The Attorney General of the State ''(')'', or also, Prosecutor General, is the head of the

Public Prosecutor's Office Public prosecutor's offices are criminal justice bodies attached to the judiciary. They are separate from the courts in Germany, Austria and the German-speaking parts of Switzerland, and are called the Staatsanwaltschaft (). This kind of offi ...

(''Ministerio Fiscal''), the independent body within the Judiciary, that is tasked with promoting the operation of justice in defence of the

rule of law The essence of the rule of law is that all people and institutions within a Body politic, political body are subject to the same laws. This concept is sometimes stated simply as "no one is above the law" or "all are equal before the law". Acco ...

, defending citizens’ rights, defending the

public interest In social science and economics, public interest is "the welfare or well-being of the general public" and society. While it has earlier philosophical roots and is considered to be at the core of democratic theories of government, often paired ...

, with protecting the independence of the courts and with ensuring the public interest is satisfied through the courts. The Prosecutor General is a civil servant, appointed and dismissed by the

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

, after a process that includes a nomination by the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

, a hearing before the

General Council of the Judiciary The General Council of the Judiciary (, CGPJ) is the national council of the judiciary of Spain. It is the constitutional body that governs all the Judiciary of Spain, such as courts, and judges, as it is established by the Spanish Constitut ...

and an appearance before the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

to evaluate their suitability (although approval by Congress is not required). That is, the three powers of State participate in the appointment. The candidate must be a Spanish jurist of recognised prestige and with more than fifteen years effective exercise of their profession. The term of the Prosecutor General is a maximum of four years and may not be renewed (except where they have held the position for less than two years) and in any event terminates when the Government completes its term. They can not be removed from office except for as defined by law (disability or serious illness, serious or repeated breach of duties, and other prohibitions).

Functions

According to the law of the Public Prosecutor's Office: The functions of the Public Prosecutor (Attorney General) include: * ensuring that the judicial function is performed effectively in accordance with the laws and within the stipulated time limits through the necessary actions, appeal procedures and other measures; * acting in the criminal process by ensuring that the judicial authority takes the appropriate precautionary measures and carries out investigations aimed at establishing the facts; * acting in civil proceedings specified by law that affect the public interest or the interests of minors, the disabled or the underprivileged until the normal representation mechanisms are provided; * performing the functions assigned to them by the relevant legislation in cases involving the criminal liability of minors, in order to serve the best interests of the minor.

Public Prosecutor's Office

The Office of the Public Prosecutor is an assistant body of the Public Prosecutor. It consists of the following bodies: * The Prosecution Inspection ** Performs inspection powers by permanent delegation of the Attorney General of the State, without prejudice to the functions of ordinary inspection of the Superior Prosecutions and the inspection functions of the Chief Prosecutors with respect to the Prosecutors who depend on them. Inside of the Prosecution Inspection there is a Permanent Section of Valuation to centralize the information on merit and capacity of the Prosecutors in order to give support to the Prosecution Ministry's Council when reporting discretionary appointments of the Prosecutor Career. * The Technical Secretariat ** Through its studies, investigations and reports, it is a constant support body for the Attorney General, to exercise the superior leadership of the Public Prosecution Ministry, also carrying out the preparatory work for the Joint of Prosecutors. Collaborates in the planning of the training of the Prosecutors whose competence is attributed to the Center for Legal Studies and assumes the functions that in the field of international legal cooperation the law attributes to the Public Prosecution. * The Support Unit ** Performs representation work and institutional relations with public authorities, as well as communication and attention to the citizen. It is responsible for the analysis and preparation of reports related to the organization and operation of the Public Prosecution Ministry in matters of statistics, information technology, personnel, material means, information and documentation. In general, it carries out functions of support and assistance to the Prosecutor General, to the prosecutors assigned to the Prosecution Ministry, to the Prosecution Ministry's Council and to the Joint of Prosecutors who do not correspond to the Inspection or to the Technical Secretariat. * The Special Prosecutors ** Prosecutor for Violence against Women ** Prosecutor for Environment and Urbanism ** Prosecutor for the Protection and Reform of Minors ** Prosecutor for Workplace Accidents ** Prosecutor for Traffic Safety ** Prosecutor for Immigration ** Prosecutor for International Criminal Cooperation ** Prosecutor for Computer Crimes ** Prosecutor for Historical Memory

Functions

Public Prosecutor's Office

List of attorneys general

See also

References

Notes

Bibliography