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The Attorney General of Ireland ( ga, An tArd-Aighne) is a constitutional officer who is the legal adviser to the
Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
and is therefore the chief law officer of the State. The attorney general is not a member of the Government but does participate in cabinet meetings when invited and attends government meetings. The current attorney general is
Rossa Fanning Rossa A. Fanning (born 1976) is an Irish barrister and legal academic who has been the Attorney General of Ireland since December 2022. His practice at the Bar has been primarily focused on commercial litigation and insolvency. Early life Fa ...
, SC.


Overview

The office and functions of the attorney general are outlined in Article 30 of the
Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...
. The attorney general has always been a
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and givin ...
rather than a solicitor, although this is not a requirement for the post. In cases where a barrister nominated by the Taoiseach to be the attorney general was not a
senior counsel The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel (post-nominal letters: SC) is given to a senior lawyer in some countries that were formerly part of the British Empire. "Senior Counsel" is used in current or former Commonwealth countries or jurisdictio ...
at the time, the government of the day has made them one first, as occurred in the cases of John Rogers BL and John M. Kelly BL. The attorney general advises the Government on the constitutionality of bills and treaties, and presents the Government's case if the
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
refers any bill to the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
under Article 26 of the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these pr ...
before signing it. The attorney general has few prosecution duties; these are limited to functions under the various Fisheries Acts and
Extradition Extradition is an action wherein one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, over to the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdi ...
Acts. Instead, the
Director of Public Prosecutions The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the office or official charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world. The title is used mainly in jurisdictions that are or have been members o ...
has responsibility for all other criminal prosecutions in the State. The Office of the Attorney General, is made up of a number of different offices: * The Attorney General's Office (located at Merrion Street, Dublin 2) containing the advisory counsel to the attorney general (providing legal advice) * The Office of the Parliamentary Counsel (also located at Merrion Street, Dublin 2) containing the Parliamentary Counsel who draft legislation and have responsibilities in the area of Statute Law revision * The Chief State Solicitor's Office (located at Little Ship Street, Dublin 8) containing the solicitors representing the Attorney and the State who provide litigation, conveyancing and other transactional services * The Statute Law Revision Unit which simplifies and improves the body of statute law Part of the attorney general's function has been to identify and prepare the repeal of all legislation passed before independence. This includes laws of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was a sovereign state in the British Isles that existed between 1801 and 1922, when it included all of Ireland. It was established by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the Kingdom of Grea ...
, Britain, England, and the Irish Parliament. For example, the killing of cattle in Dublin is still regulated, in part by an Irish act of 1743, while the "Treatment of Foreign Merchants" is governed by ''25 Edw. 1
Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter of Freedoms"), commonly called (also ''Magna Charta''; "Great Charter"), is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by t ...
c. 30'', an act of the
Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advise ...
dated 1297.


History

The Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924 provided a legislative basis for the Attorney-General of the Irish Free State ( ga, Príomh-Atúrnae Shaorstáit Éireann). This act provided it with: It also transferred the following bodies to the office of the Attorney-General: *Chief Crown Solicitor for Ireland. *Chief State Solicitor's Department and all local State Solicitors. *Treasury Solicitor for Ireland. *Parliamentary Draftsman. *Charities. *Estates of illegitimate deceased persons. Article 30 of the
Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...
approved on 1 July 1937 established the position of Attorney General of Ireland, providing it with a constitutional basis for the first time. Article 59 provided that the attorney general of Saorstát Éireann before the coming into operation of the Constitution would become the attorney general on the coming into operation of the Constitution without the need for an appointment, which occurred on 29 December 1937. Until 1974, the attorney general was responsible for the prosecution of criminal offences. In 1974, the position of Director of Public Prosecutions was established. Local state solicitors were transferred to the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2007.


Other functions

Two less well known but significant roles played by all Irish Attorneys General to date are as the "leader of the Irish Bar" and as a Bencher of the
King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns ( ir, Cumann Onórach Óstaí an Rí) is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environment ...
. The acceptance by Attorneys General of these non-statutory and often secretive roles upon taking office throughout the years has been questioned and criticised as inappropriate for a Constitutional office-holder. In 1990, the Irish Government's Fair Trade Commission stated that " have recommended that the Bar Council should be the primary disciplinary body for barristers, and it does not include any members of the judiciary. The Attorney General is, however, a member of the Bar Council, and the Commission believes that it is preferable that he should not be involved when the Bar Council is exercising its disciplinary function. The Attorney General is also a member of the Council of King's Inns, and the Commission believes it to preferable that he should not participate in any disciplinary activity pursued by that body either. Indeed, in general, we find the membership of these bodies by the Attorney General to be somewhat anomalous."''Fair Trade Commission Report of Study into Restrictive Practices in the Legal Profession'' (Dublin: Government of Ireland Stationery Office, 1990) Paragraph 16.51


List of attorneys general


Notes


See also

*
Politics of the Republic of Ireland Ireland is a parliamentary, representative democratic republic and a member state of the European Union. While the head of state is the popularly elected President of Ireland, it is a largely ceremonial position, with real political power bein ...


References


External links


Office of the Attorney GeneralIrish Statute Book, produced by the Office of the Attorney General
{{Judiciary of the Republic of Ireland, state=collapsed Politics of the Republic of Ireland Prosecution