United States Attorney General facts for kids
Quick facts for kids United States Attorney General |
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![]() Flag of the attorney general
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![]() Seal of the Department of Justice
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United States Department of Justice | |
Style | Madam Attorney General (informal) The Honorable (formal) |
Member of | Cabinet National Security Council Homeland Security Council |
Reports to | President |
Seat | Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building Washington, D.C. |
Appointer | President
with Senate advice and consent
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Term length | No fixed term |
Constituting instrument | 28 U.S.C. § 503 |
Formation | September 26, 1789 |
First holder | Edmund Randolph |
Succession | Seventh |
Deputy | Deputy Attorney General |
Salary | Executive Schedule, Level I |
The United States Attorney General is a very important person in the U.S. government. This person leads the United States Department of Justice. They are the main law enforcement officer for the entire country.
The Attorney General also gives legal advice to the president of the United States. They are a key member of the President's Cabinet. This means they are part of the President's top team. They are also part of the United States National Security Council, which deals with national safety. If something were to happen to the President, the Attorney General is seventh in line to take over.
The President chooses the Attorney General. The Senate then has to approve this choice. This happens after a special meeting with the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Attorney General gets help from a team of staff and other top lawyers. As of January 2025, the Attorney General earns about $250,600 per year.
Contents
What's in a Name?
The title "Attorney General" might sound a bit tricky. The word "General" here describes the type of attorney. It doesn't mean a military rank, like a general in the army.
Because of this, the correct way to say it when there's more than one is "attorneys general." It's not "attorney generals."
A Look Back in Time
The job of Attorney General was created a long time ago. It started in 1789 with a law called the Judiciary Act of 1789.
At first, the Attorney General's main jobs were to:
- Handle legal cases for the U.S. government in the Supreme Court.
- Give legal advice to the President and other government leaders.
Over time, some of these duties changed. Other lawyers, like the Solicitor General and the White House Counsel, now handle some of these tasks.
Later, in 1870, the Department of Justice was created. This department was made to help the Attorney General do their job better.
The Attorney General is one of the four most important Cabinet members. The others are the Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, and Secretary of Defense. This is because their departments are very large and important.
What the Attorney General Does
The Attorney General is the top law enforcement officer for the U.S. government. Their main jobs include:
- Leading the United States Department of Justice.
- Making sure federal laws are followed.
- Giving legal advice to the President and other government leaders.
The Attorney General also represents the government in legal matters. They oversee many important agencies within the Department of Justice, such as:
- The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
- The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
- The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
- U.S. Attorneys
- The United States Marshals Service
The Attorney General also advises the President on who should be chosen for federal judge positions. They also help choose people for jobs within the Department of Justice. While the Attorney General can argue cases in the Supreme Court, the Solicitor General usually does this.
The Attorney General also handles legal issues related to public safety, civil rights, and national security. They talk to Congress about legal concerns. They also make sure federal laws are followed across all states. Sometimes, new laws change what the Attorney General does. For example, the PATRIOT Act in 2001 gave the department more power to investigate terrorism. This greatly increased the Attorney General's responsibilities. They also oversee federal prisons and the United States Federal Witness Protection Program.
When a New President Takes Office
When a new President is sworn in on January 20, the Attorney General usually offers to resign. This is a common practice for all top Cabinet members.
Often, the Deputy Attorney General is asked to stay on. They act as the Attorney General until the Senate approves the new person chosen by the President.
For example, when President Donald Trump became President in 2017, Attorney General Loretta Lynch left her job. The Deputy Attorney General, Sally Yates, then became the acting Attorney General. She stayed in that role until Jeff Sessions was approved by the Senate.
List of Attorneys General
This table shows the people who have served as Attorney General of the United States.
Political Parties
Acting Role
- Denotes acting capacity.
