I hereby give My sanction to the Public Procurator's Office Law for which the concurrence of the Imperial Diet has been obtained and cause the same to be promulgated.
Signed:HIROHITO, Seal of the Emperor
This fifteenth day of the fourth month of the twenty-second year of Showa (April 15, 1947)
Countersigned: Prime Minister YOSHIDA Shigeru
Minister of Justice KIMURA Tokutaro
THE PUBLIC PROCURATOR'S OFFICE LAW
Article 1. Public procurator's offices shall be offices at which all business matters handled by public procurators shall be conducted.
The public procurator's offices shall be the Supreme Public Procurator's Office, the High Public Procurator's Office, the District Public Procurator's Office and the Local Public Procurator's Office.
Article 2. The Supreme Public Procurator's Office shall correspond to the Supreme Court, a High Public Procurator's Office to a High Court, a District Public Procurator's Office to a District Court and a Local Public Procurator's Office to a Summary Court.
The location of the Supreme Public Procurator's Office and denominations and locations of the other public procurator's offices shall be determined by Government Ordinance.
The Minister of Justice may, when he deems it necessary, establish branches to conduct a part of business of a High Public Procurator's Office or of a District Public Procurator's Office, corresponding to the Branches of a High Court or of a District Court respectively.
Article 3. Public procurators shall be the Procurator-General, the Assistant Procurator-General, Superintending Procurators, Procurators and Assistant Procurators.
Article 4. In criminal cases, public procurators shall bring public action, request the proper application of law by courts, and supervise the execution of judgments;in other cases which fall under jurisdiction of a court, procurators may, when they deem it necessary in connection with their official duties, request information from, or express opinions to, a court, and, as representatives of the public interest, perform such functions as are authorized by other laws.
Article 5. Public procurators shall belong to any one of the public procurator's offices and, unless otherwise provided by law, shall exercise those functions mentioned in the preceding Article concerning matters under the jurisdiction of the court corresponding to the public procurator's office to which they belong, within the area over which the court has jurisdiction.
Article 6. Public procurators may investigate any criminal offence.
The relationship between public procurators and those persons who, according to other statutes and ordinances, also have a duty of criminal investigation shall be provided for by the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Article 7. The Procurator-General, as a Chief of the Supreme Public Procurator's Office, shall manage the business affairs of his office, and shall control and supervise the officials of all the public procurator's offices.
The Assistant Procurator-General shall belong to the Supreme Public Procurator's Office and assist the Procurator-General, and shall perform the functions of the Procurator-General in case the latter is prevented from discharging his functions or his post is vacant.
Articl 8. A Superintending Procurator, as a Chief of a High Public Procurator's Office, shall manage the business affairs of his office, and shall control and supervise the officials of the office or those officials of a District Public Procurator's Office or of a Local Public Procurator's Office, within the area of jurisdiction of the court corresponding to his office.
Article 9. There shall be one Chief Procurator in each District Public Procurator's Office, who is appointed from among first class procurators.
A Chief Procurator shall manage the business affairs of his office, and shall control and supervise the officials of the office or those officials of a Local Public Procurator's Office within the area of jurisdiction of the Court corresponding to his office.
Article 10. In a Local Public Procurator's Office having two or more procurators or having Procurator and Assistant Procurator, there shall be one senior procurator, who is appointed from among procurators.
In a Local Public Procurator's Office where there is a senior procurator he shall manage the business affairs of his office and shall control and supervise the officials of the office;in the other Local Public Procurator's Office, a Procurator or an Assistant Procurator who belongs to the office (in case there are two or more Assistant Procurators, the Assistant Procurator designated by a Chief Procurator) shall manage such business affairs and shall control and supervise the officials of his office.
Article 11. The Procurator-General, Superintending Procurators and Chief Procurators may cause public procurators whom they control and supervise to exercise a part of the functions mentioned in Art.7 par.1, Art.8 and Art.9 par.2.
Article 12. The Procurator-General, Superintending Procurators and Chief Procurators may themselves conduct the business of public procurators whom they control and supervise or may transfer it to other public procurators whom they control and supervise.
Article 13. When the Procurator-General and the Assistant Procurator-General, Superintending Procurators or Chief Procurators are prevented from discharging their functions or their posts are vacant, other public procurators of the same office shall perform temporarily the functions of the Procurator-General, a Superintending Procurator or a Chief Procurator in an order determined by the Minister of Justice.
When a public procurator who conducts the business of administration within a Local Public Procurator's Office is prevented from discharging his functions or his post is vacant, another public procurator designated by a Chief Procurator shall perform temporarily his functions.
Article 14. The Minister of Justice may control and supervise generally the public procurators in regard to their functions provided for in Articles 4 and 6. However, in regard to the examination and disposition of particular cases he may control only the Procurator-General.
