An Advocate General is a senior law officer of a country or other jurisdiction. Usually charged with advising the courts or Government on legal matters.

Scotland and the UK

Main article: Advocate General for Scotland

Historically, the United Kingdom Government was advised on matters of Scots Law by the Lord Advocate but following the Scotland Act 1998 and the establishment of the Scottish Parliament the Lord Advocate became a member of the Scottish Executive. Her Majestys Advocate General for Scotland (Àrd-neach-tagraidh na Bànrighe airson Alba in Gaelic) is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, whose duty is to advise the Crown and UK Government on Scots law. ... The agencies responsible for the government of the United Kingdom consist of a number of ministerial departments (usually headed by a Secretary of State) and non-ministerial departments headed by senior civil servants. ... Scots law is a unique legal system with an ancient basis in Roman law. ... Her Majestys Advocate, known as the Lord Advocate (Morair Tagraidh in Scottish Gaelic) is the chief legal adviser to the Scottish Executive and the Crown in Scotland for both civil and criminal matters that fall within the devolved powers of the Scottish Parliament. ... The Scotland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster. ... For the national legislative body up to 1707, see Parliament of Scotland. ... The Executives logo, shown with English and Scottish Gaelic caption The term Scottish Executive is used in two different, but closely-related senses: to denote the executive arm of Scotlands national legislature (i. ...

It was necessary to create a post to advise the British Government in Westminster. Thus, the new post of Advocate General for Scotland was created. The Advocate General's role differs from that formerly held by the Lord Advocate in that they are only charged with advising the UK Government on matters pertaining to Scots law, the Lord Advocate having retained his responsibility as the chief public prosecutor in Scotland and head of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service on his transfer to the Scottish Executive. The United Kingdom is a unitary state and a democratic constitutional monarchy. ... Westminster is a district within the City of Westminster in London. ... Her Majestys Advocate General for Scotland (Àrd-neach-tagraidh na Bànrighe airson Alba in Gaelic) is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, whose duty is to advise the Crown and UK Government on Scots law. ... Scots law is a unique legal system with an ancient basis in Roman law. ... In countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system, the prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution. ... The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is a government department in Scotland that is responsible for the public prosecution of alleged criminals. ...

Other European Jurisdictions

The position of Advocate General is well established in the French, Dutch, and some other continental European legal systems, where higher courts are assisted by these legal officers. They are not advocates representing clients in courts. They are not judges either, although they are full members of the courts. They mainly offer legal advice to judges on the cases being tried. They may also have a prosecution role, depending on countries and on the nature of cases (criminal or civil). A legal system is the mechanism for creating, interpreting and enforcing the laws in a given jurisdiction. ... The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. ...

The position of Advocate General (avocat général) already existed in the French legal system before the French Revolution, when they were found in the then higher courts (parlements, cours des aides, etc.) and proposed legal solutions to the judges in cases involving the State, the Church, the general public, communities, or minors. Since the French Revolution, they are found in the Court of Cassation, the Cour des Comptes, the Courts of Appeals, and the Assize Courts. They have more of a prosecution role than before the French Revolution, especially in the Assize Courts, in which people accused of felonies are tried. The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on... This article is for the Ancien Régime institution. ... The Court of Cassation (Cour de cassation in French) is the main court of last resort in France. ... The Cour des Comptes (Court of Accounts, also translated into Court of Financial Auditors) is a institution of the Government of France whose duty is to audit public institutions, as well as some private institutions. ... // Glossary and basic concepts Note: There exist significant problems with applying non-French terminology and concepts related to law and justice to the French justice system. ... The French Cour dAssises (Assize Court) is the court charged to judge people accused of felonies (crimes as known by French law), and one of the only to be composed of a popular jury. ... A felony, in many common law legal systems, is the term for a very serious crime; misdemeanors are considered to be less serious. ...

Advocates General are also part of the European Court of Justice (ECJ), where there are eight of them. They are full members of the court but they are not judges. They are not prosecutors either, unlike in the modern French legal system. They do not take part in the court's deliberations, yet they assist with each case and deliver their opinions on questions. It is the role of the Advocates General to propose to the Court, in complete independence, a legal solution to the cases for which they are responsible. The Advocate General’s opinion, although often in fact followed, is not binding on the Court. Official emblem of the ECJ The Court of Justice of the European Communities, usually called the European Court of Justice (ECJ), is the highest court in the European Union (EU). ... The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. ... A trial at the Old Bailey in London as drawn by Thomas Rowlandson and Augustus Pugin for Ackermanns Microcosm of London (1808-11). ...