History
The office of the Ohio Attorney General was first created by the Ohio General Assembly by statute in 1846. The attorney general's principal duties were to give legal advice to the state government, to represent the state in legal matters, and to advise the state's county prosecutors. Originally, the attorney general was appointed by the legislature. With the adoption of Ohio's second constitution in 1851, the attorney general became an elected office. The attorney general's duties were drawn very generally at that time.
In 1952, the General Assembly passed a statute that added to the attorney general's responsibilities, including trusteeship over charitable trusts, and legal advice to more government agencies. The act stated that the attorney general could prosecute individuals only if the governor requested so in writing. Starting in 1954, the term of office was increased from two years to four years.
In 2008 Nancy H. Rogers was appointed following the resignation of Marc Dann. A special election was held in 2008 to find a permanent replacement; then-Ohio State Treasurer Richard Cordray (D) beat out Michael Crites (R), and Robert M. Owens (I) for the position.
The Solicitor General of Ohio is the top appellate lawyer in the Attorney General's office.
Read more about this topic: Ohio Attorney General
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“The one duty we owe to history is to rewrite it.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“We have need of history in its entirety, not to fall back into it, but to see if we can escape from it.”
—José Ortega Y Gasset (1883–1955)