Article 15. The Procurator-General, the Assistant Procurator-General and Superintending Procurators shall be first class officials and their appointments and dismissals shall be attested by the Emperor.
Procurators shall be first or second class officials and Assistant Procurators shall be second class officials.
First class public procurators shall be appointed and dismissed by the Cabinet, and second class public procurators shall be appointed and dismissed by the Prime Minister.
Article 16. Superintending Procurators, Procurators and Assistant Procurators shall be assigned to their positions by the Minister of Justice.
An Assistant Procurator may be assigned only to a public procurator's position in a Local Public Procurator's Office.
Articl 17. The Minister of Justice shall designate from among the Procurators of a High Public Procurator's Office or of a District Public Procurator's Office those persons who shall serve at Branch High Public Procurator's Offices or Branch District Public Procurator's Offices.
Article 18. Public procurators of the second class shall be appointed from among the following categories of persons:
1. Persons who have completed their studies as judicial apprentices;
2. Persons who have held positions as judges;
3. Persons who have held positions, for three years or longer as professors or assistant professors of legal science in universities or colleges provided by Government Ordinance.
Assistant Procurators may, notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, be appointed from among the following categories of persons, through selections by the Assistant Procurators Selection Committee:
1. Persons who have passed a higher officials examination;
2. Persons who, for three years or longer, have held positions as second class government officials or other public officials in those categories as provided by Government Ordinance.
The persons who, for three years or longer, have held positions as Assistant Procurators and passed the examination as provided by Government Ordinance may be appointed second class procurators, notwithstanding the provisions of the first paragraph.
Regulations concerning the Assistant Procurator Selection Committee shall be fixed by Government Ordinance.
Article 19. Public procurators of first class shall be appointed from among the following categories of persons:
1. Persons who, for eight years or longer, have held positions as second class procurators, assistant judges of the Summary Court or lawyers;
2. Persons who have held positions as Presidents or judges of the Supreme Court, Presidents of High Courts or judges;
3. Persons who have obtained the qualifications mentioned in item 1 or 3 of paragraph 1 of the preceding Article and have afterward held a position, for eight years or longer as Vice-Minister in the Ministry of justice, juvenile court judge, Secretary-General of the Supreme Court or research official of a court, or, as second class officials or above, have held a position as a secretary in the Ministry of justice, instructor in the Ministry of justice, secretary of a court, or instructor of the judicial Research and Training Institute;
4. Persons who have the qualifications mentioned in item 1 or 3 of paragraph 1 of the preceding Article and have for one year, or longer, held positions as first class government officials;
5. Persons who have the qualifications mentioned in the first paragraph of the preceding Article and possess the knowledge and experience necessary for performing the duties of public procurators of first class and who have passed the selection by the Selection Committee for First Class Government Officials.
Years of service in the various positions mentioned in items 1 and 3 of the preceding paragraph may be added together.
In the application of the provisions of items 3 to 5 inclusive of the first paragraph, the persons who are appointed procurators in accordance with the third paragraph of the preceding Article shall be deemed to have the qualifications mentioned in item 1 of paragraph 1 of the said Article.
Article 20. The following categories of persons, as well as the persons who cannot be appointed ordinary Government officials as provided by other statutes must not be appointed public procurators:
1. Persons who have been punished by penal imprisonment (without hard labor) or a graver penalty;
2. Persons who have received a judgment of dismissal from office, rendered by a Court of Impeachment.
Article 21. The compensation received by public procurators shall be fixed elsewhere by statute.
Article 22. The Procurator-General shall retire from office on the attainment of sixty-five years of age and other public procurators shall retire at sixty-three years of age.
Article 23. After a decision of the Committee for the Examination of Qualifications of Public Procurators, a public procurator may be dismissed from office when he is unable to discharge his duties because of mental or physical disability or other such reason.
The Committee shall consist of members selected from among public procurators, judges and lawyers.
Matters pertaining to the Committee other than those mentioned in the two preceding paragraphs shall be fixed by Government Ordinance.
Article 24. When a Superintending Procurator, a Procurator or an Assistant Procurator becomes a supernumerary official by reason of abolition of a public procurator's office or by other such reason, the Minister of Justice shall order him to await a vacancy at one half his (normal) salary.
Article 25. Except in those cases mentioned in the three preceding Articles, a public procurator shall not, against his will, lose his office, be suspended from the conduct of his duties, or suffer a reduction of salary unless by disciplinary action.
Article 26. The Supreme Public Procurator's Office shall have a Private Secretary of the Procurator-General.
The Private Secretary shall be a second class official.
The Private Secretary shall dispose of the confidential matters of the office under the directions of the Procurator-General.
Article 27. There shall be Administrative Secretaries in public procurator's offices.
Administrative Secretaries shall be second or third class officials.
Administrative Secretaries shall, upon order of superiors, conduct business matters with which the public procurator's office is concerned, shall assist public procurators, and shall engage in criminal investigation under their direction.
