Responsibility

The Office of the Federal Prosecutor in Karlsruhe is the Federal Government’s only prosecutor.

As stated in § 142 Paragraph 1 of the Judicial Systems Act: “The office of the prosecution is executed at the Federal Court of Justice by an Federal Public Prosecutor General and one or more federal prosecutors.”

The responsibility of the Office of the Federal Prosecutor essentially comprises two fields:

Prosecution in the field of state security
In the case of state security offences and criminal offences under the German International Criminal Code, the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany stipulates prosecution by the Office of the Federal Prosecutor.

Exercise of the tasks of prosecutors in appeals proceedings
The Office of the Federal Prosecutor takes on the role of prosecutor in appeals proceedings before the criminal divisions of the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe and Leipzig.

Further responsibilities
In addition, as the “lawyer of the Federal Government”, the Office of the Federal Prosecutor also takes on tasks assigned to it in the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection.
On behalf of the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection, the Office of the Federal Prosecutor exercises the role of a “lawyer of the Federal Government”. It represents the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection in administrative and court proceedings that affect the highest federal courts, such as the Federal Court of Justice and the Federal Administrative Court, as well as the Office of the Federal Prosecutor itself.