A
public procurator is an officer of a
state charged with both the investigation and prosecution of crime. The office is a feature of a
civil law inquisitorial rather than
common law adversarial system.
Japan uses a procuratorial system, in addition to countries such as China, Russia and Indonesia. The office of a procurator is called a
procuracy or
procuratorate. The terms are from Latin and originate with the
procurators of the
Roman Empire.