Article 28. There shall be Public Procurator's Office Techinicians in public procurators offices.
The Technicians shall be second or third class officials.
The Technicians shall conduct technical business under the control of public procurators.
Article 29. The total number of officials in a public procurator's office shall be fixed by Government Ordinance within the limitations of the budget.
Article 30. The Minister of justice may delegate to the Procurator-General, or a Superintending Procurator authority relating to the promotion and dismissal of third class officials of his office and delegate to a Chief Procurator a similar authority over officials of his office and of Local Public Procurator's Offices within the territorial jurisdiction of the court corresponding to his office.
Superintending Procurators or Chief Procurators shall designate from among the Administrative Secretaries and Technicians of their respective offices the person who will serve at their respective branch offices.
Article 31. Officials of public procurator's offices seall render mutual assistance necessary in connection with the business to be conducted by them.
Article 32. Regulations concerning the conduct of business in public procurator's offices shall be determined by the Minister of Justice.
Supplementary Provisions:
Article 33. This Law shall come into effect as from the day when the Constitution of Japan comes into effect.
Article 34. Prior to the enforcement of this Law acceptance of cases and other such acts done by the former Procurator-General or the Procurators of the Supreme Court shall be deemed to have been done by the Procurator-General or the Procurators of the Supreme Public Procurator's Office. Those acts done by the former Superintending Procurators, the Procurators of the Court of Appeal, the former Chief Procurators or the Procurators of District Courts or of Local Courts prior to the enforcement of this Law shall be deemed to have been done by those Superintending Procurators, Procurators of High Public Procurator's Offices, Chief-Procurators or Procurators of District Public Procurator's Offices as provided by Government Ordinance.
Article 35. Transfer of cases to the former Procurator-General or Procurators of the Supreme Court (Taishin-in) and such other acts done prior to the enforcement of this Law, shall be deemed to have been done to the Procurator-General or Procurators of the Supreme Public Procurator's Office. Those to the former Superintending Procurators, Procurators of Court of Appeal (Kosoin), the former Chief Procurator, Procurators of a District Court (Chihosaiban-sho) or Procurators of a Local Court (Kusaiban-sho) shall be deemed to have been done to those Superintending Procurators, Procurators of High Public Procurator's Offices, Chief Procurators or Procurators of District Procurator's Offices as provided by Government Ordinance.
Article 36. For the time being, the Minister of justice may, when he deems it necessary because of the shortage of public procurators, cause Administrative Secretaries of Local Public Procurator's Offices to conduct the business of public procurators of the said office.
Article 37. In the application of Articles 18 and 19, a person who has the qualifications for a procurator as provided in the old Court Organization Law shall be deemed to have completed the study as a judicial apprentice, upon obtaining the said qualifications. The same shall apply to the person who, at the time of the enforcement of this Law, is qualified as a lawyer, and who, subsequent to the effective date of this Law completes three years of practice.
Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, a person who has practised as a probationary lawyer for one year and a half and has passed the examination shall be deemed to have completed the study as a judicial apprentice upon the passage of the examination.
Article 38. In the application of item 1, paragraph 1 of Article 19, the term of service in the positions t as procurators or judges mentioned in the Old Court Organization Law or the term of service in the positions, held by the persons who have the qualification for procurators mentioned in the said Law as Directors in the Ministry of Justice, Directors of the Research Division, research officials or secretaries of the Ministry of Justice, tutors or secretaries of the Judicial Institute, councillors in the Ministry of Justice, consular officials, procurators or judges of the Government-General of Chosen, procurators or judges of the Government-General Court of Taiwan, procurators or judges of the Court of Kwantung District, procurators or judges of the Office of the South Sea Area shall be deemed to be the term of service in the position as second class procurators.
Article 39. Second class government officials within the meaning of Article 18, paragraph 2, item 2 shall include the civilian officials of sonin rank. First class government officials within the meaning of Article 19, paragraph 1, item 4 shall include civilian officials of chokunin rank.
Article 40. Upon the enforcement of this Law, unless otherwise officially announced, persons who held office as Procurators of sonin rank at a Court of Appeal, a District Court or a Local Court shall be deemed to have been appointed as Procurators of the second class and assigned, respectively, to a High Public Procurator's Office or to a District Public Procurator's Office as provided by Government Ordinance.
Article 41. Upon the enforcement of this Law, unless otherwise officially announced, chief clerks or court clerks who serve at public procurator's offices or assistant officials of public prosecution of sonin rank or second class shall be deemed to have been appointed as Administrative Secretaries of second class at the same salary standards, or, if they are of hannin rank or third class, as Administrative Secretaries of third class at the same salary standards.
Article 42.
Except as otherwise provided by Government Ordinance "procurator" as prescribed in other laws shall read "public procurator" and "procurator of the competent court" shall read "public procurator of the public procurator's office corresponding to the competent court."