All nations have an executive branch entity responsible for the administration of justice. This entity - usually named some variation of Ministry or Department of Justice - has a different set of responsibilities in every country. Countries with federal systems have national level justice ministries and equivalent entities in their constituent states and provinces. In many nations, the ministry of justice exercises justice sector oversight but the prosecution of criminal cases is assigned to an independent institution, such as a prosecutor general’s office.
This piece explores different models for structuring justice ministries.
Jurisdiction
The jurisdiction of a justice ministry may be expansive, often encompassing prosecutorial authority and extending to the judiciary, law enforcement, corrections, and policy. For example, in Sweden, the Ministry of Justice is responsible for the judiciary, the public prosecution service, prisons, the probation system, and criminal justice strategy. Trinidad and Tobago’s Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs also has a broad remit. It is tasked with overseeing law reform initiatives, court construction, appointments to quasi-judicial bodies, alternative dispute resolution initiatives, and intellectual property regulations. The Ministry’s Director of Public Prosecutions is head of the Criminal Law Department which prosecutes serious criminal cases.
In Iceland, the Ministry of Justice has jurisdiction over the entire justice system including civil defense, public prosecution, the courts, immigration, the enforcement of sentences, the coast guard, policing, and elections. New Zealand’s Ministry of Justice leads the country’s justice sector which includes the Crown Law Office (the prosecution), the police, corrections, and the Ministry for Children. It also provides support to the country’s public defender service and civil legal aid. Although New Zealand’s courts receive administrative support from the Ministry of Justice, including with case management and claims administration, they are part of the judicial branch, not the Ministry.
Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Justice oversees the nation’s public prosecution, civil litigation, and law reporting. It also supervises drug enforcement, copyright, international commercial arbitration, legal education, and legal reform initiatives. In the Netherlands, the Ministry of Security and Justice has multiple departments such as Counterterrorism and Security, Custodial Institutions Agency, Police and Safety, and Sanctions and Victims Policy. The judiciary, which includes judges and public prosecutors, is not a department of the Ministry but it is officially characterized as a “closely linked” institution.
Japan’s Ministry of Justice collects and analyzes court data and drafts legislation relating to court operations. It regulates attorney qualifications, legal education, citizenship requirements, corporate and real estate registration, and drafts the codes for civil and commercial law and procedure. The Civil Litigation Bureau represents the state and public entities in civil and administrative litigation. However the Ministry’s criminal justice jurisdiction is limited to oversight of corrections, rehabilitation, extradition, mutual legal assistance, and the codes of criminal law procedure. Japan’s Public Prosecutors Office is an independent entity that is characterized as an “Extraordinary Organ” of the Ministry of Justice.
Separate Prosecutorial Authority
While in many countries, responsibility for criminal prosecutions is assigned to the ministry of justice, this is not the case everywhere. In Brazil, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security is tasked with overseeing the federal police, highway police, national prisons, and the immigration system. Although it has a role enforcing public safety, the prosecution of criminal cases is carried out by the Office of the Public Prosecutor, a constitutionally independent body at both the federal and state levels.
Mongolia has a similar structure. The Ministry of Justice and Internal (Home) Affairs has jurisdiction over the national police, border protection, international cooperation, and developing legal policy. The independent General Prosecutors Office supervises criminal and civil investigations and represents the state in all criminal prosecutions and civil proceedings. The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Justice administers the courts, prisons, probation, and non-residential institutions for youth offenders. Authority over criminal prosecutions is assigned to The Crown Prosecution Service.
In Singapore, the Ministry of Law regulates and administers much of nation’s legal sector including the practice of law, legal aid (civil and criminal), community mediation, insolvency, land policy, the intellectual property sector, moneylending, and the precious stones market. An independent entity, the Attorney General’s Chambers, has authority over criminal prosecutions and advises the government on criminal justice matters including legislation and treaties. It is led by the Attorney General of Singapore who also serves as the nation’s Public Prosecutor.
Namibia’s Ministry of Justice and Labor Relations provides legal advice to government ministries, coordinates legal aid for the indigent, oversees the administration of trusts and estates, and engages in reviewing and drafting legislation and court procedural rules. The Attorney General is the chief legal advisor to Namibia’s president. Prosecutorial authority lies in the Office of the Prosecutor General, an independent body within the Office of the Attorney General. In Peru, the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights advises the president on judicial issues, directs the prison system, and coordinates the country’s relations with the Roman Catholic Church. Responsibility for criminal prosecutions is vested in the Public Ministry of Peru, led by the Prosecutor of the Nation. The Maldives does not have a department of justice. The Prosecutor General’s Office oversees the criminal justice sector, including prosecutions. The Attorney General’s Office is responsible for civil litigation and dispute resolution.
Federalism
Nations with a federal system of government have both national justice ministries and equivalent institutions in their states. In the United States, the Department of Justice is responsible for the administration of justice at the national level. Each of the country’s 50 states has an Attorney General’s Office. In some states these offices have civil and criminal jurisdiction, including a role in criminal prosecutions; in other states they have limited or no criminal justice responsibilities. Germany’s Federal Ministry of Justice is not involved with criminal prosecution; it is responsible for justice sector policy, court procedural rules, substantive criminal law, and regulating the legal profession. The Federal Public Prosecutor General is responsible for prosecuting criminal appeals and federal crimes (such as terrorism and espionage) in the Federal Court of Justice. Each of Germany’s 16 states has its own public prosecutor’s office.
Brazil has a federal level ministry of justice and prosecutor’s office; each of the nation’s 26 “federative units” has its own state public prosecution service and prosecutor general. India’s 28 states each has a Directorate of Prosecution, usually under the administrative authority of the State’s Home Department. The Federal Public Ministry of the United Mexican States is responsible for justice sector administration. The National Prosecutor’s Office (Fiscalía General de la República) is institutionally independent from the executive branch and is tasked with investigating and prosecuting federal crimes. Each of Mexico’s 31 states and its one federal district have their own justice system with equivalent institutions.