The attorney general of British Columbia (AG) oversees the Ministry of Attorney General, a provincial government department responsible for the oversight of the justice system, within the province of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

, Canada. The attorney general is a member of the provincial cabinet, typically a

member of Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...

who is chosen by the

premier of British Columbia Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of gov ...

and formally appointed by the lieutenant governor of British Columbia. The attorney general is responsible for ensuring that public administration is conducted according to the law and as such, they are the chief advisor of law to the government, in addition to overseeing the court system and Sheriff Service. Under the ''King's Counsel Act'', the attorney general is automatically appointed a

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

upon swearing into office. The attorney general also serves as an ''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'' bencher of the

Law Society of British Columbia The Law Society of British Columbia is the regulatory body for lawyers in British Columbia, Canada. Purpose The society's primary mandate under the ''Legal Profession Act'' is to uphold and protect the public interest in the administration of ...

. Since December 7, 2022, the post has been held by

Niki Sharma Niki Sharma is a Canadian politician and lawyer, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2020 British Columbia general election. She represents the electoral district of Vancouver-Hastings as a member of the Brit ...

List of attorneys general of the Colony of British Columbia

* George Hunter Cary; 1859–1861 *

Henry Pering Pellew Crease Sir Henry Pering Pellew Crease (20 August 1823 – 27 November 1905) was a British-Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician, influential in the colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia. He was the first Attorney General of the united Co ...

; 1861–1870 * George Phillippo; 1870–1871

List of attorneys general of the province of British Columbia

* John Foster McCreight; 1871–1872 *

George Anthony Walkem George Anthony "Boomer" Walkem (November 15, 1834 – January 13, 1908) was a British Columbian politician and jurist. Life and career Born in Newry, Ireland, Walkem moved to then Colony of British Columbia in 1862 and served as a member ...

; 1871–1874 * A. E. B. Davie; 1882–(1887?) * John Roland Hett; * Theodore Davie; 1889–1892 *

Joseph Martin Joseph Martin may refer to: Military * Joseph Martin (general) (1740–1808), American Revolutionary War general from Virginia *Joseph Plumb Martin (1760–1850), American soldier and memoir writer * Joseph M. Martin (born 1962), U.S. Army officer ...

; 1898–1900 *

Albert Edward McPhillips Albert Edward McPhillips (21 March 1861 – 24 January 1938) was a Canadian politician and a barrister. Early years He was the son of George McPhillips (born Co. Monaghan, 1805–1878) and Margaret Lavin (born Co. Armagh), both of whom were ...

; (1900?)–1903 * Charles Wilson; 1903–1906 *

Frederick John Fulton Frederick John Fulton, KC (December 8, 1862 – July 25, 1936) was a British-born and educated Canadian lawyer and politician. He practiced law in Kamloops, British Columbia. He was a member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly f ...

; 1906–1907 * William John Bowser; 1907–1915 * Malcolm Archibald Macdonald; 1915–1917 *

John Wallace de Beque Farris John Wallace de Beque Farris, (December 3, 1878 – February 25, 1970) was a Canadian lawyer and politician. Born in White's Cove, New Brunswick, the son of Laughlin P. Farris and Louise Hay, he was educated at St. Martin's Seminary, rece ...

; 1917–1922 * Alexander Malcolm Manson; 1922–1928 * Gordon Sloan; 1933–1937 * Gordon Wismer; 1937–1941 *

Royal Lethington Maitland Royal Lethington (Pat) Maitland (January 9, 1889 – March 28, 1946) was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as Deputy Premier and the Attorney General of British Columbia in the coalition government of Premier John Hart. He al ...

; 1941–1946 * Gordon Wismer; 1946–1952 * Robert Bonner; 1952–1968 * Leslie Peterson; 1968–1972 * Alex MacDonald; 1972–1975 * Garde Gardom; 1975–1979 * Allan Williams; 1979–1983 * Brian Smith; 1983–1988 *

Bud Smith Robert Allan "Bud" Smith (born October 23, 1979) is an American retired baseball pitcher. Smith was active at the major league level in 2001 and 2002, playing for the St. Louis Cardinals. Minor leagues In 2000, Smith led the minor league Cardin ...

; 1988–1990 *

Russell Fraser Russell Gordon Fraser (born March 1, 1934) was a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1983 to 1991, as a Social Credit member for the constituency of Vancouver South. He served as Attorney Genera ...

; 1990–1991 *

Colin Gabelmann Colin Stuart Gabelmann (born February 11, 1944) is a former politician in British Columbia. He represented North Vancouver-Seymour from 1972 to 1975 and North Island from 1979 to 1996 in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia as a New D ...

; 1991–1995 *

Ujjal Dosanjh Ujjal Dev Dosanjh ( pa, ਉੱਜਲ ਦੇਵ ਦੁਸਾਂਝ) (), (born September 9, 1947) is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the 33rd premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada member of ...

; 1995–2000 * Andrew Petter; 2000 * Graeme Bowbrick; 2000–2001 *

Geoff Plant Geoff Plant, (born c. 1956) is a British Columbia lawyer and retired politician known for his interest in citizen's legal and electoral rights and aboriginal rights. As of 2010, he is chair of the board for Providence Health Care which operat ...

; 2001–2005 *

Wally Oppal Wallace Taroo "Wally" Oppal, (born 1940) is a Canadian lawyer, former judge and provincial politician. Between 2005 and 2009, he served as British Columbia's Attorney General and Minister responsible for Multiculturalism, as well as Member of ...

; 2005–2009 *

Mike de Jong Mike de Jong, (born 1963 or 1964) is a provincial politician and was cabinet minister of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Early life De Jong was born to Dutch parents who immigrated to Canada after Canadian soldiers liberated ...

; 2009–2010 *

Barry Penner Barry Penner, is a Canadian licensed lawyer and former politician in the province of British Columbia. He served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (MLA) for Chilliwack-Hope for 16 years. He also served as Attorney Gene ...

; 2010–2011 * Shirley Bond; 2011–2013 *

Suzanne Anton Suzanne Anton, (born May 31, 1952) is a Canadian politician and the former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of British Columbia. Elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2013 provincial election, Anton represente ...

; 2013–2017 *

Andrew Wilkinson Andrew Wilkinson is an Australian-born Canadian politician. He is the former leader of the British Columbia Liberal Party, and served as the leader of British Columbia's Official Opposition. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British ...

; 2017 *

David Eby David Robert Patrick Eby (born July 21, 1976) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who has been serving as the 37th and current premier of British Columbia since November 18, 2022, and has been serving as the leader of the British Columbia New De ...

; 2017–2022 *

Murray Rankin Murray Rankin (born January 26, 1950) is a Canadian lawyer, politician and public law expert who serves as British Columbia's Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation. A member of the New Democratic Party, Rankin represents the r ...

; 2022 *

; since 2022

References

External links

Ministry of Attorney GeneralMinistry of Attorney General Service Plan
British Columbia government departments and agencies *

1859 establishments in the British Empire

{{BritishColumbia-poli-stub

List of attorneys general of the Colony of British Columbia

List of attorneys general of the province of British Columbia

See also

References

External links