The Attorney General's Office of Uruguay (; literally "General Prosecutorial Office of the Nation") is the

Uruguayan Uruguayans () are people identified with the country of Uruguay, through citizenship or descent. Uruguay is home to people of different ethnic origins. As a result, many Uruguayans do not equate their nationality with ethnicity, but with citizen ...

government agency that prosecutes offenders, investigate crimes and accuse criminal law infractions against judges and courts of justice. It was created by Law No. 19,438 as a decentralized service.

History

The Attorney General's Office as the Public Ministry was created in 1907 during the administration of President

Claudio Williman Claudio Wílliman Gonzalez (10 October 1861 in Montevideo – 9 February 1934 in Montevideo) was a Uruguayan political figure. Background Claudio Wílliman's parents, José Williman and Antonia González, were immigrants from Galicia, Spain. Jos ...

by the same law that created the High Court –predecessor of the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

–. Until 2015, it was an agency dependent on the

Ministry of Education and Culture A ministry of education and culture is a cabinet position in the governments of several nations. In some nations the ministry of education and the ministry of culture are separate departments; in others, the ministry of education and culture al ...

, but with the promulgation of Law No. 19,334, it was established as a decentralized state service, not being part of any of the three branches of government.

Attorney General

Article One Hundred and Sixty-Eight of the

Constitution of Uruguay The Constitution of Uruguay () is the supreme law of Uruguay. Its first version was written in 1830 and its last constitutional amendment, amendment was made in 2004. Uruguay's first constitution was adopted in 1830, following the conclusion of ...

establishes that it is the responsibility of the Executive to appoint the Attorney General (; literally "Court Prosecutor and Attorney General of the Nation"). Article 46 of Law 19,483 establishes that to serve as General Attorney a person must be at least 40 years old, be natural-born citizens (or be legal citizens with ten years exercise thereof and twenty-five years of residence in the country), and have been a lawyer for ten years, or as such to have been a member of the Judiciary, the Public or Fiscal Ministry for a period of eight years.{{Cite web , title=Ley N° 19483 , url=https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/leyes/19483-2017/46 , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016021314/https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/leyes/19483-2017/46 , archive-date=2021-10-16 , access-date=2024-01-05 , website=www.impo.com.uy

References

1907 establishments in Uruguay Government agencies established in 1907 Government agencies established in 2015 2015 establishments in Uruguay