Meet Maryland's assistant attorney general--a Messiah grad

Natalie Bilbrough ’12 took her years of education from Messiah University and the University of Maryland’s Francis King Carey School of Law to become Maryland’s assistant attorney general in February 2024.

“We are the lawyers for the state, meaning we represent the state, the state agencies and the state public officials in legal matters, which ultimately means we are representing the Maryland public,” she said.

Work life consists of a lot of reading, writing, research and mulling over issues with colleagues. She works in the Office of the Counsel to the Maryland General Assembly, Maryland’s legislative body. The main part of her job involves responding—in writing—to requests for advice from members of the Maryland General Assembly regarding potential legislation. She and the rest of the Assembly also handle other legal issues that arise for the legislators, including representation in court, if needed. 

“Literally any problem could arise at any time,” she said.

A history major with a pre-law minor at Messiah, she says she chose to attend the University because she was looking for a smaller liberal arts college with a good reputation. During her tour as a prospective student, she found Messiah to be a good fit.

For her, Messiah reinforced the ideas of service to others, the importance of community and pursuing a life of learning from others. The analytical skills she learned as a history major in the Honors Program and through her study abroad at Oxford University prepared her to excel at law school.

“Do the best you can academically in undergrad. Push yourself to try new things that will hone your writing skills, your oral communication and just thinking on your feet. That could mean writing for the newspaper, working in the Writing Center or presenting a paper at a symposium,” said Bilbrough. 

Since the Messiah campus is only minutes from the state capital of Harrisburg, she took the opportunity as a student to talk with local attorneys and learn about the inner workings of state government first-hand. 

“My Messiah education shaped me at a high level by teaching me how to pursue a vocation, using my talents and interests in a way that meets the needs of the world,” she said.