Whose Interest? How Attorney General Paxton Weaponizes his Administrative Power Against the Public Interest

Kaylie Vasquez, University of Minnesota Law SchoolFollow

Abstract

Attorney Generals wield immense power throughout the country and are charged with protecting the interests of the public. In Texas, the Attorney General manipulates this power for political capital and ideological warfare. This Note examines the case of Annunciation House v. Paxton and the administrative powers granted to the Texas Attorney General. Specifically, this Note examines the Request to Examine statute that authorizes the Texas Attorney General to investigate any business organization at anytime for any reason. It does so by 1) discussing the specific statute and analyzing its weakness; 2) evaluating the Request to Examine at issue in Annunciation House; and 3) discussing the implications of the Request to Examine statute and civil investigatory powers throughout the country in general. Ultimately, this Note argues that civil investigations should be subject to reasonable belief requirements and that Attorneys General should be accountable to the public’s interest and not their own.

Volume

Issue

First Page

215

Page Number

215

DOI

https://doi.org/10.24926/25730037.740

Recommended Citation

Kaylie Vasquez, Whose Interest? How Attorney General Paxton Weaponizes his Administrative Power Against the Public Interest, 44 L. & Inequality 215 (2026).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/lawineq/vol44/iss2/7