No. | Portrait | Name | State of residence | Took office | Left office | President(s) | |
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1 | ![]() |
Edmund Randolph | Virginia | September 26, 1789 | January 26, 1794 | George Washington (1789–1797) |
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2 | ![]() |
William Bradford | Pennsylvania | January 27, 1794 | August 23, 1795 | ||
3 | ![]() |
Charles Lee | Virginia | December 10, 1795 | February 19, 1801 | ||
John Adams (1797–1801) |
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4 | ![]() |
Levi Lincoln Sr. | Massachusetts | March 5, 1801 | March 2, 1805 | Thomas Jefferson (1801–1809) |
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5 | ![]() |
John Breckinridge | Kentucky | August 7, 1805 | December 14, 1806 | ||
6 | ![]() |
Caesar Augustus Rodney | Delaware | January 20, 1807 | December 10, 1811 | ||
James Madison (1809–1817) |
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7 | ![]() |
William Pinkney | Maryland | December 11, 1811 | February 9, 1814 | ||
8 | ![]() |
Richard Rush | Pennsylvania | February 10, 1814 | November 12, 1817 | ||
9 | ![]() |
William Wirt | Virginia | November 13, 1817 | March 4, 1829 | James Monroe (1817–1825) |
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John Quincy Adams (1825–1829) |
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10 | ![]() |
John Macpherson Berrien | Georgia | March 9, 1829 | July 19, 1831 | Andrew Jackson (1829–1837) |
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11 | ![]() |
Roger B. Taney | Maryland | July 20, 1831 | November 14, 1833 | ||
12 | ![]() |
Benjamin Franklin Butler | New York | November 15, 1833 | July 4, 1838 | ||
Martin Van Buren (1837–1841) |
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13 | ![]() |
Felix Grundy | Tennessee | July 5, 1838 | January 10, 1840 | ||
14 | ![]() |
Henry D. Gilpin | Pennsylvania | January 11, 1840 | March 4, 1841 | ||
15 | ![]() |
John J. Crittenden 1st term |
Kentucky | March 5, 1841 | September 12, 1841 | William Henry Harrison (1841) |
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John Tyler (1841–1845) |
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16 | ![]() |
Hugh S. Legaré | South Carolina | September 13, 1841 | June 20, 1843 | ||
17 | ![]() |
John Nelson | Maryland | July 1, 1843 | March 4, 1845 | ||
18 | ![]() |
John Y. Mason | Virginia | March 5, 1845 | October 16, 1846 | James K. Polk (1845–1849) |
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19 | ![]() |
Nathan Clifford | Maine | October 17, 1846 | March 17, 1848 | ||
20 | ![]() |
Isaac Toucey | Connecticut | June 21, 1848 | March 4, 1849 | ||
21 | ![]() |
Reverdy Johnson | Maryland | March 8, 1849 | July 21, 1850 | Zachary Taylor (1849–1850) |
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22 | ![]() |
John J. Crittenden 2nd term |
Kentucky | July 22, 1850 | March 4, 1853 | Millard Fillmore (1850–1853) |
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23 | ![]() |
Caleb Cushing | Massachusetts | March 7, 1853 | March 4, 1857 | Franklin Pierce (1853–1857) |
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24 | ![]() |
Jeremiah S. Black | Pennsylvania | March 6, 1857 | December 16, 1860 | James Buchanan (1857–1861) |
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25 | ![]() |
Edwin Stanton | Pennsylvania | December 20, 1860 | March 4, 1861 | ||
26 | ![]() |
Edward Bates | Missouri | March 5, 1861 | November 24, 1864 | Abraham Lincoln (1861–1865) |
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27 | ![]() |
James Speed | Kentucky | December 2, 1864 | July 22, 1866 | ||
Andrew Johnson (1865–1869) |
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28 | ![]() |
Henry Stanbery | Ohio | July 23, 1866 | July 16, 1868 | ||
29 | ![]() |
William M. Evarts | New York | July 17, 1868 | March 4, 1869 | ||
30 | ![]() |
Ebenezer R. Hoar | Massachusetts | March 5, 1869 | November 22, 1870 | Ulysses S. Grant (1869–1877) |
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31 | ![]() |
Amos T. Akerman | Georgia | November 23, 1870 | December 13, 1871 | ||
32 | ![]() |
George Henry Williams | Oregon | December 14, 1871 | April 25, 1875 | ||
33 | ![]() |
Edwards Pierrepont | New York | April 26, 1875 | May 21, 1876 | ||
34 | ![]() |
Alphonso Taft | Ohio | May 22, 1876 | March 4, 1877 | ||
35 | ![]() |
Charles Devens | Massachusetts | March 12, 1877 | March 4, 1881 | Rutherford B. Hayes (1877–1881) |
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36 | ![]() |
Wayne MacVeagh | Pennsylvania | March 5, 1881 | December 15, 1881 | James A. Garfield (1881) |
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Chester A. Arthur (1881–1885) |
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37 | ![]() |
Benjamin H. Brewster | Pennsylvania | December 16, 1881 | March 4, 1885 | ||
