There is created a Department of Law with the Attorney General at the head thereof and with such numbers of deputy attorneys general, assistant attorneys general, special assistant attorneys general, other attorneys, paraprofessional personnel, and other employees or independent contractors as the Attorney General shall deem necessary to carry out the functions of the Attorney General and the Department of Law. The Attorney General is authorized to determine the title and to change the title of any attorney or other employee of the Department of Law or any attorney at law under independent contract to the Department of Law in order to define the duties and responsibilities of any attorney or other employee of the said department and to establish salaries and effect promotions of any such attorney or other employee of the said department, except that those positions in the department which are within the classified service on April 18, 1975, shall be covered by the procedures prescribed by the State Personnel Board. Neither the Attorney General nor any other attorney at law employed full time by the Department of Law shall engage in the private practice of law during his or her term of appointment. Attorneys at law under independent contract to the Department of Law may engage in the private practice of law even though they may have been appointed or designated either specially or generally as assistant attorneys general or attorneys. Notwithstanding that any attorney at law under independent contract to the Department of Law has been appointed or designated either specially or generally as an assistant attorney general and thus is identified with the State of Georgia as its representative for cases arising within the scope of that appointment or designation, representation of a defendant in criminal proceedings by that assistant attorney general shall not constitute a conflict of interest if that assistant attorney general provides written disclosure of such appointment or designation to the defendant prior to accepting employment by that defendant or, when a court has appointed an assistant attorney general to represent an indigent criminal defendant, disclosures to the defendant and to the court, to be reflected in the record of that court, such appointment or designation as assistant attorney general.
(Ga. L. 1943, p. 284, § 2; Ga. L. 1947, p. 673, § 1; Ga. L. 1961, p. 131, § 1; Ga. L. 1966, p. 43, § 1; Ga. L. 1975, p. 879, § 1; Ga. L. 1984, p. 1359, § 1; Ga. L. 2009, p. 745, § 1/SB 97; Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 2-74/HB 642.)
Editor's notes.- Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 3-1/HB 642, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "Personnel, equipment, and facilities that were assigned to the State Personnel Administration as of June 30, 2012, shall be transferred to the Department of Administrative Services on the effective date of this Act." This Act became effective July 1, 2012.
Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 3-2/HB 642, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "Appropriations for functions which are transferred by this Act may be transferred as provided in Code Section 45-12-90."
JUDICIAL DECISIONS
Representing accused in federal court.
- Although O.C.G.A. § 45-15-30 is silent on the point, if an independent contractor assisting the Attorney General can represent an accused in state court, the independent contractor can also represent the accused in federal court, in a proceeding challenging the validity of the conviction. Waters v. Kemp, 845 F.2d 260 (11th Cir. 1988).
Duty of disclosure in criminal case.
- Trial counsel in a criminal case had an implied duty under O.C.G.A. § 45-15-30 to disclose counsel's status as a special assistant attorney general; moreover, the Attorney General directed that Special Assistant attorneys general comply with the disclosure requirements of § 45-15-30 in ordinary criminal cases and further directed that they never represent a defendant in a death penalty case, regardless of whether the defendant might be willing to waive any potential conflict. Gibson v. Head, 282 Ga. 156, 646 S.E.2d 257 (2007).
Cited in North Fulton Community Hosp. v. State Health Planning & Dev. Agency, 168 Ga. App. 801, 310 S.E.2d 764 (1983); State v. Redd, 243 Ga. App. 809, 534 S.E.2d 473 (2000).
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
Representation of criminal defendants.
- Effective July 1, 1984, the terms of all appointments of special assistants by this office will no longer prohibit special assistants from representing defendants in criminal cases so long as O.C.G.A. § 45-15-30 is complied with, except in the following instances: (1) criminal cases in which the death penalty may be imposed; (2) criminal proceedings being handled by the Department of Law; and (3) any criminal proceeding not being handled by this office and in which the complaining party is a state agency and that state agency is being represented to any extent by the special assistant through appointment by the Attorney General to do legal work for or in behalf of that agency. 1984 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U84-27, superseding 1982 Op. Att'y Gen. No. U82-45.
Fingerprinting not required.
- Offenses arising from a violation of O.C.G.A. § 43-15-30(f) do not, at this time, appear to be offenses for which fingerprinting is required. 2018 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 18-3.
RESEARCH REFERENCES
C.J.S.
- 7A C.J.S., Attorney General, §§ 4, 25.
ALR.- Validity, under state law, of appointment of independent special prosecutor to handle political or controversial prosecutions or investigations of persons other than regular prosecutor, 84 A.L.R.3d 29.