Skip to content
National Association of Attorneys General
  • Issues
    • Issues
      • Anticorruption
      • Antitrust
      • Bankruptcy
      • Charities
      • Civil Law
    • Issues
      • Consumer Protection
      • Criminal Law
      • Cyber and Technology
      • Disaster Preparedness & Response
      • Elder Justice
    • Issues
      • Ethics
      • Human Trafficking
      • Medicaid Fraud
      • Opioids
      • Powers & Duties
    • Issues
      • Public Health
      • The U.S. Supreme Court
      • Tobacco
      • Veterans & Military
  • Our Work
    • Training & Research
    • Centers
      • Center for Supreme Court Advocacy
      • Center for Tobacco & Public Health
      • Center for Consumer Protection
    • Committees
    • Initiatives
      • Presidential Initiative
      • Strategic Partnerships
      • ConsumerResources.org
      • International Fellows
      • COVID-19
    • Bankruptcy
    • Policy & Advocacy
  • Events & Training
    • Event Calendar
    • Attorney General Symposium
    • Presidential Summit
    • Capital Forum
    • Region Meetings
    • CLE Credit
    • NAAG Trainings
    • Online Learning
    • NAMFCU Trainings
    • NAAG Faculty
  • News & Resources
    • Attorney General Journal
    • Reports & Publications
    • Newsroom
    • NAAG Policy Letters
    • Podcasts
    • Online Learning
    • Research & Data
    • Member Directory
  • Attorneys General
    • What Attorneys General Do
    • Who is my Attorney General?
    • Attorneys General Office 101
    • Research & Data
    • Awards & Recognition
    • Careers in Attorney General Offices
    • Careers in Medicaid Fraud Control Units
  • About NAAG
    • NAAG Staff
    • NAAG Leadership
    • NAAG Member Services
    • NAAG Regions
    • NAAG FAQs
    • SAGE
    • NAMFCU
    • Newsroom
    • Careers at NAAG
  • Find my AG
  • About NAMFCU
    • About the Medicaid Fraud Control Units
    • Reporting Fraud and Abuse
    • MFCU Member Hub
    • Careers with a MFCU
  • Contact Us
National Association of Attorneys General
  • Find My AG
  • Consumer Complaints
  • Member Benefits
  • Contact Us
Log In
  • Issues
    • Issues
      • Anticorruption
      • Antitrust
      • Bankruptcy
      • Charities
      • Civil Law
    • Issues
      • Consumer Protection
      • Criminal Law
      • Cyber and Technology
      • Disaster Preparedness & Response
      • Elder Justice
    • Issues
      • Ethics
      • Human Trafficking
      • Medicaid Fraud
      • Opioids
      • Powers & Duties
    • Issues
      • Public Health
      • The U.S. Supreme Court
      • Tobacco
      • Veterans & Military
  • Our Work
    • Training & Research
    • Centers
      • Center for Supreme Court Advocacy
      • Center for Tobacco & Public Health
      • Center for Consumer Protection
    • Committees
    • Initiatives
      • Presidential Initiative
      • Strategic Partnerships
      • ConsumerResources.org
      • International Fellows
      • COVID-19
    • Bankruptcy
    • Policy & Advocacy
  • Events & Training
    • Event Calendar
    • Attorney General Symposium
    • Presidential Summit
    • Capital Forum
    • Region Meetings
    • CLE Credit
    • NAAG Trainings
    • Online Learning
    • NAMFCU Trainings
    • NAAG Faculty
  • News & Resources
    • Attorney General Journal
    • Reports & Publications
    • Newsroom
    • NAAG Policy Letters
    • Podcasts
    • Online Learning
    • Research & Data
    • Member Directory
  • Attorneys General
    • What Attorneys General Do
    • Who is my Attorney General?
    • Attorneys General Office 101
    • Research & Data
    • Awards & Recognition
    • Careers in Attorney General Offices
    • Careers in Medicaid Fraud Control Units
  • About NAAG
    • NAAG Staff
    • NAAG Leadership
    • NAAG Member Services
    • NAAG Regions
    • NAAG FAQs
    • SAGE
    • NAMFCU
    • Newsroom
    • Careers at NAAG
  • Find my AG
  • About NAMFCU
    • About the Medicaid Fraud Control Units
    • Reporting Fraud and Abuse
    • MFCU Member Hub
    • Careers with a MFCU
  • Contact Us

