Attorney General (redirected from attorney generals)

attorney general

Chief law-enforcement officer of a state and legal adviser to the chief executive. The office dates to the Middle Ages but did not assume its modern form until the 16th century. In the U.S., the position dates to the Judiciary Act of 1789. Head of the Department of Justice and a member of the cabinet, the attorney general oversees all the government's law business and acts as the president's legal adviser. Every U.S. state also has an attorney general.

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attorney general

1. a country's chief law officer and senior legal adviser to its government

2. (in the US) the chief law officer and legal adviser of a state government

3. (in some states of the US) a public prosecutor

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Attorney General 

in Britain, the USA, and several other countries, one of the highest officers of justice. In Britain the attorney general is a member of the cabinet, is the principal legal adviser to the government who conducts court cases and other legal proceedings affecting the interests of the state, and supports the prosecution in court in cases which have a particular political importance. In the USA the attorney general is the head (minister) of the Department of Justice and the principal legal adviser to the federal government. Some states also have the office of attorney general.