Competences

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The State Attorney’s Office of the Republic of Serbia was established by the Law on the State Attorney’s Office (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 55/14) as the state body the competences of which comprise performing of the attorney’s function as a segment of the executive function of state authorities which includes attainment and protection of property rights and interests of the state through legal representation and advising of the Republic of Serbia, i.e. its bodies and organizations. The State Attorney’s Office conducts the affairs of the State Attorney’s Office aimed at legal protection of property rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia in accordance with the Constitution, laws, and other legal acts.

Notwithstanding the general rule on the State Attorney’s Office as the pillar of the attorney’s function for the Republic of Serbia, by the Law on additions and amendments of the Law on defense (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 10/15), the affairs of the State Attorney’s Office in proceedings for protection of property rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia in terms of instruments used by the Ministry of defense and Serbian Armed Forces were delegated to the Military Attorney’s office.

Competences of the State Attorney’s Office are prescribed in Article 11 – 18 of the Law on the State Attorney’s Office, in accordance with which this Attorney’s Office performs the following operations:

  • Represents the Republic of Serbia in legal proceedings before courts, arbitrations, administrative bodies, and other competent bodies, when the Republic of Serbia has the position of a party or intervener on the rights and obligations of which decisions are made within such proceedings.
  • Based on separately issued power of attorney, may also represent other legal entities founded by the Republic of Serbia before courts, arbitrations, administrative bodies, or other competent bodies.
  • Represents the Republic of Serbia before foreign and international courts and arbitrations, before other competent bodies abroad, and, especially, before the European Court of Human Rights in accordance with the European Convention on protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and additional protocols by this Convention.
  • Monitors and studies legal issues of importance for work of state bodies, as well as implementation of laws and other general legal acts, when this is of importance for protection of property rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia, and informs the Government and other competent state bodies about the observed issues.
  • Has authority to launch proceedings for assessment of constitutionality of laws, i.e. for assessment of constitutionality and legality of other general legal acts, in case it is established that a law, i.e. another general legal act, violates property rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia or the position of the State Attorney’s Office as stipulated by law.
  • The State Attorney’s Office may be supplied, for its legal opinion, with draft legal affairs concluded by entities the State Attorney’s Office represents, if property rights and obligations of the Republic of Serbia, i.e. such entities are the object of such legal affairs. The State Attorney’s Office also issues legal opinions on other property relations to other entities it represents.
  • Upon request of another Attorney’s Office, i.e. local self-government unit, the State Attorney’s Office may extend professional assistance or assume representation. When proceedings of another Attorney’s Office violate public interest, the State Attorney’s Office may assume such proceeding from such other Attorney’s Office.

Competences of the State Attorney’s Office are also defined in a range of separate laws and other general legal acts. A part of such competences is contained in the especially emphasized role of the State Attorney’s Office as the legal representative of the Republic of Serbia, or legal advisor of state bodies in some specific proceedings, i.e. specific legal situations. The other part of these specific competences relates to the situations in which the State Attorney’s Office does not act as the representative of the Republic of Serbia, but as an independent party in proceedings. Some of these separate competences of the State Attorney’s Office are prescribed in the following regulations:

