Law officers of the Crown

The law officers are the senior legal advisors to His Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom and devolved governments of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. They are variously referred to as the Attorney General, Solicitor General, Lord Advocate, or Advocate General depending on seniority and geography – though other terms are also in use, such as the Counsel General for Wales. Law officers in these roles are distinguished by being political appointees, while also being bound by the duties of independence, justice and confidentiality among the other typical professional commitments of lawyers. These roles do not have any direct oversight of prosecutions nor do they directly lead or influence criminal investigations.

Each Crown Dependency has its own law officers to the Crown.

Each British Overseas Territory, apart from the British Indian Ocean Territory, also has its own Attorney General. Many Commonwealth countries or those with a history of British colonisation retain these titles, though their particular roles and responsibilities may differ from the roles in the United Kingdom.

There are eight Law Offices in the United Kingdom, though not all serve the Westminster Government. The role of Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland has been held by the Lord Hermer since 5 July 2024. He is supported by the Solicitor General for England and Wales. The Scottish Government has two law officers, the Lord Advocate and the Solicitor General for Scotland, with the Lord Advocate being the most senior law officer in Scotland and is the chief legal adviser to the Scottish Government. Following devolution, a new position of Advocate General for Scotland was created to advise the UK Government on matters of Scots law. The office of the Advocate General for Scotland should not be confused with that of "His Majesty's Advocate", which is the term used for the Lord Advocate in Scottish criminal proceedings as the head of the systems of prosecution in Scotland. The Welsh Government has its own law officer: the Counsel General for Wales; as does the Northern Irish executive: the Attorney General for Northern Ireland.

The two Attorneys General for the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall are non-political appointments. They are not typically being referred to when the term law officer is used, as this tends to be reserved for political appointees.

The Attorney General for England and Wales, a member of the UK Government, is similarly the chief law officer of the Crown in England and Wales and advises and represents the Crown and government departments in court. By convention, and unlike the papers of other ministers, this legal advice is available to subsequent governments. In the second half of the 20th century it became unusual for the Attorney General to be formally a member of the Cabinet. Rather he/she would attend only when the Cabinet required legal advice.

The Attorney General oversees the small Attorney General's Office and also has responsibility for the Government Legal Department, which is headed by the Treasury Solicitor. In practice, the Treasury Solicitor (who also has the title of Procurator General) normally provides the lawyers or briefs Treasury Counsel to appear in court, although the Attorney General may appear in person. The person appointed to this role provides legal advice to the Government, acts as the representative of the public interest and resolves issues between government departments. The Government Legal Department provides advice to government departments, instructing independent counsel where necessary. The Attorney General is a barrister and can appear in court in person, though in practice he/she rarely does so, and then only in cases of outstanding national importance. In those cases the Government Legal Department provides his back-up. When appearing in court in person he/she is addressed by the judge as "Mr. Attorney".

The Attorney General also has supervisory powers over prosecutions, including those mounted by the Crown Prosecution Service, headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions; the Serious Fraud Office; and the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office. While the Attorney General is not personally involved with prosecutions, some prosecutions (e.g. rioting) cannot be commenced without their consent, and they generally have the power to halt prosecutions. Criminal prosecutions are the responsibility of the Crown Prosecution Service, headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The Attorney General may appeal cases to the higher courts where, although the particular case is settled, there may be a point of law of public importance at issue.