About NAAG
George Jepsen (D)
Connecticut Attorney General
Elected: 2010
55 Elm St., Hartford, CT 06141-0120
(860) 808-5318
http://www.ct.gov/ag/
Attorney General George C. Jepsen took office on Jan. 5, 2011, becoming the 24th Attorney General in Connecticut since the office was established in 1897. The Attorney General is a constitutional officer, the state’s chief legal officer and serves as legal counsel to all state agencies. Under state statutes and the Connecticut Constitution, the Attorney General has authority over all civil matters and is responsible for representing the people of Connecticut and the broader public interest.
Jepsen, the endorsed candidate of the Democratic Party and Working Families Party, was elected on Nov. 2, 2010, with 591,725 total votes to 480,310 for Republican Martha Dean and 20,759 for Stephen E. D. Fournier, the endorsed candidate of the Green and Independent parties. Jepsen succeeded Democrat Richard Blumenthal of Stamford, who had served for 20 years as Attorney General.
A former legislator, state Senate majority leader and Democratic state party chairman, Jepsen was a practicing lawyer for more than 26 years before becoming Attorney General. Most recently, from April, 2003 to Dec. 1, 2010, he was of counsel to the Hartford law firm of Cowdery, Ecker and Murphy, LCC, in the areas of corporate transactions and civil and appellate litigation. Jepsen also served of counsel to the trust and estates team at Shipman & Goodwin in Hartford and of counsel to the Stamford firm of Abate & Fox in the general law practice. Jepsen began his legal career in 1982 as general counsel to Carpenters Local 2010 in Norwalk where he represented 4,000 working men and women on employment issues for nearly 10 years.
Jepsen grew up in Greenwich, attended public schools and graduated from Greenwich High School in 1972. Jepsen attended Dartmouth College where he graduated summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in 1976 with a B.A. degree in Government with high distinction. During that time, he also studied Chinese and completed foreign study in France and Taiwan. In 1982, Jepsen earned his J.D. degree, cum laude, from Harvard Law School and simultaneously earned a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, where he was a teaching fellow for Richard Neustadt for “The American Presidency” and for former Watergate prosecutor Archibald Cox in “U.S. Constitutional Law.”
Jepsen was first elected state representative in 1987, representing Stamford’s 148th State House District. In 1990, he was elected state senator in the 27th State Senatorial District, representing Stamford and Darien through 2003. While in the state Senate, Jepsen was chairman of the Judiciary Committee (1993-1995) and ranking member of the Finance Committee (1995-1997). He was elected Senate Majority Leader from 1997-2003. In 2002, Jepsen was a candidate for Governor and became the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor. He also served as Democratic State Party chairman from 2003-2005.
Jepsen was born to Chuck and Rita Jepsen on Nov. 23, 1954 in Hattiesburg, Miss., the small town where his mother grew up. Jepsen was the second of three children. He has an older brother, Charles, and a younger sister, Rita. The family moved to Greenwich in 1955.
Jepsen, now a resident of Ridgefield, is married to Diana Sousa. They have two sons, Christian, and William. Jepsen is a former marathon runner who enjoys hiking and the natural world. He has travelled widely to Asia, Central and South America and to the near and Middle East and is conversational in French, Spanish and Chinese. Jepsen celebrated his 20th birthday on the Trans-Siberian Railroad while travelling to Taiwan and once hiked and canoed the upper tributaries of the Amazon Forest in Ecuador. He is an enthusiastic cook of Cuban, Thai, Chinese, Middle Eastern, Caribbean and Italian cuisine, enjoys reading American history and continues to travel widely with his family.
Jepsen is an advocate and recognized leader on issues affecting working men and women; consumer protection; civil rights; domestic violence; protecting a woman’s right to choose; living wills and end-of-life issues; gun safety, including Connecticut’s ban on assault weapons and protecting Connecticut’s natural and historic resources. Among his awards:
Business and labor:
1988 – National Federation of Independent Businesses – Guardian of Small Business Award
1994 – Southwestern Area Commerce and Industry Association of Connecticut – Distinguished Public Service Award
2000 – Professional Insurance Agents of CT – Legislator of the Year Award.
2001 - Connecticut Technology Council, Legislator of the Year award.
Recipient of the “Sí Se Puede” Award as a champion in the successful Justice for Janitors fight to bring better wages and benefits to more than 1,000 under-paid janitors.
Civil Rights:
1993 – Co-authored Connecticut’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act to protect the free exercise of religion.
Crime and Safety:
1992 – Rape and Sexual Abuse Crisis Center, Inc. – Award recognizing special contribution to sexual assault awareness.
1993 – Connecticut Police Chiefs Association – Legislator of the Year Award for work on assault weapons ban
1994 – Domestic Violence Services, Inc. – Patricia C. Phillips Award for extraordinary leadership on behalf of victims of domestic violence. Jepsen co-authored the state’s first comprehensive plan to prevent violence against women; he led the fight to take guns away from people involved in domestic violence and made it easier for victims to obtain a restraining order.
1995 – Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety – Award for extraordinary leadership in the passage of sweeping anti-drunk driving legislation
1996 – MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving)– GLADD (Government Leaders Against Drunk Driving) Award for drunk driving legislation.
1999 – Greater Hartford Violence Prevention Council – Award in recognition of leadership against violence in Connecticut.
Environment:
2003-present -- Connecticut trustee, The Nature Conservancy
Connecticut Fund for the Environment – Outstanding Legislator Award
Land Conservation Coalition for Connecticut – Outstanding Legislator Award.
Co-authored the Charter Oak Trust Fund, setting aside funds for the purchase of open space.
Championed legislation that encourages corporations to turn unused land into open space.
Healthcare:
1997 & 1998 – Connecticut Medical Society – Legislative Service Award for his work ensuring quality health care is available to all.
2000 -- Connecticut chapter, National Abortion Rights Action League. Catherine Roraback Award for protecting a woman’s right to choose.
