France confirms cooperation with UNBA on reforms in the field of the rule of law

On January 29, a working meeting between representatives of the Ukrainian National Bar Association and the French National Bar Council (Conseil National des Barreaux, CNB) took place in Paris.

The French side was represented by CNB President Julie Couturier, Vice President Marie-Aimee Peyron and other council members.

The parties focused on developing cooperation within the framework of the memorandum signed in 2023, which lays the foundation for systematic interaction between the advocacy associations of the two countries, the exchange of experience, and the implementation of joint initiatives on issues of advocacy independence and the rule of law.

In particular, the participants discussed possible ways to promote the implementation of the Roadmap on the rule of law, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers on May 14, 2025, No. 475-r, with a view to fulfilling Ukraine's obligations under the European Union's negotiating framework.

The focus was on issues related to the organization of the profession and the activities of bar self-government bodies. In particular, they discussed disciplinary procedures, approaches to improving the professional level of advocates, the procedure for elections to self-government bodies, and the institutional structure of advocacy. Earlier, on January 2, the first organizational meeting of the Working Group on the implementation of the Roadmap on the rule of law in the area of bar reform took place. In addition to J. Couturier and M-E. Peiron, the director of the CNB's legal department Geraldine Cavaille and her colleague from the CNB Frédéric Teper confirmed their participation in the work. «Of course, today you know that you have our full support in this work. I see all the work that has been done. It is impressive. It is always very important to organize the reform of the justice system, the reform of advocacy, and to ensure the independence of advocacy... And to work with you, applying our expertise in all these areas – discipline, deontology, ethics, organization, admission, and exams for entry into the profession», - Ms. Peyron noted at the time.

In the context of preparing amendments to the legislation on advocacy, the participants of the event emphasized the importance of institutional dialogue with Expertise France (the French public agency for international technical cooperation), as the executor of the EU project «Pravo-Justice». In particular, they discussed the need to involve representatives of the advocacy association in shaping the next phase of the project, as the institutional participation of the professional community is important for the correct assessment of the quality of reforms and the real state of the rule of law. Previously, Ukraine had experienced problems with the project's interaction with the UNBA as a professional organization defined by law, and the associated risk of developing recommendations without proper consultation with advocacy.

In this regard, the President of the UNBA, BCU Lidiya Izovitova expressed her hope that cooperation with the CNB and constructive dialogue with Expertise France would contribute to the effective participation of the advocacy community in the preparation of the fourth phase of the EU project «Pravo-Justice». For its part, the French National Bar Council confirmed its readiness for further cooperation, in particular in the implementation of the tasks set out in the Roadmap.

In addition, a separate meeting was held between the Ukrainian delegation and the Youth Committee of the Paris Bar, which is seen as an additional channel for professional communication and exchange of practices between young advocates.