38 | ![]() |
Augustus Garland | Arkansas | March 6, 1885 | March 4, 1889 | Grover Cleveland (1885–1889) |
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39 | ![]() |
William H. H. Miller | Indiana | March 7, 1889 | March 4, 1893 | Benjamin Harrison (1889–1893) |
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40 | ![]() |
Richard Olney | Massachusetts | March 6, 1893 | April 7, 1895 | Grover Cleveland (1893–1897) |
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41 | ![]() |
Judson Harmon | Ohio | April 8, 1895 | March 4, 1897 | ||
42 | ![]() |
Joseph McKenna | California | March 5, 1897 | January 25, 1898 | William McKinley (1897–1901) |
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43 | ![]() |
John W. Griggs | New Jersey | January 25, 1898 | March 29, 1901 | ||
44 | ![]() |
Philander C. Knox | Pennsylvania | April 5, 1901 | June 30, 1904 | ||
Theodore Roosevelt (1901–1909) |
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45 | ![]() |
William Henry Moody | Massachusetts | July 1, 1904 | December 17, 1906 | ||
46 | ![]() |
Charles Bonaparte | Maryland | December 17, 1906 | March 4, 1909 | ||
47 | ![]() |
George W. Wickersham | New York | March 4, 1909 | March 4, 1913 | William Howard Taft (1909–1913) |
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48 | ![]() |
James McReynolds | Tennessee | March 5, 1913 | August 29, 1914 | Woodrow Wilson (1913–1921) |
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49 | ![]() |
Thomas Watt Gregory | Texas | August 29, 1914 | March 4, 1919 | ||
50 | ![]() |
A. Mitchell Palmer | Pennsylvania | March 5, 1919 | March 4, 1921 | ||
51 | ![]() |
Harry M. Daugherty | Ohio | March 4, 1921 | April 6, 1924 | Warren G. Harding (1921–1923) |
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Calvin Coolidge (1923–1929) |
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52 | ![]() |
Harlan F. Stone | New York | April 7, 1924 | March 1, 1925 | ||
53 | ![]() |
John G. Sargent | Vermont | March 7, 1925 | March 4, 1929 | ||
54 | ![]() |
William D. Mitchell | Minnesota | March 4, 1929 | March 4, 1933 | Herbert Hoover (1929–1933) |
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55 | ![]() |
Homer Stille Cummings | Connecticut | March 4, 1933 | January 1, 1939 | Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–1945) |
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56 | ![]() |
Frank Murphy | Michigan | January 2, 1939 | January 18, 1940 | ||
57 | ![]() |
Robert H. Jackson | New York | January 18, 1940 | August 25, 1941 | ||
58 | ![]() |
Francis Biddle | Pennsylvania | August 26, 1941 | June 26, 1945 | Harry S. Truman (1945–1953) |
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59 | ![]() |
Tom C. Clark | Texas | June 27, 1945 | July 26, 1949 | ||
60 | ![]() |
J. Howard McGrath | Rhode Island | July 27, 1949 | April 3, 1952 | ||
61 | ![]() |
James P. McGranery | Pennsylvania | April 4, 1952 | January 20, 1953 | ||
62 | ![]() |
Herbert Brownell Jr. | New York | January 21, 1953 | October 23, 1957 | Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953–1961) |
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63 | ![]() |
William P. Rogers | New York | October 23, 1957 | January 20, 1961 | ||
64 | ![]() |
Robert F. Kennedy | Massachusetts | January 20, 1961 | September 3, 1964 | John F. Kennedy (1961–1963) |
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Lyndon B. Johnson (1963–1969) |
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65 | ![]() |
Nicholas Katzenbach | Illinois | September 4, 1964 | January 28, 1965 | ||
January 28, 1965 | November 28, 1966 | ||||||
66 | ![]() |
Ramsey Clark | Texas | November 28, 1966 | March 10, 1967 | ||
March 10, 1967 | January 20, 1969 | ||||||
67 | ![]() |
John N. Mitchell | New York | January 20, 1969 | February 15, 1972 | Richard Nixon (1969–1974) |
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68 | ![]() |
Richard Kleindienst | Arizona | February 15, 1972 | April 30, 1973 | ||
69 | ![]() |
Elliot Richardson | Massachusetts | May 25, 1973 | October 20, 1973 | ||
– | ![]() |
Robert Bork Acting |
Pennsylvania | October 20, 1973 | January 4, 1974 | ||
70 | ![]() |
William B. Saxbe | Ohio | January 4, 1974 | February 2, 1975 | ||
Gerald Ford (1974–1977) |
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71 | ![]() |
Edward H. Levi | Illinois | February 2, 1975 | January 20, 1977 | ||
– | ![]() |
Dick Thornburgh Acting |
Pennsylvania | January 20, 1977 | January 26, 1977 | Jimmy Carter (1977–1981) |
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72 | ![]() |
Griffin Bell | Georgia | January 26, 1977 | August 16, 1979 | ||
73 | ![]() |
Benjamin Civiletti | Maryland | August 16, 1979 | January 19, 1981 | ||
74 | ![]() |
William French Smith | California | January 23, 1981 | February 25, 1985 | Ronald Reagan (1981–1989) |
