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| Kagawaran ng Katarungan | |
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| Department overview | |
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| Formed | April 17, 1897; 128 years ago (1897-04-17) |
| Jurisdiction | Government of the Philippines |
| Headquarters | DOJ Building,Padre Faura Street,Ermita,Manila 14°34′45.70″N120°59′1.93″E / 14.5793611°N 120.9838694°E /14.5793611; 120.9838694 |
| Motto | Justitiae Pax Opus (The work of Justice is Peace) |
| Employees | 5,587 (2024)[1] |
| Annual budget | ₱28.6 billion (2023)[2] |
| Department executives |
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| Child agencies |
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| Website | www |
TheDepartment of Justice (Filipino:Kagawaran ng Katarungan, abbreviated asDOJ) is under theexecutive department of thePhilippine government responsible for upholding therule of law in the Philippines. It is the government's principal law agency, serving as its legal counsel and prosecution arm.[3] It has its headquarters at the DOJ Building inPadre Faura Street,Ermita,Manila.
The department is led by theSecretary of Justice, nominated by thepresident of the Philippines and confirmed by theCommission on Appointments. The secretary is a member of theCabinet. The agency is currently held by its Acting Secretary Usec. Fredderick A. Vida.[3]
The DOJ traces its beginnings at the Revolutionary Assembly inNaic,Cavite on April 17, 1897. TheDepartment of Grace and Justice was tasked with the establishment of a regime of law in the Republic, with Severino de las Alas at the helm.[4] The department, however, was not included in PresidentEmilio Aguinaldo'sBiak-na-Bato Cabinet, which was established in November 1897.
Shortly after the proclamation of independence on June 12, 1898, President Aguinaldo resurrected the department as theDepartment of Justice via a September 26, 1898 decree.[5] The department, however, disappeared again from Aguinaldo's Cabinet upon the proclamation of theFirst Republic in 1899.
After the American occupation a year later, the military government established theOffice of the Attorney of the Supreme Court. On June 11, 1901, it was renamed theOffice of the Attorney General and on September 1 of the same year, the office became theDepartment of Finance and Justice.
In 1916, the department became a separate entity (once again the Department of Justice) by virtue of theJones Law, and was given administrative supervision over all courts of first instance and other inferior courts.[4]
Under the Japanese occupation, the department became theCommission of Justice, and later theMinistry of Justice upon the proclamation of theSecond Philippine Republic in 1943. After the country's liberation from the Japanese forces near the end ofWorld War II, the restoredCommonwealth government re-activated the Department.
Soon, the Supreme Court under the then 1973 Constitution took over the administrative supervision of all lower courts from the DOJ. The succeeding 1987 Constitution upheld it.
It became the Ministry of Justice once more in 1973 duringMartial Law, continuing in that form until 1987, when the return to a presidential form of government as mandated by the1987 Constitution transformed all ministries back to departments.Today, the DOJ continues to pursue its primary mission "To Uphold the Rule of Law" with its "Justice for All" motto. The Office of the Secretary (OSEC) is composed of the National Prosecution Service, the Legal Staff, the Administrative, Financial, Technical and Planning and Management Services and the Board of Pardons and Parole. The constituent and attached agencies include theNational Bureau of Investigation (NBI),Bureau of Immigration (BI), Public Attorney’s Office (Philippines) (PAO),Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC),Bureau of Corrections (BuCOR),Parole and Probation Administration (PPA),Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) and theLand Registration Authority (LRA).
At present, the department is headed by theSecretary of Justice,
Under the Office of the Secretary are the following offices and services:
Prosecutors are assigned to each of the regions, provinces, and cities of the Philippines.[7]
The following agencies and offices are attached to the DOJ for policy and program coordination:
| Agency | Head |
|---|---|
| Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) | Usec.Gregorio Catapang Jr. |
| Bureau of Immigration (BI) | Joel Anthony M. Viado[8][9] |
| Land Registration Authority (LRA) | Gerardo P. Sirios |
| National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) | Jaime B. Santiago |
| Office for Alternative Dispute Resolution (OADR) | Margaret Raizza D. Andaman[10][11] |
| Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) | Solomon M. Hermosura[12] |
| Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) | Darlene Marie B. Berberabe[13] |
| Parole and Probation Administration (PPA) | Bienvenido O. Benitez Jr.[14] |
| Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) | Melchor Quirino C. Sadang[15] |
| Public Attorney's Office (PAO) | Persida V. Rueda-Acosta |
