Duties of the Attorney-General.
Section 45
SEC. 45. Duties of the Attorney-General.—The Attorney-General shall perform the following duties: (a) He shall attend the Supreme Court and prosecute or defend therein all causes, civil and criminal, to which the United States, or any officer thereof, in his official capacity, is a party; (b) He shall prosecute or defend therein all causes, civil and criminal, to which the Government of the Philippine Islands, or any officer thereof, in his official capacity, is a party; and all causes to which any province may be a party, unless the interest of the province be adverse to that of the Government of the Islands, or that of the United States, or some officer thereof acting in his official capacity, or of some other province; (c) After judgment in favor of the interest represented by him, in any of the cases mentioned in the last section, he shall direct the issuing of such process as may be necessary to carry the same into execution, and shall account for and pay over to the proper officer all money that may come info his possession belonging to the United States Government, the Government of the Philippine Islands, or any province; (d) When it may be necessary or proper for the enforcement or collection of any judgment or debt in favor of the Insular Government or any officer thereof in his official capacity, or of any province, the Attorney-General shall institute and prosecute in behalf of the creditor an action or actions to set aside any conveyance or other devise fraudulently made by the debtor, or any one for him, to hinder or delay or defraud the creditor; (e) He shall, when required by the public service, or when directed by the Chief Executive, repair to any province in the Islands and assist the provincial fiscal there in the discharge of his duties, and shall assist the provincial fiscal in any prosecution against an officer of the Government; (f) He shall, at the request of the Chief Executive, or other proper officer of the Insular Government, institute and prosecute a suit on any official bond or any contract, in which the Government of the Islands is interested, upon a breach thereof, and prosecute or defend for the Insular Government all actions, civil or criminal, relating to any matter connected with either of the offices of the Insular Government; and be may require the service or assistance of any provincial fiscal in and about such matters or suits; (g) Whenever requested by the Chief Executive, or other officer of the Insular Government, he shall prepare proper drafts for contracts, forms, or other writings which may be wanted for the use of the Government; (h) He shall pursue the collection of any claim or judgment in favor of the Insular Government, outside of the Islands, or may, with the consent of the Chief Executive, employ counsel to assist in the collection thereof; (i) He shall give his opinion in writing to the legislative body of the Islands, the Chief Executive, the Auditor of public accounts, the Insular Treasurer, the General Superintendent of Public Instruction, the trustee of any Government institution, and any provincial fiscal, when requested in writing, upon any question of law relating to their respective offices; (j) He shall keep a docket of all causes in which he is required to appear, which shall show the province and court in which the causes have been instituted and tried, and whether they be civil or criminal; if civil, the nature of the demand, stage of the proceedings, and, when prosecuted to a judgment, a memorandum of the judgment; of any process issued thereon, whether satisfied or not; if not satisfied, the return of the officer; and if criminal, the nature of the crime, the mode of prosecution, and the stage of the proceedings; and, when prosecuted to a sentence, a memorandum of the sentence, and of the execution thereof, if executed, and, if not executed, of the reasons for delay or prevention; (k) He shall make reports to the Philippine Commission through the Military Governor, on the first day of January and the first day of July of each year, of the condition of the public service as administered in his office and under his supervision; and he shall, as a part of his report, make any recommendation which he may deem proper for the improvement of the service.