Consumer Chief of the Month: Phil Carlson, Assistant Attorney General, Nebraska Attorney General’s Office

Home / Consumer Protection / Consumer Chief of the Month: Phil Carlson, Assistant Attorney General, Nebraska Attorney General’s Office
March 31, 2021 Consumer Protection
Share this

  • Phil Carlson
    Assistant Attorney General
    Nebraska Attorney General's Office
  • Center for Consumer Protection

Headshot of Phil Carlson, Nebraska Attorney General's OfficeI want to begin this month’s “Chief of the Month” section by saying that I take great joy in my family and to thank them publicly for their willingness to tag along with me in this crazy journey I’m going to tell you about. My wife, Jean, is a stay-at-home mom who wrangles me, our two sons: Nathan (15) and Luke (12), and our 140 lb. lap-Mastiff, Hendrix. And while we haven’t moved them to Lincoln yet (real estate is FUN!!!), they’re excited to join me and are looking forward to the many opportunities for music and culture here that aren’t available in Pierre.

If someone had told me at the beginning of March 2020 that in the next year I would not set foot on a commercial airliner, that I’d work from home more than from the office, that the country would grind to a halt, that I’d learn how to video conference, or that I’d have the job offer of a lifetime come from a friend, I’d have thought they were completely nuts. But here I am: haven’t been on a plane since 2019, I worked from home for more than three months and continue to work from home one week out of three. I saw the country grind to a halt, and that job offer is the reason why I’m writing this now. I still haven’t properly learned how to video conference.

When I graduated from law school in May 2008, I was fortunate to find a job with a private firm that did both criminal defense and civil work in Mitchell, South Dakota (home of the Corn Palace!!). I cut my teeth on six years of representing criminal defendants and dabbling in family law. I lost some jury trials, and I won some. I got involved in a local political party, and I ran for City Council unopposed, serving three years as a Councilman and several years as a County Party Chair. Through that, I got to know South Dakota’s then-Attorney General, Marty Jackley. At a political meeting in 2013, he asked me if I was ready to turn my black hat in for a white one. A year later, I decided it was time.

Marty wanted me as his Consumer Protection Attorney. I had no clue what that was about, but it sounded like worthy work. After all, I went to law school because I wanted to help people. Six weeks after I started, my office sent me to the 2014 NAAG Spring Consumer Protection Meeting in DC. At that meeting, and subsequent meetings, I met Abby Stempson, then the Nebraska CP Chief. I met Paul Singer, the head of the CP area in the Texas Attorney General’s Office, Meghan Stoppel in the Kansas AG’s CP Division, and so many other wonderful colleagues who accepted me, the brand-new CP Attorney from the flyover state that most people had never been to. Over the years the professional relationships became true friendships. Eventually, Abby left for NAAG and Nebraska hired Meghan as the Consumer Chief. Continuing the close working relationship I had with the Nebraska AG’s Office, I worked with Meghan quite a bit and was always impressed with the things that her “small” office could accomplish.

The week after the 2020 NAAG Consumer Protection (Virtual) Fall Conference, Meghan called me to tell me that she was leaving the Nebraska AG’s Office and that, along with AG Peterson, they felt that I’d be the best person to fill her role in the office. I was extremely flattered, and my family and I started exploring the possibilities and praying about the decision. Long story short, here I am!

I never thought I’d leave “The Tropical Dakota.” I love that state. My family moved there when I was 14. All the rest of my family have moved to other states, while I stayed because I loved it so much. But the importance of the work being done in the consumer realm is bigger than me and what I want. In the end, my family and I made our decision in large part because I can help more people and be more effective in this office. I relish being effective in my calling, and because of the other attorneys and staff in my office, and all my colleagues around the states and territories of this great nation, I can be. “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Prov. 27:17

When we get back to our in-person meetings, let’s go out and grab a nice stout or porter, sing some karaoke, and get back to sharpening one another. People are counting on us.

