It is a curiosity of history that while the office of the Attorney General of the United States was created by the first congress as a part of the Judiciary Act of 1789, the Department of Justice was not authorized until over eighty years later, in 1870.
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While there had been earlier calls for the creation of a separate legal department that would supervise the work of federal lawyers, it was not until after the end of the Civil War that Congress began to give serious consideration to the matter. In late 1867, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary asked Attorney General Henry Stanbery to respond to several questions concerning the efficiency of the government’s legal departments. Stanbery replied that a solicitor general was needed to argue the government’s cases before the Supreme Court, and that the centralization of the government’s legal business under one department would improve the quality of the work. In 1868, after the House Judiciary Committee asked Stanbery to respond to a similar inquiry, Representative Thomas Jenckes of Rhode Island introduced a bill to establish a department of justice. This bill was referred to the Joint Select Committee on Retrenchment, a committee impaneled to consider legislation to reduce the size and cost of government. In addition, the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Representative William Lawrence of Ohio, introduced a similar bill which was referred to that committee.
Due to the impeachment and subsequent trial of President Johnson, no action was taken on either bill during the 40th congress. In 1870, during the 41st congress, Jenckes introduced another bill to create the department, this time with the support of Lawrence. The bill passed both the House and the Senate and was signed by President Grant on June 22, 1870; on July 1 of that year, the new department came into being.
Over the [...] 150 years of its existence, the department’s role has greatly expanded. The practice of paying United States Attorneys based upon fees was discontinued in the late 19th century. The department took on the litigating of the government’s position in a number of policy issues such as civil rights, antitrust, and the environment. The department’s role in criminal law has also expanded. A separate Criminal Division provides support for the prosecution of defendants in federal courts. In addition, the department oversees the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a number of related law enforcement agencies.
From a small beginning in 1870, the department is now one of the largest in the executive branch.
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