The number of cases where advocates are identified with their clients is growing – UNBA report

Advocates are increasingly being held hostage to political processes, with them being equated with their clients. Such actions undermine the independence of the profession and create an atmosphere of intimidation, as a result of which Ukrainian citizens are deprived of their right to defense.

The Committee for the protection of advocates' rights and guarantees of legal practice of the UNBA prepared and published on August 27 a report on the identification of advocates with their clients in Ukraine during the period of martial law.

The document contains statistics on advocates' appeals for 2022 - the first half of 2025. It shows a steady increase in the number of violations: while in 2022 there were 13 cases of advocates being identified with their clients, in 2023 there were already 21, in 2024 there were 28, and in the first half of 2025 alone, the number reached 32.

Specific examples of violations are given, including physical obstruction of court proceedings, the serving of summonses and detention of advocates, the opening of criminal proceedings, media campaigns to discredit advocates, public insults, and threats. They highlight the dangers of the profession and signal systemic risks to the rule of law. During wartime, this increases the vulnerability of advocacy, undermines trust in the judicial system, and creates conditions for violations of international human rights standards.

To overcome this problem, the relevant Committee of the UNBA has proposed a number of steps: conducting independent official investigations to bring those responsible to justice, amending legislation, strengthening cooperation with law enforcement agencies, informing international institutions, and conducting educational campaigns for the media and law enforcement agencies.

It should be noted that, according to Article 23 of the Law «On the advocacy and the practice of law», it is prohibited to identify an advocate with a client. The Council of Europe's Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer (Ukraine is in the process of signing it) obliges member states to ensure that advocates do not suffer adverse consequences as a result of being identified with their clients or their clients' cases (Article 6).

On July 16, 2025, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the Law «On amendments to the Code of Ukraine on administrative offenses and the Criminal Code of Ukraine to ensure compliance with the guarantees of advocacy», which introduces administrative liability (Article 185-16 of the Code of Ukraine on administrative offenses) for violating the prohibition on identifying an advocate with a client. The law is awaiting the signature of the President of Ukraine.