a law officer who maintains the rights of the state in suits affecting the public interest, next in rank to the attorney general.
the chief legal officer in some states.
(initial capital letters) the law officer of the U.S. government next below the Attorney General, having charge of appeals, as to the Supreme Court.
(in Britain) the law officer of the Crown ranking next to the Attorney General (in Scotland to the Lord Advocate) and acting as his assistant
(in New Zealand) the government's chief lawyer: head of the Crown Law Office and prosecutor for the Crown
First recorded in 1525–35
How does solicitor-general compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Disney has hired prominent attorneys Beth Wilkinson, Jennifer Tatel and Paul Clement, a former U.S. solicitor general with experience arguing before the Supreme Court.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Abbott, a former Texas Supreme Court justice, and Cruz, a former state solicitor general, also discussed the recent U.S.
From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026
His sentence has been referred to the Court of Appeal by the solicitor general under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
The solicitor general, he noted, kept saying that the Civil Rights Act of 1866 denied birthright citizenship to children who were “subject to any foreign power.”
From Slate ● Apr. 1, 2026
Mr. Joseph Hensley was appointed to the office of attorney general, and Mr. John Longworth to that of solicitor general, in place of Mr. Hensley.
From History of Prince Edward Island by Campbell, Duncan
It's not feasible to have 50 different states coming out with their own determinations, Deputy Solicitor General Sarah Harris said.
From Barron's ● Apr. 27, 2026
In that brief, Solicitor General D. John Sauer said the government had “determined in its prosecutorial discretion that dismissal of this criminal case is in the interests of justice.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 6, 2026
He sat for the entirety of the government’s argument, led by Solicitor General John Sauer.
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2026
The court said it would examine the case in more detail and issued notices to the country's Attorney and Solicitor General, as well as the Bar Council of India.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2026
The justices gave little indication of which way they were leaning, though Justice Thurgood Marshall offered a clue in an exchange with Solicitor General Erwin Griswold, who was handling the government’s case.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
