The Office of the Indiana Attorney General represents the state in cases involving the state's interest, provides legal defense to state officials or agencies in court, and gives formal legal advisory opinions on constitutional or legal questions to state officials.
The Office of the Attorney General is organized into eight divisions. These include: Advisory Division, Appeals Division, Complex Litigation, Consumer Protection Division, Litigation, Medicaid Fraud Control Division, Solicitor General, and Unclaimed Property Unit.
Advisory
At every level of state government, elected officials do their best to make intelligent, well-considered decisions. To do so, they must rely on sound legal advice—often provided by the Attorney General’s Advisory Division. Large state agencies and individual officials alike depend on the Advisory Division’s counsel. The division also publishes official opinions related to significant state issues.
The Advisory Division does not make or recommend policy. Rather, it guides officials in their efforts to understand specific state statutes, policies, and procedures.
The Attorney General’s law clients for whom he provides legal advice are the statewide elected officials, state legislators, state agencies, and the 92 county prosecutors.
Appeals
The Attorney General’s Appeals Division's attorneys represent the state in both civil and criminal appeals, as well as in other specialized areas.
Civil Appeals represents the state in appellate cases involving constitutional issues, civil rights, consumer protection, government benefits, administrative procedures, and employment matters, as well as business regulations and cases involving claims against the state.
Criminal Appeals represents the state in criminal cases appealed to the Indiana Court of Appeals and Indiana Supreme Court. This means these attorneys work to uphold sentences - and keep criminals in prison. This section also represents the state's interests when prison inmates challenge their convictions in the federal court system through a habeas corpus petition.
Complex Litigation
The Complex Litigation Division represents the State of Indiana in high profile and often multifaceted investigations and litigation in both state and federal courts. In furtherance of those matters, Complex Litigation works closely with other State agencies, States and office divisions to best advocate for Hoosiers. While not limited to one substantive subject matter area, Complex Litigation matters typically involve issues of unsettled law, large number of impacted individuals or damages, or issues of particular importance to the State of Indiana.
Consumer Protection Division
The Indiana Attorney General's Office is dedicated to protecting consumers from deceptive and predatory business practices. It is also committed to educating consumers to make wise choices when buying products or entering into contracts. The office administers a number of programs designed to help Indiana citizens become savvy consumers.
By state law, the Attorney General’s Office cannot act as an individual's private attorney or provide legal advice to citizens. However, the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division mediates and investigates consumer complaints against businesses and other organizations and takes legal action on behalf of the state against individuals and companies that violate Indiana’s Deceptive Consumer Sales Act.
Litigation
The Litigation Division serves as the State’s law firm. Our dedicated team represents the State and its agencies, officials and employees in state and federal courts in complex and significant interest cases in almost every substantive area of the law - protecting the public interest by defending constitutional challenges and class actions to bringing actions to enforce state statutes and regulations to condemnation to public integrity whistleblower and fraud cases to recoup taxpayer money. The Litigation Division has four Sections - each with their own area of expertise.
Medicaid Fraud Control Division
The Indiana Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) investigates unscrupulous practices and enforces state health care laws to keep costs as low as possible, and to ensure tax dollars are being spent properly. These efforts ensure that less fortunate Hoosiers get the health care services they need and deserve.
Solicitor General
The Solicitor General is the chief litigation policy advisor to the attorney general, providing comprehensive oversight of state and federal litigation for Indiana. The solicitor general also:
- Handles specific cases involving constitutional challenges
- Pursues cases with issues of vital interest to the state government
- Makes recommendations to the attorney general on the state’s participation in filing amicus curiae briefs (friend of the court briefs)
- Consults with the Appellate Division to determine which civil cases the state should appeal and the appropriate legal position to pursue
Unclaimed Property Unit
Each year, millions of dollars in assets are turned over to the Indiana Attorney General's Office as unclaimed property. It's the job of the Attorney General's Unclaimed Property Division to help return these assets to their rightful owners.
Unclaimed property is any financial asset with no activity by its owner for an extended period of time. This includes:
- Dormant bank accounts
- Lost or forgotten uncashed checks
- Stocks or bonds, dividends, and bond interest
- Insurance proceeds
- Utility refunds
- Safe-deposit box contents
You can search the free online database to find out if you have any money waiting for you at http://www.indianaunclaimed.gov/