  • Article 14 of the Law on Transfer of Property (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 93/14, 121/14, and 5/15) – filing of claims for annulment of contracts on transfer of property concluded contrary to the provisions of this law, the law which regulates public property, or another law;
  • Article 37 of the Law on Public Property (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 72/11, 88/13, and 105/14) – issuing of opinions prior to conclusion of contracts on acquisition and alienation of real estate owned by the Republic of Serbia,
  • Article 38 of the Law on Public Property – filing of claims for annulment of contracts on acquisition and alienation of real estate owned by the Republic of Serbia concluded contrary to regulations, i.e. if the contracted compensation does not correspond to the prescribed compensation, or compensation which could have been achieved at the time of conclusion of the contract,
  • Article 84 paragraph 2 and 3 of the Law on Public Property, in relation to Article 48 of the Law on Property in the Ownership of the Republic of Serbia (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 53/95, 3/96, 54/96, 32/97, 101/05, and 72/11) – filing of claims to establish the share of state property in objects which a legal entity uses and which have been constructed, i.e. acquired, through participation of the Republic of Serbia, Autonomous Province, municipality, or town,
  • Article 68 of the Law on Planning and Construction (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 72/09, 81/09, 64/10, 24/11, 121/12, 42/13, 50/13, 98/13, 132/14, and 145/14) – issuance of approvals, upon request of the owner, i.e. lessee of the cadastral plot, for correction of the plot borders, by acquisition of land in public ownership at the existing plot, for the purpose of formation of a cadastral plot which meets the conditions for a construction plot, based on the re-allotment project,
  • Article 39 of the Law on Restitution of Confiscated Property and Compensation (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 72/11, 108/13, and 142/14) – participation in the capacity of a party in all proceedings of restitution of confiscated property and compensation,
  • Article 11 Paragraph 4 of the Law on Administrative Proceedings (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 111/09) – filing of claims in administrative proceedings if the administrative act has violated property rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia,
  • Article 148 paragraph 3 of the Law on Public Procurement (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 124/12) – filing of requests for protection of rights in the case of violation of public interest in public procurement procedures,
  • Article 27 paragraph 3 of the Law on Business Entities (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 36/11, 99/11, 83/14, and 5/15) – filing of claims for changing of business names of business entities which violate public morality,
  • Article 193 of the Law on Civil Procedures (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 72/11, 49/13, 74/13, and 55/14) – solving of cases prior to filing of claims in civil proceedings by consent, upon motion which may be filed by any party intending to file a claim against the Republic of Serbia, by possible concluding of an agreement on amicable settlement of the dispute – a separate type of extrajudicial settlement which has the effect of an enforcement document,
  • Article 46 paragraph 2 of the Standing Orders of the Government (“Official Gazette of RS”, No. 61/06, 69/08, 88/09, 33/10, 69/10, 20/11, 37/11, 30/13, and 76/14) – issuance of legal opinions upon draft acts which are to be filed to the Government for adoption, in case the act relates to protection of property rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia, or in case it creates contractual obligations for the Republic of Serbia.

Law provides that in matters which imply representation on part of the State Attorney’s Office,  courts, administrative bodies, and other competent bodies are all obliged to file written notifications directly to the State Attorney’s Office; that bodies with seats at the territory for which a section of the State Attorney’s Office was established file all writs directly to the section of the State Attorney’s Office; and that filing performed contrary to the given provision does not have this legal effect. If the writ is not filed directly to the State Attorney’s Office, the State Attorney’s Office may not equally participate in the proceedings, which is a significant violation of provisions of the Law on Civil Procedures (Article 374 paragraph 2 item 7 of the Law on Civil Procedures); thus, by violation of these regulations on filing, the decision may be contested by an appeal for the given reasons.

The State Attorney’s Office is authorized to request for examination, issue certificates, and copy documents and other files on the condition of the cases before court, other state body, body of the Autonomous Province, body of the local self-government unit, or holder of public authority from every public register, case, and electronic database, without any compensation.

State bodies, separate organizations, and public institutions the State Attorney’s Office represents are obliged to inform the State Attorney’s Office about the legal matters in which the State Attorney’s Office has authority to take legal actions and use legal remedies in order to achieve their rights and interests, i.e. rights and interests of the Republic of Serbia. State bodies, bodies of autonomous provinces and local self-government units, as well as other organizations and legal entities, are obliged to file to the State Attorney’s Office, upon its request, acts and notifications, i.e. provide the State Attorney’s Office with data and explanations necessary for taking of actions in the competence of the State Attorney’s Office. If damage is incurred to the Republic of Serbia due to failure to act, or due to untimely acting on part of bodies and organizations in the aforementioned terms, the State Attorney’s Office will inform the Ministry in charge of performing surveillance over work of such a body or organization, i.e. the Republic of Serbia, to that extent, and will request compensation for the damage incurred from the responsible persons within such a body or organization.

The State Attorney’s Office is authorized to launch, i.e. file initiative for launching of, proceedings before court or other competent body in relation to issues from its competences. It also acts upon written orders and requests of entities it represents, and is obliged to inform such entities, within reasonable time which may not exceed 30 days, about its legal opinion, i.e. the actions taken.

Before launching of proceedings before the court, administrative body, or other competent body, i.e. in the procedure of statement of defense, motion, or another act to launch proceedings against the represented entity, the State Attorney’s Office is obliged to deliberate the possibility of amicable settlement, upon its initiative, or upon initiative of the other party.

The State Attorney’s Office is recognized costs of representation in proceedings before court, administrative body, or other competent body in accordance with regulations on remuneration and cost compensation regulating work of lawyers, while income earned through representation is the revenue of the Republic of Serbia.

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