On Oct. 2 South Korea implemented major prosecutorial reform: the 78-year-old Prosecutor's Office was closed and two new bodies—the Public Prosecution Service and the Major Crimes Investigation Office—were formally established. Under revisions to the Criminal Procedure Act, the Public Prosecution Service Act and the Major Crimes Investigation Office Act, the long-standing system in which prosecutors held both investigative and prosecutorial powers has ended. The Public Prosecution Service will p

On Oct. 2 South Korea implemented major prosecutorial reform: the 78-year-old Prosecutor's Office was closed and two new bodies—the Public Prosecution Service and the Major Crimes Investigation Office—were formally established. Under revisions to the Criminal Procedure Act, the Public Prosecution Service Act and the Major Crimes Investigation Office Act, the long-standing system in which prosecutors held both investigative and prosecutorial powers has ended. The Public Prosecution Service will primarily handle indictments and prosecutions; the Major Crimes Investigation Office will investigate seven categories of major crimes. Most criminal investigations will be conducted by police, and prosecutors will no longer have general investigative authority. The titles prosecutor and prosecutor general are retained.