The UNBA presented a report on violations of advocates' rights in the TCC

The Committee for the protection of advocate's rights and guarantees of legal practice of the UNBA has prepared a consolidated report on violations of advocate's professional rights and guarantees of legal practice by territorial recruitment and social support centers for the period from 2022 to the first half of 2025.

The document contains statistics on appeals, a description of recorded incidents, and an overview of the response measures taken by the bar self-government bodies.

According to the UNBA Committee, in 2022, there was one recorded case of violation of guarantees of advocacy by the TCC and SP, and in 2023, there were already eight such episodes.

In 2024, the number of documented violations increased to 24, and in the first half of 2025, the Committee recorded another nine episodes. At the same time, the number of complaints from advocates regarding violations of their rights also increased: from 59 in 2022 to 98 in 2023, 86 in 2024, and 43 complaints in the first six months of 2025.

The most common violation of guarantees for advocate's activities is the denial of access to clients in the premises of the TCC and SP, despite the direct guarantee of legal assistance provided for in Article 59 of the Constitution. Other incidents recorded include the detention of advocates while providing legal assistance, attempts to «forcefully mobilize» defense advocates, the delivery of summonses to them in response to their legal position, the use of physical force, and the obstruction of access to clients. In some cases, advocates were physically injured and citizens were detained for long periods in the premises of the TCC.

The Committee draws particular attention to the problems of further investigation of such incidents: in most cases, information is entered into the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations only on the basis of decisions by investigating judges. At the same time, further investigations are not actually conducted — they are closed or remain without proper procedural actions.

At the same time, the report also provides positive examples of cooperation, in particular, the decision of one of the regional TCCs to set up a special place for advocates to meet with conscripts after a joint meeting with representatives of the UNBA.

A separate section of the document is devoted to the response measures taken by the bar self-government bodies. Since 2023, the UNBA has repeatedly appealed to the President of Ukraine, the Verkhovna Rada, the Cabinet of Ministers, the Ministry of Defense, and other authorities regarding the need to introduce a mechanism for reserving advocates for the period of martial law and preventing obstacles to their professional activities.

The report mentions Bill No. 12348 prepared by members of parliament to amend Article 23 of the Law «On mobilization preparation and mobilization» regarding the granting of deferrals to advocates, as well as the UNBA's initiative to recognize advocacy as critical to ensuring the livelihood of the population and the possibility of reserving advocates whose right to practice has not been suspended.

The report can be downloaded at this link.