Paula Dow

Paula T. Dow (born 1955) served as the 58th Attorney General of New Jersey, appointed by incoming Governor Chris Christie. Her nomination to a full term was confirmed by the New Jersey Senate in February 2010. She is the first African-American woman to be attorney general in state history.

On December 12, 2011, Christie announced that Dow would temporarily become the First Deputy General Counsel for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and that he had nominated Jeffrey S. Chiesa, then Christie's chief counsel, to become the new Attorney General. The governor also said he would file a notice of intent to nominate Dow to a Superior Court judgeship in Essex County. Chiesa was sworn in as Dow's successor on January 10, 2012.

Biography

Dow was raised in Yeadon, Pennsylvania outside of Philadelphia. She graduated from Franklin & Marshall College with a B.A. degree in 1977. In 1978 she worked as a summer associate for the Camden law firm Tomar, Parks, Seliger, Simonoff & Adourian. She received her J.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1980. From 1980 to 1987 she worked as a lawyer for Exxon in Texas, New Jersey and New York, advising on environmental and labor issues.