The Public Prosecutor’s Office is defined as a unique and independent state institution that prosecutes perpetrators of crimes and other punishable acts sanctioned by law and performs other duties as stipulated by law.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office is organized in accordance with the principles of hierarchy and subordination and by adhering to the very principles one must not jeopardize the independence and accountability of public prosecutors in the exercise of their office.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office can be established and abolished by law and according to the very law it is organized as:

– Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Macedonia, established for the whole territory of the Republic of North Macedonia, which can act before the Supreme Court,

– 4 Higher Public Prosecutor’s Offices that act before the appellate courts in Bitola, Gostivar, Skopje and Shtip.

– Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office prosecuting organized crime and corruption in the whole territory of the Republic of North Macedonia with its headquarters in Skopje and

– 22 basic public prosecutor’s offices that act before one or several courts. The basic public prosecutor’s offices are organized as: 10 basic public prosecutor’s offices with a basic competence (acting on criminal cases punishable with imprisonment of up to 5 years as a main sentence) and 12 basic public prosecutor’s offices with expanded competence (acting on criminal acts punishable with imprisonment of over 5 years as a main sentence).

In those public prosecutor’s offices dealing with a larger workload of similar cases, in order to improve the efficiency and to specialize the work of the Office, the law allows for formation of departments as internal organizational units, managed by the public prosecutor or the deputy public prosecutor. Specialized departments for monitoring and detecting criminality with a specialized professional service shall be set up in the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption and in any public prosecutor’s office established for a territory of a court with expanded jurisdiction. In the public prosecutor’s offices, established for a territory of a court with expanded jurisdiction, in accordance with the provisions of this law, specialized departments for minors shall be established.

In the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption a specialized unit is formed in order to prosecute criminal acts performed by persons with police authorities and members of the prison police guards. The specialized unit has its own professional service and investigators from the investigative center. The public prosecutors working in this unit and the head of the specialized unit are chosen among the public prosecutors working in the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption. They are selected by the chief public prosecutor of the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption with the prior consent of the Public Prosecutor of the Republic of North Macedonia.

According to the law, public prosecutors in the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of North Macedonia, the Higher Public Prosecutors and the Basic Public Prosecutor Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption are accountable for their work to the Public Prosecutor of the Republic of North Macedonia and the Council of Public Prosecutors of the Republic of North Macedonia. Public prosecutors from within the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Offices are accountable for their work to the Higher Public Prosecutor and the Council of Public Prosecutors of the Republic of North Macedonia and public prosecutors from within the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption are accountable for their work to the Basic Public Prosecutor Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption and the Council of Public Prosecutors of the Republic of North Macedonia. Basic public prosecutors are accountable for their work to the Higher Public Prosecutor, the Public Prosecutor of the Republic of North Macedonia and the Council of Public Prosecutors of the Republic of North Macedonia, whereas public prosecutors from within the basic public prosecutor’s offices are accountable for their work to the Basic Public Prosecutor and the Council of Public Prosecutors of the Republic of North Macedonia.

In addition to public prosecutors, for the purpose of carrying out expert duties, the public prosecutor’s office employs numerous higher public prosecutor’s office advisors, independent public prosecutor’s office advisors, public prosecutor’s office advisors, professional associates and public prosecutor’s office law apprentices who are law graduates, as well as other professionals from within other fields (finances, construction, informatics, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and the like) who carry out expert duties connected with criminality observation and detection.

An investigative center is formed within the Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office Prosecuting Organized Crime and Corruption according to the law.

An investigative center or a department for investigation is formed in the public prosecutor’s offices that have expanded competences, states the Law.

A certain number of employees perform administrative, technical and other duties in the public prosecutor’s offices.

An expert collegium is a professional advisory body that helps the performance of the public prosecutor in the public prosecutor’s offices that have at least three public prosecutors. The collegium is constituted of the head public prosecutor and the other public prosecutors working in the specific public prosecutor’s office. The collegium holds meetings.

A Secretary General is appointed at the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of North Macedonia to manage the Expert Service of the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of North Macedonia, coordinate and direct the work of expert services of other public prosecutor’s offices and assist the Public Prosecutor of the Republic of North Macedonia in the performance of his/her duties in the public prosecutor’s office department. The Public Prosecutor’s Office, which employs more than seven public prosecutors, has a Sector Manager who manages the work of the Expert Service in the Public Prosecutor’s Office.