State Sen. Brian E. Frosh will be sworn in today as Maryland's 44th attorney general.
During a ceremony in Annapolis, Frosh will take over from out-going Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler who held the post for eight years.
The attorney general is the state's top lawyer, charged with advising the governor and the legislature, as well as defending the state in court. Over the past two decades, the office has increasingly taken on a consumer protection and environmental watch-dog role.
Frosh, a Democrat, won the job in a landslide in November and will leave behind a 28-year career in the legislature. As a lawmaker, Frosh earned a reputation as a soft-spoken and level-headed giant. He rose to prominence as an environmentalist but in later years was best known for chairing the influential Judicial Proceedings Committee in the Senate.