Meet newly inaugurated Utah Attorney General Derek Brown
Jan 9, 2025, 7:00 AM | Updated: Feb 1, 2025, 10:17 am
Utah Attorney General Derek Brown is photographed at the Capitol in Salt Lake City. (Scott G Winterton/Deseret News)
(Scott G Winterton/Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — After taking the official oath of office on Wednesday, Derek Brown has become Utah’s newest attorney general.
Now that he’s in office, what’s next? He joined Inside Sources to talk more about his priorities for office.
Below is a partial transcript of this interview as well as the full podcast.
KSL NewsRadio edited the following transcript for brevity and clarity.
HOST TAYLOR MORGAN: What are your priorities as you take office?
GUEST DEREK BROWN: I think the key to that is transparency. When I served in the House of Representatives, I learned that people appreciate when you are open and you make it clear to them what you’re doing. And as people understand what we’re doing in the Attorney General’s Office, we’ll see successes, there will be an increase in trust … That’s just the natural outgrowth of transparency, and I’m going to be doing a number of things proactively so that we build that feeling of not just transparency but [also] trust.
MORGAN: My understanding is that you and your family have put your assets into a blind trust … and you have officially stepped down from any non-profit boards. Is that correct?
BROWN: That’s correct… I just feel like it makes sense, in light of this position, to just eliminate any potential conflicts of interest in advance. I’m a little sad to do it because these are great people. I love being there, making a difference. But at the same time, I feel like we’ve got those organizations onto a good footing.
Related: People make Utah great, not government, says Gov. Cox at inauguration
MORGAN: [How] would you explain your role to listeners? What does the Utah attorney general do primarily?
BROWN: We have 280 attorneys, and they provide legal counsel for all the boards, commissions, and agencies of the state. Everything from the University of Utah to UDOT to DMV… So there’s literally 280 attorneys that do every conceivable area of the law… It is the largest law firm in the state of Utah, so my job is to make sure it’s also the best, most efficient, most well-funded, and well-respected law firm in the state of Utah.
Listen to the podcast below for the entire interview.
