Lunch Program & Keynote Address by Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown

About the Keynote

Anthony G. Brown assumed office as Maryland's 47th Attorney General on January 3, 2023, the first African American to hold the position in Maryland’s history. Previously, Attorney General Brown​ represented the 4th Congressional District from 2017 to 2023, served as Maryland Lieutenant Governor from 2007 to 2015, and served in the Maryland House of Delegates as Vice Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and Majority Whip from 1999 to 2007.

Since taking office, Attorney General Brown established the Office of Equity, Policy, and Engagement, a first for the Attorney General’s office, to focus on strategies, initiatives, policies, and practices that will promote equity and fairness in Maryland’s civil, criminal, and administrative systems of justice. In 2023, Attorney General Brown successfully advocated for the passage of legislation creating a Civil Rights Division, expanding the Independent Investigations Division’s prosecutorial authority, and establishing a permanent Commission on Hate Crimes Response and Prevention. In October 2023, Attorney General Brown partnered with Maryland Public Defender Natasha Dartigue to create the Maryland Equitable Justice Collaborative (MEJC), a first-of-its-kind initiative dedicated to reducing mass incarceration and the disparate incarceration of African Americans and other marginalized groups in Maryland prisons and jails. MEJC’s goal is to examine and assess the scope and causes of this crisis, and to develop a data-driven approach to addressing it.

With a longstanding commitment to improving the lives of all Marylanders, Attorney General Brown’s priority has always been justice and equity. As Lieutenant Governor, he advocated for the repeal of the death penalty, decriminalization of cannabis, expansion of record expungements, stringent background checks and training requirements for gun sales, and banning of large-capacity magazines and certain assault rifles. In Congress, Attorney General Brown again championed common-sense gun safety laws, measures to expand access to the ballot, the health of the Chesapeake Bay, the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community, and he was a lead sponsor on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. He worked in the General Assembly and in Congress to expand protections for victims of domestic violence, abused and neglected children, and veterans with unmet mental and behavioral health needs.  More recently, he reinvigorated the pro bono program under the new Stephen H. Sachs Pro Bono Program of the Maryland Office of the Attorney General.

Attorney General Brown received a bachelor's degree from Harvard College and a law degree from Harvard Law School. After clerking at the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, Attorney General Brown was an associate attorney in the litigation, securities enforcement, and investment management groups at WilmerHale (formerly Wilmer Cutler & Pickering). He litigated against big tobacco and represented small businesses whose innovative technology was stolen by large corporations. Attorney General Brown demonstrated his commitment to pro bono services in the various matters he handled, including representing victims of sexual harassment in the workplace, children in need of assistance, and indigent clients unable to afford a lawyer. While in the House of Delegates, Attorney General Brown also practiced land use and zoning law with the firm Gibbs and Haller.

A retired Colonel in the Army Reserve, Attorney General Brown served three decades as an aviator and Judge Advocate General. He graduated first in his flight class and received both Airborne and Air Assault qualifications. Attorney General Brown was awarded the Legion of Merit for his distinguished military service and earned the Bronze Star while deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005. Attorney General Brown completed his military service commanding the 153rd Legal Support Organization.

Attorney General Brown​ served as Board Chair of Prince George's Community College, and as a board member of the Community Legal Services of Prince George's County and the nonprofit Adoptions Together. He has been a member of the Maryland State Bar Association since 1994.