Enforcement of laws designed to safeguard consumers, investors, workers and charitable donors; coordination of statewide civil and criminal investigations; promotion of economic justice and preservation of natural resources.
Attorney generals serve as the principal legal advisors in their state or nation, usually holding elected office and being part of the executive branch.
Office Locations
Attorney generals serve as the chief legal advisers in each state, Commonwealth, territory and District of Columbia. Attorneys general oversee their state’s law enforcement agencies while acting as advisors to lawmakers and state governments – in essence acting as their public’s lawyer.
The Office for Consumer Protection enforces laws to safeguard consumers, renters, patients, investors, charitable donors and businesses; prosecutes crimes that violate civil rights of our residents; promote harm-reducing strategies in areas such as child abuse, elder abuse and financial fraud; defend state agencies against lawsuits filed by citizens; provide legal opinions regarding matters of great public importance and provide legal opinions regarding issues that concern all.
The Office is also home to some of the nation’s finest lawyers, including alumni who have gone on to become Senators, Congressmen, Governors, Supreme Court Justices, Mayors of New York City and Washington D.C. as well as partners in leading private law firms. It oversees a criminal prosecution bureau as well as divisions for antitrust law, consumer rights law, special litigation matters as well as labor compliance policies – plus tobacco compliance services!
Office Hours
As head of the Department of Law and People’s Lawyer, New York’s elected Attorney General oversees an array of civil and criminal matters. Their office carries out Governor Cuomo’s criminal prosecution policies while protecting New York residents and organizations against fraud; encouraging harm-reducing public health strategies; and working to preserve natural resources across New York state.
The Attorney General litigates some of the highest profile affirmative civil cases in the U.S. and regularly appears before the U.S. Supreme Court to present critical legal matters as requested by President or other heads of executive departments. Furthermore, his Office serves as an invaluable source of information about state laws and regulations within New York.
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As head of the Department of Law, the attorney general serves as chief legal officer of a State. Furthermore, this “People’s Lawyer” enforces laws designed to protect consumers, tenants, workers, charitable donors and the environment; conducts civil and criminal investigations across state borders; supports harm-reducing public health strategies; oversees local governments – among many other responsibilities.
If you need assistance, reach out to us online or via our consumer hotline. While we cannot give legal advice or answer specific cases directly, we can refer you to other government agencies for help and provide informal mediation services as a service to consumers with their problems.
Letitia “Tish” James was elected Attorney General every four years and became the first female Attorney General and first black woman in United States history. Her office serves New Yorkers by conducting community outreach, educational presentations and responding to complaints related to elder abuse, consumer fraud, landlord-tenant disputes, illegal immigration services and not-for-profit corporations.
Legal Advice
As the people’s lawyer, this office provides legal advice and defends actions and proceedings on behalf of the state. Civil enforcement includes consumer protection and environmental laws; prosecution for child abuse and sexual assault cases; as well as fighting financial fraud by identity thieves or mortgage loan sharks.
As part of its advisory role, this office provides advice and reviews of proposed Executive Orders, substantive proclamations/memoranda and memorandum as well as legislative proposals proposed by other branches and agencies of government as well as responses by executive branch agencies to congressional oversight inquiries.
Attorney generals often sign documents attesting to certain facts contained therein, or may issue certificates of nolle prosequi in cases in which prosecutions against individuals in their names (on behalf of states) do not wish to pursue prosecutions. Attorney generals are typically addressed as “Mr. Attorney General” or “Ms. Attorney General,” though in certain jurisdictions it may be more appropriate to address them as “Atty Gen.”