Appeals
T. Elliot Gaiser
T. Elliot Gaiser, Solicitor General
Solicitor General

Section Phone Number: 614-466-8980
AGO Help Center: 800-282-0515

About the AGO > Service Divisions > Office of the Solicitor General

Office of the Solicitor General

The Office of the Solicitor General represents the State of Ohio and its agencies on appeals in the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit,  the Ohio Supreme Court, and other state and federal courts.

The section handles a wide range of cases, from civil rights, to election disputes, to criminal law.  It also assists the Attorney General in determining the cases that the State or its agencies will ask the U.S. or Ohio Supreme Court to review, and also the positions that the State will take before those courts.  The section, teaming up with the sections where the cases began, prepares the petitions, briefs, and other papers filed by the State on appeal.  Its lawyers also regularly participate in oral arguments before those courts.

Amicus Support and Prosecutor Support

The Attorney General often supports the legal positions of others by filing amicus briefs.  The office does so in various cases that may involve state interests and state laws or other significant issues, whether the parties are private individuals or entities, local governments, or other States.  Most often, the Attorney General files amicus briefs to support prosecutors in criminal cases.

In addition to filing amici, the Attorney General’s Office provides a wide array of other services to support the important work of law enforcement and prosecutors.  The Attorney General’s Office of the Solicitor General often consults with prosecutors and assists with strategy and brief writing, apart from filing a separate amicus.  Sometimes the Attorney General coauthors a joint brief with a prosecutor, taking on part or all of the writing.  The Office of the Solicitor General also provides moot courts for prosecutors to hone arguments before appearing in court, and section lawyers have shared argument time or have argued cases for prosecutors when requested.  In all of these tasks, the Office of the Solicitor General brings to the table its substantial experience in briefing and arguing appeals.

Below are examples of subjects that the Attorney General’s Office has addressed on behalf of prosecutors.  Included are links to the court’s decisions and the Attorney General’s briefing, all of which are intended as helpful resources for county prosecutors who may be litigating these subjects.

SUBJECT CASE NAME DECISION AG AMICUS BRIEF
Reasonable Suspicion - Anonymous Tips State v. Tidwell
(OSC 2020-0290)
Tidwell Opinion Tidwell Amicus
Ineffective Assistance - Standards of Rule 26(B) State v. Simpson
(OSC 2019-1769)
Simpson Opinion Simpson Amicus
Meaning of "Causation" in R.C. 2925.02 State v. Price
(OSC 2019-0822,
2019-0729)
Price Opinion Price Amicus
Sixth Amendment - Role of Standby Counsel State v. Hackett
(OSC 2019-0601)
Hackett Opinion Hackett Amicus
Double Jeopardy - Evidence from Acquittal State v. Smith
(OSC 2018-1831)
Smith Opinion Smith Amicus
Void-Sentence Doctrine State v. Harper
(OSC 2018-1144)
Harper Opinion Harper Amicus
Scope of Appellate Review State v. Jones
(OSC 2018-0444)
Jones Opinion Jones Amicus

Topics of Interest

Attorney General Dave Yost and 17 other Attorneys General have sent a letter to the EPA regarding the constraints on its authority by minimizing the anti-democratic harms from sue-and-settle litigation. See letter here.

Who We Are

Following is a list of the attorneys currently employed in the Office of the Solicitor General. Click on an attorney's name to learn more about him or her.