PART 12 - Attorney General

By Nepalko on April 09, 2017

There shall be an Attorney General in Nepal.
The President, on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, shall appoint Attorney General. The Attorney General shall hold office during the pleasure of the Prime Minister.
The person qualified to be the judge of the Supreme Court shall be eligible to be appointed as Attorney General.
The office of Attorney General shall be deemed vacant under the following circumstances:-

if she/he submits resignation in writing through the Prime Minister to the President,
if the President, on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, removes him/her from the office,
if she/he dies.

The remuneration and other facilities of the Attorney General shall be at par with that of a judge of the Supreme Court. The other conditions of the service of the Attorney General shall be as prescribed by law.

The Attorney General shall be the Chief Legal Advisor to the Government of Nepal. It shall be the duty of the Attorney General to give opinions and advice on constitutional and legal matters to the Government of Nepal and to such other authorities as the Government of Nepal may specify.
The Attorney General or officers subordinate to him/her shall represent the Government of Nepal in suits in which the rights, interests or concerns of the Government of Nepal are involved. Unless this constitution otherwise requires, the Attorney General shall have the right to make the final decision to initiate proceedings in any case on behalf of the Government of Nepal in any court or judicial authority. The Attorney General shall appoint other attorneys as needed to deal with legal proceedings.
The advice from the Attorney General shall be required to withdraw any lawsuits filed on behalf of the Government of Nepal.
In case of being called to do so, the Attorney General may appear in the meeting of the Federal Legislature or any committee to express his/her opinion on any legal question.
In the course of discharging his/her official duties, the Attorney General shall have the right to appear before any court, office or authority of Nepal.
While discharging duties as under clause (2), the Attorney General shall have authority as follows:-

To appear on behalf of the Government of Nepal in litigations submitted by or against the Government of Nepal.
To monitor or cause to be monitored the implementation of interpretation of law and the legal principles propounded by the Supreme Court in the course of proceeding.
On the basis of To investigate allegations of inhuman treatment to any person in custody, or any denial of consultation with his/her relatives or through legal practitioners in case of complaints or information received to him through any means and give necessary instruction, under this constitution, to the relevant authorities, to prevent the recurrence of such a situation.

The Attorney General may delegate his/her functions, duties and power to his subordinates or prosecutors, to be exercised in compliance with the conditions specified.
In addition to the functions, duties and rights as set out in this Article, the other functions, duties and rights of the Attorney General shall be as determined by this Constitution and other laws.

The Attorney General shall, every year, prepare an annual report on the works she /he according this constitution and other laws, and submit it to the President, and the President, through the Prime Minister, shall make the report to be presented in the Federal Legislature.
The report under clause (1) shall, in addition to other matters, cover the number of instances of constitutional and legal advice given in the year by the Attorney General, a description of cases prosecuted by the government, a summary of cases involving the government as either plaintiff or defendant, and recommendations for future improvements in cases brought by the government.

There shall be a Chief Attorney under Attorney General in each province.
The Head of Province shall, in recommendation of the Chief Minister, appoint Chief Attorney in the province. The Chief Attorney shall hold office during the pleasure of the Chief Minister.
The person qualified to be the judge of the High Court shall be eligible to be appointed as Chief Attorney.
The office of Chief Attorney shall be deemed vacant under the following circumstances:-

if she /he submits resignation in writing through Chief Minister to the Head of Province ,
if the Head of Province, on the recommendation of the Chief Minister, removes him/her from the office,
if she /he dies.

The Chief Attorney shall be the Chief Legal Advisor to the provincial government. It shall be the duty of the Chief Attorney to give opinions and advice on constitutional and legal matters to the provincial government and to such other authorities as the provincial government may specify.
The office of the Attorney General shall manage the staffs under office of Chief Attorney.
The remuneration and other benefits of the Chief Attorney shall be at par with that of a judge of the High Court. The other conditions of the service of Chief Attorney and his/her functions, duties and powers shall be as prescribed by law of the province.

(161) Provisions Concerning Terms and Conditions of Service and Benefits : The remuneration, other benefits and conditions for service for government attorneys and other employees working under the Attorney General shall be as prescribed in federal law.