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75 | ![]() |
Edwin Meese | California | February 25, 1985 | August 12, 1988 | ||
76 | ![]() |
Dick Thornburgh | Pennsylvania | August 12, 1988 | August 15, 1991 | ||
George H. W. Bush (1989–1993) |
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77 | ![]() |
William Barr 1st term |
Virginia | August 16, 1991 | November 26, 1991 | ||
November 26, 1991 | January 20, 1993 | ||||||
– | Stuart M. Gerson Acting |
Washington, D.C. | January 20, 1993 | March 12, 1993 | Bill Clinton (1993–2001) |
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78 | ![]() |
Janet Reno | Florida | March 12, 1993 | January 20, 2001 | ||
– | ![]() |
Eric Holder Acting |
Washington, D.C. | January 20, 2001 | February 2, 2001 | George W. Bush (2001–2009) |
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79 | ![]() |
John Ashcroft | Missouri | February 2, 2001 | February 3, 2005 | ||
80 | ![]() |
Alberto Gonzales | Texas | February 3, 2005 | September 17, 2007 | ||
– | ![]() |
Paul Clement Acting |
Washington, D.C. | September 17, 2007 | September 18, 2007 | ||
– | ![]() |
Peter Keisler Acting |
Washington, D.C. | September 18, 2007 | November 9, 2007 | ||
81 | ![]() |
Michael Mukasey | New York | November 9, 2007 | January 20, 2009 | ||
– | ![]() |
Mark Filip Acting |
Illinois | January 20, 2009 | February 3, 2009 | Barack Obama (2009–2017) |
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82 | ![]() |
Eric Holder | Washington, D.C. | February 3, 2009 | April 27, 2015 | ||
83 | ![]() |
Loretta Lynch | New York | April 27, 2015 | January 20, 2017 | ||
– | ![]() |
Sally Yates Acting |
Georgia | January 20, 2017 | January 30, 2017 | Donald Trump (2017–2021) |
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– | ![]() |
Channing D. Phillips Acting |
Washington, D.C. | January 30, 2017 | |||
– | ![]() |
Dana Boente Acting |
Virginia | January 30, 2017 | February 9, 2017 | ||
84 | ![]() |
Jeff Sessions | Alabama | February 9, 2017 | November 7, 2018 | ||
– | ![]() |
Rod Rosenstein Acting |
Maryland | November 7, 2018 | |||
– | ![]() |
Matthew Whitaker Acting |
Iowa | November 7, 2018 | February 14, 2019 | ||
85 | ![]() |
William Barr 2nd term |
Virginia | February 14, 2019 | December 23, 2020 | ||
– | ![]() |
Jeffrey A. Rosen Acting |
Massachusetts | December 24, 2020 | January 20, 2021 | ||
– | ![]() |
John Demers Acting |
Massachusetts | January 20, 2021 | Joe Biden (2021–2025) |
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– | ![]() |
Monty Wilkinson Acting |
Washington, D.C. | January 20, 2021 | March 11, 2021 | ||
86 | ![]() |
Merrick Garland | Maryland | March 11, 2021 | January 20, 2025 | ||
– | ![]() |
Gary M. Restaino Acting |
Arizona | January 20, 2025 | Donald Trump (2025–present) |
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– | ![]() |
James McHenry Acting |
Washington, D.C. | January 20, 2025 | February 5, 2025 | ||
87 | ![]() |
Pam Bondi | Florida | February 5, 2025 | Incumbent |
Who Takes Over?
There's a specific order of who takes over if the Attorney General can't do their job. This order is set by law. The most recent person to hold the position is Pam Bondi, who started on February 5, 2025.
Here's the order of succession:
- United States Deputy Attorney General
- United States Associate Attorney General
- Other officers chosen by the Attorney General, such as:
- Solicitor General of the United States
- Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division
- Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division
- Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division
- Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division
- Assistant Attorney General, National Security Division
- Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division
- Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division
- Assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice Programs
- Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel
- Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy
- Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legislative Affairs
- United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York
- United States Attorney for the District of Arizona
- United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois
- United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii
Important Attorneys General
Some Attorneys General have been notable for being the first of their kind:
- First Italian American male: Charles Joseph Bonaparte (1906)
- First Jewish American male: Edward H. Levi (1975)
- First female: Janet Reno (1993)
- First Hispanic American male: Alberto Gonzales (2005)
- First African American male: Eric Holder (2009)
- First African American female: Loretta Lynch (2015)
See also
In Spanish: Fiscal general de los Estados Unidos para niños