The ministry exercises administrative supervision and is charged with the compensation of the judiciary and the prosecutors, manages their office buildings and facilities, and administers the prison system.

[4][5] First established in 1848, the ministry's exact name and portfolio have undergone changes numerous times throughout the years.

From 2018 to 2020, the ministry was officially called the Ministry of Constitutional Affairs, Reforms, Deregulation and Justice (Bundesministerium für Verfassung, Reformen, Deregulierung und Justiz).

[6] In addition to its traditional responsibilities, it is tasked with supporting the Kurz cabinet's program of simplifying the country's unusually large body of constitutional law.

[citation needed] As of May 2018, the ministry consists of the Minister and her personal staff (Kabinett), the office of the director general, and seven departments:[10] The Minister and her staff are political appointees; the general secretary and the section heads are career civil servants.