D. E. Rollins19521954RepublicanUniversity of Maryland School of LawC. Ferdinand Sybert19541961DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawThomas B. Finan19611966DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawRobert C. Murphy19661966DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawFrancis B. Burch19661978DemocraticYale Law SchoolJon F. Oster19791979DemocraticUniversity of Maryland School of LawGeorge A. Nilson19791979DemocraticYale Law SchoolStephen H. Sachs19791987DemocraticYale Law SchoolJ. Joseph Curran Jr.19872007DemocraticUniversity of Baltimore School of LawDoug Gansler20072015DemocraticUniversity of Virginia School of LawBrian Frosh20152023DemocraticColumbia Law SchoolAnthony Brown2023 DemocraticHarvard Law School
See also Government of Maryland Law of Maryland
References
External links Maryland Attorney General official website About the office and list of Attorneys General of Maryland, from the Maryland Archives. Maryland Attorney General articles at ABA Journal News and Commentary at FindLaw Maryland Code at Law.Justia.com U.S. Supreme Court Opinions – "Cases with title containing: State of Maryland" at FindLaw Maryland State Bar Association Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brownoa profile at National Association of Attorneys General Press releases at Maryland Attorney General