Deputy Attorney General

Deputy Attorney General
Post	Deputy Attorney General
Body	United States Department of Justice
Incumbent	Vacant
Style	The Honorable
Reports to	United States Attorney General
Appointer	President of the United States
Formation	1950
First	Philip Perlman

Contents

Deputy Attorney General

The Deputy Attorney General is the second-highest-ranking official in the United States Department of Justice and serves as the principal deputy to the United States Attorney General, acting in an administrative and supervisory capacity and coordinating policy across federal law enforcement and litigation functions. The office interfaces with entities such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, United States Marshals Service, and Federal Trade Commission while participating in matters involving the United States Congress, White House, Supreme Court of the United States, and federal litigation in the United States Courts of Appeals.

Role and responsibilities

The Deputy Attorney General oversees Civil Division (DOJ), Criminal Division (DOJ), Antitrust Division, and liaison activities with the United States Attorney offices, coordinating enforcement priorities, settlement negotiations, and appellate strategy in cases before the Supreme Court of the United States, United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and other federal venues. The Deputy provides direction on matters related to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Patriot Act, Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, and national security cases involving the National Security Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, and Department of Defense. The office manages internal DOJ policy development, ethics compliance referencing the Ethics in Government Act, and oversight coordination with committees such as the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, United States House Committee on the Judiciary, and the DOJ Inspector General.

The Deputy Attorney General is nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate, often following hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee and review by minority and majority staff involving legal career records from institutions like Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Columbia Law School, and bar memberships including the American Bar Association. Tenure is at the pleasure of the President, with predecessors serving across administrations such as those of Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. Acting Deputies have been designated under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 during transitions or pending confirmations.

Within the United States Department of Justice hierarchy, the Deputy Attorney General reports directly to the United States Attorney General and coordinates with the Associate Attorney General, Solicitor General of the United States, and heads of components including the Civil Rights Division, Office of Legal Counsel, and Executive Office for United States Attorneys. The Deputy supervises United States Attorneys who prosecute matters in districts such as the Southern District of New York, Eastern District of Virginia, and Northern District of California and directs performance reviews, resource allocation, and interagency task forces with partners like the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Health and Human Services, and Internal Revenue Service. The office also oversees high-profile investigations that may involve special counsels like Robert Mueller, Jack Smith, and Ken Starr.

The role evolved from earlier DOJ deputy roles formalized in the mid-20th century during the administrations of Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower, reflecting expanded federal litigation and enforcement after landmark statutes such as the Mann Act, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. The position adapted during eras marked by controversies involving the Watergate scandal, the Iran–Contra affair, the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, and the expansion of national security priorities under administrations including George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Institutional changes were shaped by reports from the Warren Commission, Church Committee, and reforms following reviews by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General.

Notable occupants include Philip Perlman (first), A. Mitchell Palmer-era predecessors, and modern figures such as Reno-era appointees and deputies who later became prominent, including Sally Yates, Rod Rosenstein, Eric Holder (as Associate Attorney General and later Attorney General), William P. Barr (as Attorney General), Laurence Silberman-era influencers, and deputies who moved to federal judicial appointments like the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit or academic posts at Harvard Law School and Yale Law School. These individuals often interacted with presidents such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and George H. W. Bush.

The office has been central in controversies involving recusal decisions, grand jury disclosures, and oversight probes by the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, House Judiciary Committee, and the DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, touching on matters related to the Special Counsel regulations, the handling of classified information under the Presidential Records Act, and interactions with congressional investigations such as those into Watergate, the Clinton investigation, and inquiries during the Trump administration. Oversight mechanisms include inspector general audits, congressional subpoenas, and litigation before federal courts like the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

Equivalent positions exist in other jurisdictions, such as the Attorney General for England and Wales’s Solicitor General for England and Wales or Australia’s Deputy Attorney-General (Australia), and similar roles in Canada’s Deputy Minister of Justice, Germany’s Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection deputies, and France’s Ministry of Justice (France). Comparative issues include prosecutorial independence debates in contexts like the European Convention on Human Rights, coordination with supranational bodies such as the European Commission, and differing oversight regimes exemplified by the International Criminal Court and regional courts like the European Court of Human Rights.