Formed 1 December 1991 | Employees 15,000 (2017) | |
Jurisdiction Constitution of Ukraine Headquarters 13/15, Riznytska st, Kyiv Motto "Закон. Честь. Гідність." ("Law. Honour. Dignity.") Agency executive Yuriy Lutsenko (since 12 May 2016), Attorney General | ||
The Prosecutor General of Ukraine (also Attorney General of Ukraine, Ukrainian: Генеральний прокурор України) heads the system of official prosecution in courts known as the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Генеральна прокуратура України). The term of authority of the Prosecutor is six years. She or he is appointed and dismissed by the president with parliamentary consent. Parliament can force the Prosecutor General to resign after a vote of no-confidence.
Contents
- Definition
- Duties and powers
- Supporting agencies
- List of Prosecutors General of Soviet Ukraine
- List of prosecutor of Soviet Ukraine
- List of Prosecutors General
- References
The current Prosecutor General is Yuriy Lutsenko (since 12 May 2016).
There are seven more additional deputies to the Prosecutor General.
Definition
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 pre-trial 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.
The Prosecutor General is appointed to office by the President of Ukraine with the consent of the Verkhovna Rada (parliament). The Prosecutor is dismissed from office by the President. The Verkhovna Rada may express no confidence in the Prosecutor which will results, after a required number of votes is achieved, in their resignation from office.
Duties and powers
Both in theory and in practice, the Prosecutor General and their office wield considerable power. (For instance, only the Prosecutor General and the Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine may file requests to the Verkhovna Rada to withhold the immunity of deputies from detainment or arrest.) This is a legacy of the Soviet Union state prosecutor’s office founded in 1937 of which the current Prosecutor General office is the successor. After Ukraine's independence in 1991 many of the Prosecutor General office functions were expanded. In 2016 the powers of the Prosecutor General office were decreased and (starting in January 2017) limited to:
On annual basis the Prosecutor General has to report to the Verkhovna Rada about the legal situation in the country.
The Prosecutor General creates a collegiate council consisting out of the Prosecutor General, their first and other deputies, the Prosecutor of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, and other leaders of prosecution agencies.
The independent agency General Inspectorate oversees "the legality of actions undertaken by prosecutors and investigators of the whole prosecution system".
Supporting agencies
List of Prosecutors General of Soviet Ukraine
In the early years of the Ukrainian SSR, the office of Prosecutor General was merged with the Minister of Justice until spring 1936.
List of prosecutor of Soviet Ukraine
From 1937 to 1991 the republican prosecution office of Ukraine was subordinated to the Prosecutor General of the Soviet Union. Until 1937 the Prosecutor General of Ukraine was appointed by the higher bodies of state power of Ukraine.
List of Prosecutors General
This list shows prosecutors of independent Ukraine. In the absence of the Prosecutor General, the office is headed by their First Deputy as the acting Prosecutor General.
Prior to January 2017 the term of authority of the Prosecutor was five years. Since January 2017 this was increased to six years.
Legend:
Notes: