Vermont Attorney General

{{Short description|Attorney general for the U.S. state of Vermont}}

{{Infobox official post

| post = Vermont Attorney General

| insignia =

| insigniasize =

| insigniacaption =

| image = Charity Clark.jpg

| imagesize =

| alt =

| incumbent = Charity Clark

| incumbentsince = 2023

| member_of =

| termlength = Two years

| formation = 1790

| first = Samuel Hitchcock

| website = https://ago.vermont.gov/about-attorney-generals-office

| flag = Flag of Vermont.svg

}}The Vermont attorney general is a statewide elected executive official in the U.S. state of Vermont who is elected every two years.{{cite web |title=Duties & Responsibilities by statute |url=https://ago.vermont.gov/about-the-attorney-generals-office/duties-responsibilities/ |website=Office of the Vermont Attorney General |access-date=28 November 2020}} It was created by an act of the Vermont General Assembly in 1790, repealed in 1797, and revived in 1904. The office began as a one-person operation located at Windsor, Vermont, the state's first capital. When the position was recreated in 1904 offices were located in the Vermont State House. The office is now headquartered in the Pavilion and is the largest employer of attorneys in the state. As of January 5, 2023, Charity Clark is the Vermont attorney general, having been elected in 2022.

The office provides legal counsel for all state agencies and the Vermont General Assembly, the state's legislative branch. It handles civil and criminal cases in all courts of the state for both the trial and appellate levels. It defends the state when it is sued and files suits to enforce Vermont’s criminal, environmental, consumer protection, civil rights and other laws.{{Cite web |url=http://www.atg.state.vt.us/index.php |title=Official site |access-date=2006-09-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060301103149/http://www.atg.state.vt.us/index.php |archive-date=2006-03-01 |url-status=dead }}

Election

The attorney general was originally chosen by a vote of the Vermont General Assembly.{{cite book |last=Crockett |first=Walter H. |date=1928 |title=State Papers of Vermont |volume=III |issue=IV |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jfgKAAAAIAAJ&q=%22attorney+general%22 |page=220}}{{cite book |date=1905 |title=Journal of the Senate of the State of Vermont |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MXtDAQAAMAAJ&q=%22vermont%22+%22attorney+general%22+%22fitts%22+%221904%22&pg=PA493 |location=St. Albans, VT |publisher=St. Albans Messenger Company |page=493}} Since 1908 the attorney general has been elected every two years at the same time and in the same manner as other statewide elected officials.3 V.S.A. §151

List of Vermont attorneys general

class="wikitable"
#

! Image

! Name

! Term of office

! Political party

{{Party shading/Federalist}}

|1

|60px

|Samuel Hitchcock

|1790–1793

|Federalist

{{Party shading/Federalist}}

|2

|

|Daniel Buck

|1793–1795

|Federalist

colspan=5 align=center |Office vacant (1795–1797)
colspan=5 align=center |Office abolished (1797–1904)
{{Party shading/Republican}}

|3

|60px

|Clarke C. Fitts

|1904–1908

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|4

|60px

|John G. Sargent

|1908–1912

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|5

|60px

|Rufus E. Brown

|1912–1914

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|6

|60px

|Herbert G. Barber

|1914–1919

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|7

|60px

|Frank Archibald

|1919–1925

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|8

|60px

|J. Ward Carver

|1925–1931

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|9

|60px

|Lawrence C. Jones

|1931–1941

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|10

|

|Alban J. Parker

|1941–1947

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|11

|

|Clifton G. Parker

|1947–1952{{cite news |date=December 27, 1952 |title=Parker Resigns Attorney-General Post as of Dec. 31; Elliott Barber Jr. Named to Office |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104278123/parker-resigns/ |newspaper=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |page=2 }}

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|12

|60px

|F. Elliott Barber Jr.

|1952–1955

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|13

|60px

|Robert T. Stafford

|1955–1957

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|14

|

|Frederick M. Reed

|1957–1960

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|15

|

|Thomas M. Debevoise

|1960–1962

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|16

|

|Charles Adams

|1962–1963

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|17

|

|Charles E. Gibson Jr.

|1963–1965

|Republican

{{Party shading/Democratic}}

|18

|File:John P. Connarn (Vermont attorney general).jpg

|John P. Connarn

|1965–1967

|Democratic

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|19

|60px

|James L. Oakes

|1967–1969

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|20

|60px

|Jim Jeffords

|1969–1973

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|21

|

|Kimberly B. Cheney

|1973–1975

|Republican

{{Party shading/Democratic}}

|22

|60px

|M. Jerome Diamond

|1975–1981

|Democratic

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|23

|60px

|John J. Easton Jr.

|1981–1985

|Republican

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|24

|

|Jeffrey L. Amestoy

|1985–1997

|Republican

{{Party shading/Democratic}}

|25

|60px

|Bill Sorrell

|1997–2017

|Democratic

{{Party shading/Democratic}}

|26

|60px

|T. J. Donovan

|2017–2022

|Democratic

{{Party shading/Democratic}}

|–

|

|Josh Diamond {{small|(Acting)}}

|2022

|Democratic

{{Party shading/Republican}}

|27

|

|Susanne Young

|2022–2023

|Republican

{{Party shading/Democratic}}

|28

|60px

|Charity Clark

|2023–present

|Democratic

References

{{reflist}}