Rowena Collins Rice

Biography

Rowena Collins Rice was appointed Director-General of the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) at the end of 2012.

Education

Rowena has a first class law degree from Oxford University and qualified as a solicitor in 1995.

Career

Rowena’s civil service career has spanned both legal professional and justice and constitutional policy work. Beginning at the Home Office in 1985, it included spells at the Law Officers’ and Treasury Solicitor’s Departments and the former Department for Constitutional Affairs.

She was appointed a Legal Director at HM Revenue & Customs in 2005, and became Legal Adviser to the Ministry of Justice in 2007, before joining the Ministry’s Executive Board the following year as Director-General (Democracy, Constitution and Law) and Chief Legal Officer.

After the 2010 general election Rowena moved with her constitutional policy portfolio and team to the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office at the Cabinet Office, subsequently adding management responsibilities for the Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland Offices.

In 2011 she was appointed Secretary to the Leveson Inquiry into press standards, set up by the Prime Minister in response to the phone-hacking scandal. The Inquiry reported in November 2012.