Attorney General of Brazil

The Attorney General Office[1][2] (Portuguese: Advocacia-Geral da União, AGU) is a cabinet-level position in the Brazilian government charged with advising the Executive Branch and representing the federal government of Brazil in legal proceedings [legally known as the Union (União)].[3] The Attorney General is defined under Article 131 of the Brazilian Constitution as one of the essential functions of Brazilian judicial administration, along with the roles performed by the judicial branch, the Prosecutor's office, the public defenders and private lawyers.[1][4][5] The current Attorney General is José Levi do Amaral.[6]

Attorney General's Office
Advocacia-Geral da União
Incumbent
José Levi do Amaral
since 28 April 2020
Reports tothe President
Formation12 February 1993
Websitewww.agu.gov.br
Brazil
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The Attorney General for Brazil is appointed by the President of Brazil and confirmed by the Senate. Under the constitution, the Attorney General must be at least 35 years old.[7] All Attorneys General within the Office must be bar members in Brazil. The Attorney General of the Union is a member of the Brazilian cabinet, holds the rank of Minister, and is also the head of the Advocacia-Geral da União (AGU), which is an essential function and branch of the federal government formed by its own Attorneys.

The Attorneys who compose the AGU are divided in four careers: the Attorney for the National Treasury (Procuradores da Fazenda Nacional), who represent the federal government in tax and financial issues; the Attorney for Brazil (Advogados da União), who represent the government through general cases, the Attorney for the Federal Agencies (Procuradores Federais), who represent the federal agencies; and Attorney for the Central Bank (Procuradores do Banco Central). Their functions are not limited to the Judiciary, and they are also responsible for inside legal control of the government and international legal representation of the Republic.[1][7]

List of Attorneys General
Attorney General Period of service Appointed by
José de Castro Ferreira February 1993–May 1993 President Itamar Franco
Alexandre de Paula Dupeyrat Martins May 1993–June 1993
Tarcísio Carlos de Almeida Cunha June 1993–July 1993
Geraldo Magela da Cruz Quintão July 1993–December 1994
January 1995–January 2000 President Fernando Henrique Cardoso
Walter do Carmo Barletta January 2000
Gilmar Ferreira Mendes January 2000–June 2002
José Bonifácio Borges de Andrada June 2002–December 2002
Álvaro Augusto Ribeiro Costa January 2003–March 2007 President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
José Antônio Dias Toffoli March 2007–October 2009
Luis Inácio Lucena Adams October 2009–March 2016
José Eduardo Cardozo March 2016–May 2016 President Dilma Rousseff[4]
Fábio Medina Osório May 2016–September 2016 Acting President Michel Temer[8]
Grace Maria Mendonça September 2016–January 2019 President Michel Temer[9]
André Luiz Mendonça January 2019–April 2020 President Jair Bolsonaro
José Levi do Amaral April 2020–Present

Prosecutor General of Brazil

The prosecutorial duties of the office of the Attorney General were split off to a new Prosecutor General, named Prosecutor General of the Republic, under Article 4 of Law No. 73 of February 10, 1993. The Prosecutor General is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The office of Prosecutor General of the Republic (PGR) is an autonomous agency in charge of criminal prosecution and the defense of society in general, versus the office of the Attorney General, which represents the federal government in legal proceedings.

The Prosecutor General of the Republic (PGR) is the head of the Federal Prosecution Service (Ministério Público Federal), which is also an essential function but holds the responsibility for criminal prosecution. Differently from the AGU, the members of the Federal Prosecution Service are called "Federal Prosecutor", and are in charge of criminal prosecution at the first level of the Federal Justice. Despite the title, the Federal Prosecutor do not legally represent the Republic in international issues, which is a responsibility of the members of the AGU.[10]

Federal Public Defender General

The Federal Public Defender General oversees the federal public defenders offices.

See also

References
  1. "Advogado-Geral da União" [Attorney General of Brazil] (in Portuguese). Brasília-DF, Brasil: Portal Brasil, Governo Federal do Brasil. 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-26.
  2. The Federative Republic of Brazil. "Structure: Attorney General Office (AGU)". Accessed 20 September 2013.
  3. "Presidência da República, Casa Civil, Subchefia para Assuntos Jurídicos, LEI COMPLEMENTAR Nº 73, DE 10 DE FEVEREIRO DE 1993" (in Portuguese). Brasília-DF, Brasil: Portal Brasil, Governo Federal do Brasil. 1993. Retrieved 2014-11-18.
  4. Valente, Christiano Mendes Wolney (2013). "Histórico e Evolução da Advocacia-Geral da União" [History and Evolution of the Attorney General of Brazil] (PDF) (in Portuguese). Brasília-DF, Brasil: Portal Brasil, Governo Federal do Brasil. Retrieved 2014-11-18.
  5. "Perguntas Frequentes" [Frequently Asked Questions] (in Portuguese). Brasília-DF, Brasil: Portal Brasil, Governo Federal do Brasil. 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-26.
  6. Lucizano, Eduardo (28 April 2020). "Bolsonaro oficializa André Mendonça como novo ministro da Justiça" (in Portuguese). UOL. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  7. Alves Jr., Luís Carlos Martins (2012). "Advogado-Geral da União: notável saber jurídico e reputação ilibada" [Advocate General of the Union: remarkable legal knowledge and unblemished reputation] (in Portuguese). São Paulo, Brazil: Jus Navigandi. Retrieved 2014-11-18.
  8. "AGU Brasil desta semana destaca posse do novo advogado-geral da União, Fábio Medina" (in Portuguese). Brasília, Brazil: Adivocacia-Geral da Uniao. 2016. Retrieved 2016-05-13.
  9. http://oglobo.globo.com/brasil/michel-temer-confirma-grace-mendonca-para-agu-20077950
  10. "Sobre a Instituição: O Ministério Público Federal" [About the Institution: Prosecutor General of Brazil] (in Portuguese). Brasília, Brasil: Ministério Público Federal. 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-11-12. Retrieved 2014-11-18.
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