Appointer nomination Inaugural holder Valentin Stepankov | Term length Five years, Formation 28 February 1991 | |
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Website (Russian) http://www.genproc.gov.ru | ||
The Prosecutor General of Russia (also Attorney General of Russia, Russian: Генеральный Прокурор Российской Федерации) heads the system of official prosecution in courts known and heads the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation (Генеральная прокуратура Российской Федерации). The Prosecutor General remains the most powerful component of the Russian judicial system.
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Mission
The Office of the Prosecutor General is entrusted with:
- prosecution in court on behalf of the State;
- representation of the interests of a citizen or of the State in court in cases determined by law;
- supervision of the observance of laws by bodies that conduct detective and search activity, inquiry and pretrial investigation;
- supervision of the observance of laws in the execution of judicial decisions in criminal cases, and also in the application of other measures of coercion related to the restraint of personal liberty of citizens.
Appointment
The Prosecutor General is nominated to the office by the President of Russia and appointed by the majority of Federation Council of Russia (the Upper House of the Russian Parliament). If the nomination falls the President must nominate another candidate within the 30 days (article 12 of the Federal Law about the Office of the Prosecutor General of Russian Federation[1]). The term of authority of the Prosecutor General is five years. The resignation of the Prosecutor General before the end of his term should be approved by both the majority of Federation Council of Russia and the President.
Constitutional Independence
The Prosecutor General and his office are independent from the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches of government. The Investigative Committee of Russia, sometimes described as the "Russian FBI", is the main federal investigating authority in Russia, formed in place of the Investigative Committee of the Prosecutor General in 2011.
List of Attorneys General
Offices similar to Prosecutor General of Russia have existed in the Soviet Union (Prosecutor General of the USSR) and in the Russian Empire since January 12, 1722 (General Prosecutor of the Senate, Генерал-Прокурор Сената).