Attorney general


In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enforcement and prosecutions, or even responsibility for legal affairs generally. In practice, the extent to which the attorney general personally provides legal advice to the government varies between jurisdictions, and even between individual office-holders within the same jurisdiction, often depending on the level and nature of the office-holder's prior legal experience.
Where the attorney general has ministerial responsibility for legal affairs in general, the ministerial portfolio is largely equivalent to that of a Minister of Justice in some other countries.
The term was originally used to refer to any person who holds a general power of attorney to represent a principal in all matters. In the common law tradition, anyone who represents the state, especially in criminal prosecutions, is such an attorney. Although a government may designate some official as the permanent attorney general, anyone who came to represent the state in the same way could, in the past, be referred to as such, even if only for a particular case. Today, however, in most jurisdictions, the term is largely reserved as a title of the permanently appointed attorney general of the state, sovereign or other member of the royal family.
Civil law jurisdictions have similar offices, which may be variously called "public prosecutor general", "procurators", "advocates general", "public attorneys", and other titles. Many of these offices also use "attorney general" or "attorney-general" as the English translation of the title, although because of different historical provenance, the nature of such offices is usually different from that of attorneys-general in common law jurisdictions.

Etymology

In regard to the etymology of the phrase Attorney General, Steven Pinker writes that the earliest citation in the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1292: "Tous attorneyz general purrount lever fins et cirrographer". The phrase was borrowed from Anglo-Norman French when England was ruled by Normans after the conquest of England in the 11th-century. As a variety of French, which was spoken in the law courts, schools, universities and in sections of the gentry and the bourgeoisie, the term relating to government was introduced into English.
The phrase attorney general is composed of a noun followed by the postpositive adjective general and as other French compounds its plural form also appears as attorneys generals. As compared to major generals, a term that also originates from French and also has a postpositive adjective, it also appears incorrectly as "attorney generals". While Steven Pinker writes: "So if you are ever challenged for saying attorney-generals, ''mother-in-laws, passerbys... you can reply, 'They are the very model of the modern major general'''".
The modern title of major general is a military rank in which the word "general" is not used as an adjective but as a noun, which can be pluralized.
In modern public discourse, attorneys general are often referred to or addressed as “general”. In this construction, the word “general” is an adjective, and its use as a noun is incorrect. Attorneys general, despite carrying the title of "general", are not military officers and carry no rank.

Attorneys-general in common law and hybrid jurisdictions

Attorneys-General in common law jurisdictions, and jurisdictions with a legal system which is partially derived from the common law tradition, share a common provenance.

Australia

In Australia, the attorney-general is the chief law officer of the Crown and a member of the Cabinet. The Attorney-General is the minister responsible for legal affairs, national and public security, and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation. Michelle Rowland is the current Attorney-General. The Australian states each have separate attorneys-general, who are state ministers with similar responsibilities to the federal minister with respect to state law.
Functions of the state and federal attorneys-general include the administration of the selection of persons for nomination to judicial posts, and authorizing prosecutions. In normal circumstances, the prosecutorial powers of the attorney-general are exercised by the Director of Public Prosecutions and staff; however, the attorney-general maintains formal control, including the power to initiate and terminate public prosecutions and take over private prosecutions. Statutory criminal law provides that prosecutions for certain offences require the individual consent of the attorney-general. This is generally for offences whose illegality is of a somewhat controversial nature or where there is perceived to be a significant risk that prosecutions of a political nature may be embarked upon. The Attorney-General also generally has the power to issue certificates legally conclusive of certain facts ; the facts stated in such certificates must be accepted by the courts and cannot legally be disputed by any parties. The Attorney-General also has the power to issue a nolle prosequi with respect to a case, which authoritatively determines that the state does not wish to prosecute the case, so preventing any person from doing so.
For the attorneys-general of the various states and territories of Australia see:

Barbados

British Virgin Islands

Canada

The Attorney General of Canada is a separate title held by the Canadian Minister of Justice, a member of the Cabinet. The Minister of Justice is concerned with questions of policy and their relationship to the justice system. In their role as attorney general, they are the chief law officer of the Crown.
A separate cabinet position, the Minister of Public Safety, formerly the "Solicitor General", administers the law enforcement agencies of the federal government.
For the attorneys-general of the various provinces of Canada see:
The Attorney General of the Republic is an independent official of the Republic of Cyprus, the head of the Legal Service of the state and the legal advisor to the Government of Cyprus. Hierarchically, it is the third highest institution of the state, after the President of the Republic and the President of the Parliament. This institution originates from the time of the British rule, and was preserved even after the independence of Cyprus in 1960 due to the Anglo-Saxon law which continues to exist in Cyprus, as in other Commonwealth states.

Fiji

In Fiji, the role of the attorney general is defined as "providing essential legal expertise and support to the Government". More specific functions include "legislative drafting", "legal aid", "the prerogative of mercy", "liquor licensing" and "film censorship".
The current Attorney General is Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum. In January 2008, he sparked controversy by accepting other government positions in addition to his role as attorney general. Sayed-Khaiyum is currently responsible also for "Public Enterprise, Electoral Reform and Anti-Corruption". An article in the Fiji Times pointed out that "never before in the history of this nation has the Attorney-General held a portfolio dealing with matters other than the law and the judiciary", and criticised the decision.

Grenada

Hong Kong

The Secretary for Justice, known as the attorney-general before the handover of Hong Kong in 1997, is the legal adviser to the Hong Kong Government and heads the Department of Justice. They are assisted by five law officers, namely:
  • the Solicitor General who heads the Legal Policy Division,
  • the Director of Public Prosecutions who head the Prosecutions Division,
  • the Law Officer who heads the Civil Law Division,
  • the Law Officer who heads the International Law Division, and
  • the Law Draftsman who heads the Law Drafting Division
Crimes and offences are prosecuted at the suit of the Secretary of Justice.
The Secretary of Justice, appointed by the Chinese government on the advice of the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, is an ex officio member of the Executive Council of Hong Kong. The position is normally held by a legal professional, and was, before July 2002, a civil service position.

India

The Attorney General for India is the Indian government's chief legal advisor, and is its principal Advocate before the Supreme Court of India. They are appointed by the President of India on the advice of the Union Cabinet under Article 76 of the Constitution and hold office during the pleasure of the President. The current Attorney General for India is R. Venkataramani.

Ireland

The Attorney General of Ireland is the legal adviser to the Government and is therefore the chief law officer of the State. The attorney general as of 17 December 2022 is Rossa Fanning, SC.
The Office of the Attorney General is made up of a number of different offices:
  • The Attorney General's Office containing the Advisory Counsel to the Attorney General
  • The Office of Parliamentary Counsel to the Government containing the Parliamentary Counsel who draft legislation and have responsibilities in the area of Statute Law revision
  • The Chief State Solicitor's Office containing the solicitors representing the Attorney and the State.
Since the enactment of the Prosecution of Offenses Act 1974, the responsibility for the prosecution of indictable criminal offences is mostly in the hands of the Director of Public Prosecutions who is independent of the attorney general and the State.