Hartford, CT – Attorney General William Tong announced today he has appointed Eileen Meskill to serve as Deputy Attorney General, succeeding Margaret Q. Chapple who will retire this month after more than 30 years of service to the Office of the Attorney General, including four as Deputy Attorney General.
“I am very excited to appoint Eileen Meskill as the next Deputy Attorney General. A tested and experienced litigator and leader in the Office of the Attorney General, Eileen comes to these responsibilities as one of the most well-prepared deputies ever to assume the role. There is so much work ahead of us—to ensure access to quality healthcare for all, protect our personal privacy and data, and to keep our kids safe online and from the dangerous effects of social media, among so many other challenges. I know Eileen is the right person to lead us on these critical efforts,” said Attorney General Tong.
“I’m deeply honored and grateful to the Attorney General to be entrusted with this important role. I have worked for the Office for over 25 years and am thrilled to follow in my father’s footsteps of public service and leadership to our State. I am sure if he were here today he would be extremely proud,” said Eileen Meskill.
She is the daughter of Governor Thomas J. Meskill, who also served as a Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Eileen Meskill will be sworn in by Connecticut Supreme Court Justice Gregory T. D’Auria at 3 p.m. today, January 4 at the Office of the Attorney General.
Eileen Meskill currently serves as the Associate Attorney General and Chief of the Division of Government Administration, overseeing the functions of the Office’s Child Support & Collections, Infrastructure & Economic Development and Special Litigation sections.
She joined the office in 1997 after working as an associate with the firm of Gaffney, Kane, Reynolds & Sullivan. Eileen has deep experience across numerous sections in the office, including Health and Education, Consumer Protection and Infrastructure & Economic Development. She has represented multiple state agencies in complex and high impact cases, trying and arguing cases in the Connecticut Superior Courts, Connecticut Appellate and Supreme Courts, as well as the U.S. District Court, and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
Prior to her appointment as Associate Attorney General, she served as Chief of the Infrastructure and Economic Development Section, where she oversaw the representation of many agencies, including, but not limited to the Department of Transportation, Department of Administrative Services, Department of Housing, and the Department of Motor Vehicles. In this role, in addition to supervising the section, she negotiated and mediated large construction claims, reviewed, advised and approved contracts for the agencies, and consulted and advised the Attorney General and Office leadership on transportation specific issues such as condemnations, construction, contracts, procurement law and administrative appeals.
Eileen graduated from Fairfield University with a degree in Economics and from the University of Connecticut School of Law. She is married to her husband, Drew Gallupe, and has two stepchildren. They reside together New Britain.
Attorney General Tong thanked Deputy Attorney General Chapple for her extraordinary service to the state and congratulated her on her well-earned retirement. She briefly retired in 2015, agreeing to return to the Office of the Attorney General to serve as Deputy.
“In an unprecedented and disruptive time, Peggy Chapple has been exactly the right person to serve as Deputy Attorney General. The state would not have persevered through the COVID pandemic as well as we have, and we would not have kept as many people safe and saved as many lives without her steely and committed leadership and devotion to public service. And there is no doubt we would not have accomplished much of what we have accomplished without her. We will miss her, and we are grateful for all that she has given us,” said Attorney General Tong.
