# Attorney General of Alabama

The attorney general of Alabama is an elected, constitutional officer of the State of Alabama. The office of the attorney general is located at the state capitol in Montgomery, Alabama. Henry Hitchcock was elected Alabama's first attorney general in 1819.

## Duties

As is common in many states, the attorney general is the chief lawyer of the state. He is called upon as the chief defender of the laws of Alabama, the lawyer for state officials and represents the state in all matters brought before a court of law or tribunal. The attorney general (AG) also provides advisory opinions to local and state governments when questions arise about the constitutionality of proposed laws and regulations. It is the task of the attorney general to represent the state when questions arise concerning various criminal sentences including the death penalty.
From time to time, the attorney general may begin legal proceedings on behalf of the state or on behalf of consumers damaged by illegal or bad faith commercial transactions.

## Organization

Eight divisions comprise the attorney general's office. Those divisions include: a General Crimes Division, a Public Corruption Division, Civil Division, Appellate Division, Consumer Protection Division, Constitutional Defense Division and a Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Division chiefs include Clay J. Crenshaw, Olivia Martin, Billington Garret, M. Matt Hart, Bruce M. Lieberman, and Azzie Taylor.

## List of attorneys general of Alabama

The chief deputy attorney general is Alice Martin Andrew Brasher previously served as the solicitor general from 2014-2019; Edmund LaCour is the current solicitor general.
| # | Name | Took office | Left office | Party |
| 1 | Henry Hitchcock | 1819 | 1823 | |
| 2 | Thomas White | 1823 | 1825 | |
| 3 | Constantine Perkins | 1825 | 1832 | |
| 4 | Peter Martin | 1832 | 1836 | |
| 5 | Alexander Meek | 1836 | 1836 | |
| 6 | John D. Phelan | 1836 | 1838 | Democratic |
| 7 | Lincoln Clark | 1838 | 1839 | Democratic |
| 8 | Matthew W. Lindsay | 1839 | 1843 | |
| 9 | Thomas D. Clarke | 1843 | 1847 | |
| 10 | William H. Martin | 1847 | 1847 | |
| 11 | Marion A. Baldwin | 1847 | 1865 | |
| 12 | John W. A. Sanford | 1865 | 1868 | |
| 13 | Benjamin Gardner | 1868 | 1870 | |
| 14 | John W. A. Sanford | 1870 | 1872 | |
| 15 | Henry Tompkins | 1878 | 1884 | |
| 16 | Thomas McClellan | 1884 | 1889 | |
| 17 | William L. Martin | 1889 | 1894 | |
| 18 | William C. Fitts | 1894 | 1898 | |
| 19 | Charles G. Brown | 1898 | 1903 | |
| 20 | Massey Wilson | 1903 | 1907 | |
| 21 | Alexander M. Garber | 1907 | 1911 | Democratic |
| 22 | Robert Brickell | 1911 | 1915 | Democratic |
| 23 | William Logan Martin | 1915 | 1918 | |
| 24 | F. Lloyd Tate | 1918 | 1918 | |
| 25 | Emmet S. Thigpen | 1918 | 1919 | |
| 26 | James Q. Smith | 1919 | 1921 | Democratic |
| 27 | Harwell G. Davis | 1921 | 1927 | Democratic |
| 28 | Charlie C. McCall | 1927 | 1931 | |
| 29 | Thomas E. Knight | 1931 | 1935 | Democratic |
| 30 | Albert A. Carmichael | 1935 | 1939 |
| 31 | Thomas S. Lawson | 1939 | 1942 | |
| 32 | William N. McQueen | 1943 | 1947 | Democratic |
| 33 | Albert A. Carmichael | 1947 | 1951 | |
| 34 | Si Garrett | 1951 | 1954 | |
| 35 | Bernard Sykes | 1954 | 1955 | |
| 36 | John Malcolm Patterson | 1955 | 1959 | Democratic |
| 37 | MacDonald Gallion | 1959 | 1963 | Democratic |
| 38 | Richmond Flowers | 1963 | 1967 | Democratic |
| 39 | MacDonald Gallion | 1967 | 1971 | Democratic |
| 40 | William J. Baxley | 1971 | 1979 | Democratic |
| 41 | Charles A. Graddick | 1979 | 1987 | Democratic |
| 42 | Don Siegelman | 1987 | 1991 | Democratic |
| 43 | Jimmy Evans | 1991 | 1995 | Democratic |
| 44 | Jeff Sessions | 1995 | 1997 | Republican |
| 45 | Bill Pryor | 1997 | 2004 | Republican |
| 46 | Troy King | 2004 | 2011 | Republican |
| 47 | Luther Strange | 2011 | 2017 | Republican |
| 48 | Steve Marshall | 2017 | present | Republican |