Other articles in this edition include:

  • The Impact of Recent Tax Law Changes on Consumer Protection Settlements
  • Attorney General Consumer Protection News
  • Federal Consumer Protection News and Other Items of Interest

Center for Consumer Protection logo

Related Posts

Related Posts

Center for Consumer Protection Monthly - November 2024

Center for Consumer Protection Monthly - December 2024

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday Appointed Co-Chair of the Association’s Consumer Protection Committee

Connect with NAAG and the Attorney General Community

Create a NAAG account to subscribe to our newsletters or mailing lists.

Create Account
Subscribe
Marble columns and the top of a federal building

scroll to filters

White Logo for the National Association of Attorneys General

1850 M Street NW
12th floor
Washington, DC 20036

TEL 202-326-6000
EMAIL 

Youtube
  • Issues
    • Issues
      • Anticorruption
      • Antitrust
      • Bankruptcy
      • Charities
      • Civil Law
    • Issues
      • Consumer Protection
      • Criminal Law
      • Cyber and Technology
      • Disaster Preparedness & Response
      • Elder Justice
    • Issues
      • Ethics
      • Human Trafficking
      • Medicaid Fraud
      • Opioids
      • Powers & Duties
    • Issues
      • Public Health
      • The U.S. Supreme Court
      • Tobacco
      • Veterans & Military
  • Our Work
    • Training & Research
    • Centers
      • Center for Supreme Court Advocacy
      • Center for Tobacco & Public Health
      • Center for Consumer Protection
    • Committees
    • Initiatives
      • Presidential Initiative
      • Strategic Partnerships
      • ConsumerResources.org
      • International Fellows
      • COVID-19
    • Bankruptcy
    • Policy & Advocacy
  • Events & Training
    • Event Calendar
    • Attorney General Symposium
    • Presidential Summit
    • Capital Forum
    • Region Meetings
    • CLE Credit
    • NAAG Trainings
    • Online Learning
    • NAMFCU Trainings
    • NAAG Faculty
  • News & Resources
    • Attorney General Journal
    • Reports & Publications
    • Newsroom
    • NAAG Policy Letters
    • Podcasts
    • Online Learning
    • Research & Data
    • Member Directory
  • Attorneys General
    • What Attorneys General Do
    • Who is my Attorney General?
    • Attorneys General Office 101
    • Research & Data
    • Awards & Recognition
    • Careers in Attorney General Offices
    • Careers in Medicaid Fraud Control Units
  • About NAAG
    • NAAG Staff
    • NAAG Leadership
    • NAAG Member Services
    • NAAG Regions
    • NAAG FAQs
    • SAGE
    • NAMFCU
    • Newsroom
    • Careers at NAAG
  • Find my AG
  • About NAMFCU
    • About the Medicaid Fraud Control Units
    • Reporting Fraud and Abuse
    • MFCU Member Hub
    • Careers with a MFCU
  • Contact Us
  • Find My AG
  • Consumer Complaints
  • Member Benefits
  • Contact Us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy & Cookies Notice
  • Sitemap
  • Member Login

About the National Association of Attorneys General

As the nonpartisan national forum for America's state and territory attorneys general and their staff, NAAG provides collaboration, insight, and expertise to empower and champion America's attorneys general.
Learn More

© 2025 Copyright National Association of Attorneys General

Website by Yoko Co

Internal Feedback / Report an Error

Request an Update / Report an Error

The change you are requesting will be linked to this page. The URL for the page will be included in a hidden field when the form is submitted.
Please enter your change or describe your request. Be sure to reference where the error appears on the page and what needs to be done specifically.
Upload any files that need to be linked to this page. PDF only. Submit another request if you have more than five files to upload.
Drop files here or
Accepted file types: pdf, docx, xls, Max. file size: 50 MB, Max. files: 5.

    Who is requesting this change?(Required)

    Scroll To Top
    To provide you more clarity about how we collect, store and use personal information, and your rights to control that information, we have updated our privacy policy, which also explains how we use cookies. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website.I Agree