Murphy Nominates Matt Platkin as Attorney General

On Feb 3, 2022

Gov. Phil Murphy today nominated Matt Platkin to be the 62nd attorney general of New Jersey. Platkin served as chief counsel to the governor from January 2018 to October 2020. His nomination will now go to the Senate for confirmation, and he will assume the role of acting attorney general on Feb 14.

“As I look toward the upcoming four years and the challenges that lay ahead, I know that as attorney general, Matt will stand up for our New Jersey values and keep the office, and our state, moving forward,” Murphy said.

Platkin replaces former Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, who is now serving as director of the Division of Enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

“I commit to work tirelessly, alongside the 7,700 outstanding public servants who make up the Department of Law and Public Safety, to protect and defend the rights of all nine million people who call our state home,” Platkin said. “I thank Gov. Murphy for the trust and confidence he has placed in me, and I am excited to get to work.”

Platkin was born and raised in New Jersey, growing up in both Florham Park and Morristown, and graduated from Madison High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University, and his Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School, where he was an editor of the Stanford Law Review.

He began his policy career at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C., advising members of Congress on job growth and economic recovery following the 2008 financial crisis. Following graduation from law school, he practiced law at Debevoise & Plimpton in New York City. From May 2016 to November 2017, he served as policy director for Murphy for Governor.

As chief counsel, Platkin oversaw an office of more than 20 attorneys that advised the governor on all legal matters, including legislation, executive orders, and administrative regulations. He also was responsible for coordinating with the Attorney General’s Office on civil matters, including affirmative litigations, and oversaw judicial and prosecutorial nominations.

Platkin spearheaded a number of policy initiatives while serving as chief council, including gun safety and the expansion of voting rights, and played a critical role in the negotiations of three annual state budgets. Additionally, he played a role in guiding New Jersey through the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, overseeing the drafting of pandemic-related executive orders and workforce policy reforms for state government employees to maintain government services. He also contributed to the state’s successful defense of pandemic-related actions in dozens of litigations in state and federal court.

Platkin is currently a partner at Lowenstein Sandler in the White Collar Criminal Defense and Business Litigation practice groups. He is admitted to the bar in New Jersey and New York, and resides in Montclair with his wife Sophia and their son, Robert.

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