Charles Lee served as U.S. attorney general from 1795 to 1801. Lee's service was remarkable for the fact he served under two presidents, George Washington and John Adams. Lee, the descendent of a prominent Virginia family, also became involved in two famous cases after he left office.

Lee was born in Leesylvania, Virginia in 1758, the son of a wealthy planter family. He graduated from Princeton University in 1775 and immediately began a legal apprenticeship with a lawyer in Philadelphia. Admitted to the bar in 1780, Lee served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and a member of the Virginia Assembly. Following the War of Independence, he became the chief naval officer of the District of the Potomac.

President Washington appointed Lee U.S. attorney general in 1795. Lee, who was the third attorney general in six years, was reluctant to accept the appointment because at that time the office held no...