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Vanessa Roberts Avery, age 47, of West Hartford, has been sworn in as the US Attorney for the District of Connecticut, making her the first Black woman to fill that position.
“It is an honor to return to this office, in the city where I was raised, to serve as Connecticut’s U.S. Attorney,” Avery announced.
“I look forward to working with the many talented members of this office, as well as our dedicated law enforcement partners, to enforce federal criminal and civil laws, protect our communities, and ensure justice for all who live in our state.”
Avery will now supervise a staff of approximately 68 assistant US Attorneys and 57 staff members at offices in New Haven, Hartford, and Bridgeport.
Before becoming US Attorney, Avery served as the Associate Attorney General and Chief of the Division of Enforcement and Public Protection at the Connecticut Office of the Attorney General.
According to her office, since January 2019, Avery led the affirmative litigation and investigations on behalf of the State of Connecticut in the areas of antitrust, opioids, government program fraud, consumer protection, child protection, environment, energy, finance, privacy and cybersecurity, and civil rights.
She was also the head of the COVID-19 Fraud Task Force in coordination with the US Attorney’s Office, FBI, and Chief State’s Attorney’s Office.
Prior to her time with the US Attorney’s Office, Avery was a litigation attorney at McCarter & English from 2006 to 2014, focusing on business and financial litigation, intellectual property, trust and probate, and product liability cases.
Avery is a graduate of Yale University and the Georgetown University Law Center. She is a New Haven native and graduate of the New Haven Public Schools.
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