CURRAN PROMOTES LITIGATION CHIEF
TO DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL

Attorney General J. Joseph Curran, Jr., announced today that he has promoted his Chief of Litigation, Maureen M. Dove, to the position of Deputy Attorney General, filling the vacancy created by the departure of Carmen Shepard in December 2002. Dove will share duties with current Deputy Attorney General Donna Hill Staton, who has served in that capacity since 1997. Dove has been with the Office of the Attorney General since 1985, at the Department of Aging and Correctional Litigation, as Deputy Counsel at the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and as Deputy Chief and then Chief of Litigation since 1997.

"Maureen has excelled in every position she has held during her tenure with the Office," Attorney General Curran said. "Her professionalism, toughness and experience will serve her well in her new role as Deputy."

Dove has handled several high profile cases for the office, playing a key role in the lawsuit against Big Tobacco, which resulted in a $4.4 billion settlement for Maryland, and the subsequent enforcement of the Master Settlement Agreement. Additionally, she has represented the State in its major litigation for years, in such issues as alleged racial profiling, abuse of youths at Boot Camps, deinstitutionalization of various populations in State care, the bankruptcy of a Life Care Community and various civil rights and governmental issues. She was a lead member of the legal team that recently argued before the Supreme Court in Virginia v. Maryland and the legal team that resolved the CareFirst litigation in June of this year.

Maureen is a graduate, cum laude and Order of the Coif, of the University of Maryland Law School and the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. Prior to joining the Attorney General's Office, she was an attorney with Legal Aid Bureau, Inc., in Montgomery and Prince George's County, specializing in elder law.

"I am honored to serve as Joe Curran's Deputy Attorney General and excited to meet the challenges that will come during this next phase of my career," Dove said.

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