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About Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown
Nick Brown is Washington State’s 19th Attorney General, elected into office in November 2024. Nick believes the Attorney General’s role is to serve as the people’s advocate, and is committed to using the legal tools and the power of the AG’s Office to uphold and enforce Washington’s laws, to protect people’s rights, to stand up for our shared values, and to keep people safe.
Having grown up in Steilacoom, Nick is a proud product of the public-schools, and the son of public servants: his dad was an Army veteran and his mom was a nurse and healthcare administrator. Determined to follow his parents’ example, Nick joined ROTC to help pay for college, graduating from Morehouse and then going on to attain a law degree from Harvard University.
Nick then began his legal career in the Army JAG corps, where he gained experience as both a prosecutor and defense lawyer. He took on unscrupulous corporations and predatory lenders that were taking advantage of soldiers and their families, and defended the rights and liberties of young soldiers. Nick was awarded a Bronze Star in 2005.
After the Army, Nick returned to Washington State where he worked as a prosecutor. He then went on to become the lead counsel for Governor Inslee. During that time he learned how to make government work effectively on behalf of the public, and had the opportunity to work on a wide range of legal issues, including many focused on keeping people safe. At the governor’s direction, Nick led the work to put a moratorium on the death penalty in Washington and then, during the first six months of the Trump Administration, Nick worked directly with the Governor and then-Attorney General Bob Ferguson in taking on the Trump’s early unlawful actions, including his Muslim Ban.
Leaving the governor’s office in 2017, Nick worked in the private sector, joining on of the premier law firms in the region. There, he helped public, private, and non-profit clients navigate complex civil litigation and constitutional issues. Part of his work involved Nick taking a lead role in defending landmark gun safety legislation from legal challenges.
In 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Nick to become the U.S. Attorney for Western Washington where he worked to fight drug cartels and sex trafficking, addressing the fentanyl crisis and reducing violent crime. He also chaired the Attorney General’s Advisory Subcommittee on Civil Rights, and brought a focus to keeping every Washingtonians safe by preventing and prosecuting hate crimes and protecting the most vulnerable and members of marginalized communities. In 2023, Nick resigned from the U.S. Attorney’s Office to seek the office of Attorney General.
As Attorney General, Nick’s focus is on getting results that benefit Washington State residents and tangibly improve their lives. His key areas of focus include protecting public safety, advancing environmental and worker protections, standing up for civil rights, and holding the powerful to account when they violate our laws and harm the people of our state.