The office of procurator had its historical roots in Imperial Russia, and under Soviet law public procurators had wide-ranging responsibilities including, but not limited to, those of public prosecutors found in other legal systems.

Offices of Public Procurators were and are still used in other countries adhering to the doctrine of socialist law.

According to the 1936 Soviet Constitution, the Procurator General exercised the highest degree of direct or indirect (through subordinate public procurators) control over the accurate execution of laws by all ministries, departments, their subordinate establishments and enterprises, executive and administrative bodies of local Soviets, cooperative organizations, officials (including judges in court proceedings), and citizens on behalf of the state.

The Procurator General was appointed by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR for a 7-year term and given a class rank of the Active state counselor of justice.

The Procurator General's participation in the plenary sessions of the Supreme Court of the USSR was mandatory.