Attorney General of Tonga


Introduction
The position of Attorney General was established in the Kingdom of Tonga in 1988. From 1988 to 2009, the Attorney General jointly held the office of Minister of Justice.
The current Attorney General is Neil Adsett, since 16 January 2012. He "has been a barrister and solicitor for over 30 years", and had recently been involved in Tonga's constitutional and electoral reforms. He is expected to serve for four years. He succeeded Barrie Sweetman, a Fiji lawyer who had served in an interim capacity during the previous six months.
The Tongan government in 2010 defined the Attorney General as "Chief Legal Advisor to Government", with the following responsibilities:
Following constitutional reforms, applicable as from Adsett's appointment in January 2012, the Attorney General is reportedly

Lists of attorneys general

John Cauchi, appointed in May 2009, was the first Attorney General not to hold the portfolio of Justice Minister. He was also the first non-Tongan to hold the office, being an Australian citizen. He resigned the position on 30 April 2010. It is not currently clear how many people held the position between Cauchi's resignation and Sweetman's appointment. In early 2011, the CIA Factbook stated the Attorney General was ʻAsipeli ʻAminiasi Kefu. However this may have been an error, as other sources described Kefu as the Solicitor General. Minister for Justice Samiu Vaipulu was the Attorney General just prior to Sweetman's appointment; the latter thus disassociated the two positions, which had once again been combined in a single person.
As of August 2011, the Kingdom has had at least seven Attorneys General. Matangi Tonga has noted that three of the country's Attorneys General "have been told to resign".

List of ministers of justice (post–2009)