Tennessee Attorney General

The Tennessee Attorney General (officially, Attorney General and Reporter) is the chief law enforcement officer and lawyer for the Executive Branch of the U.S. state of Tennessee.[2] The office of the attorney general is located at the state capitol in Nashville, Tennessee. The current office holder is Jonathan Skrmetti, who was appointed in 2022 by the Tennessee Supreme Court for an eight-year term. His service officially began when he was sworn in by Governor, Bill Lee on September 1, 2022.[3]

Attorney General and Reporter of State of Tennessee
Incumbent
Jonathan Skrmetti
since September 1, 2022
Office of the Attorney General and Reporter
SeatNashville, Tennessee
AppointerTennessee Supreme Court
Term length8 years
Constituting instrumentConstitution of Tennessee
Article VI Section 5
Formation1831
Salary$196,968 (2021)[1]
WebsiteGovernment Website

Appointment by judiciary

Unlike any other state, the Tennessee Attorney General is an officer of the judicial branch, not the executive branch. Article VI Section 5 of the Tennessee Constitution provides for the appointment of the Attorney General by the justices of the Supreme Court for a term of 8 years.[4] In most other states, the office of attorney general is appointed by the governor or elected by voters or the legislature.

Duties

Office of the Attorney General

The Attorney General oversees the work and operations of the Office of the Attorney General. In this capacity, he is assisted by various office heads.[5]

Chief Deputy Attorney General - Lacey E. Mase

  • responsible for coordinating and supervising the Office's work
  • reviews much of the work done by the Office
  • responsible for general management

Solicitor General - Andreé Sophia Blumstein

Chief of Staff - Brandon J. Smith

  • responsible for administrative matters
  • oversees talent management, organizational development, information technology, fiscal issues, and facilities issues

List of attorneys general
# Name Tenure Party
1George Shall Yerger1831–1839
2Return J. Meigs III1839
3West Hughes Humphreys1839–1851
4William Graham Swan1851–1854Democratic
5John L.T. Sneed1854–1859
6John W. Head1859–1862Democratic
7Thomas M. Coldwell1865–1870
8Joseph Brown Heiskell1870–1878
9Benjamin J. Lea1878–1886Democratic
10George W. Pickle1886–1902
11Charles T. Cates, Jr.1902–1913
12Frank M. Thompson1913–1926
13Charles L. Cornelius1926
14L. D. Smith1926–1932
15Roy H. Beeler1932–1954
16George F. McCanless1954–1969
17David M. Pack1969–1974
18Milton P. Rice1974
19R.A. Ashley, Jr.1974–1976
20Brooks McLemore1976–1978
21William M. Leech, Jr.1978–1984
22W.J. Michael Cody1984–1988
23Charles Burson1988–1997Democratic
24John Knox Walkup1997–1999
25Paul G. Summers1999–2006
26Robert E. Cooper, Jr.2006–2014Democratic
27Herbert Slatery2014–2022Republican
28Jonathan Skrmetti 2022–presentRepublican

See also

References
  1. "The Book of the States 2021". Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  2. Office of the Attorney General and Reporter. "Tennessee Attorney General". Retrieved 2008-12-03.
  3. Office of the Attorney General and Reporter. "Jonathan Skrmetti Sworn in as Tennessee's 28th Attorney General".
  4. "Constitution of the State of Tennessee" (PDF). Tennessee General Assembly. 1870. Retrieved 8 Dec 2019.
  5. "Divisions". www.tn.gov. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
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