How parliament and the government divided up the work on the Convention on the Protection of the Professions of Lawyer

Further legislative work following Ukraine’s signing of the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Professions of Lawyer encompasses two distinct areas — the ratification of the international treaty and the implementation of its provisions. The Ministry of Justice is preparing a government ratification package, and members of parliament, together with the UNBA and the ministry, have drafted a bill amending the Law «On the advocacy and the practice of law», which parliament is now ready to register.

Chairman of the Subcommittee on the organization and activities of the advocacy and legal aid agencies of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on legal policy Volodymyr Vatras spoke about this during the roundtable discussion «The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Professions of Lawyer: a future part of Ukrainian legislation».

He recalled that a series of meetings involving representatives of parliament, government agencies, and the advocacy community had taken place within the subcommittee. In particular, agreements on the work were reached on June 9 at a meeting of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on legal policy.

At that time, according to V. Vatras, the participants agreed on two legislative initiatives. The first concerns the government’s ratification package, which the Ministry of Justice is responsible for preparing. The second — the draft law «On amendments to the law of Ukraine «On the advocacy and the practice of law» in connection with the signing of the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Professions of Lawyer» — was jointly prepared by the UNBA, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on legal policy and the Ministry of Justice. «We, as the Ukrainian parliament, are already ready to register it», - the MP said.

The issue of Ukraine’s accession to the Convention has been repeatedly discussed at meetings of the Committee, and V. Vatras has consistently advocated for the direct involvement of the advocacy community in the preparation of legislative decisions.

During a working meeting in November 2025, V. Vatras explained why the term lawyer in the text of the international treaty should be translated into Ukrainian as «advocate» At that time, the Committee was awaiting an official translation and information on further procedural steps from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice.

In January 2026, the parliamentarian insisted that reforming the legal profession in accordance with the Roadmap and the signing and ratification of the Convention are separate processes that can proceed in parallel.

After Ukraine signed the international treaty, V. Vatras drew attention to the need to launch the ratification process and determine the sequence of further actions. He also warned that delays could affect Ukraine’s ability to participate in the formation of the Group of Experts on the Protection of the Legal Profession (GRAVO).

On the day of the roundtable, members of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on legal policy met with Minister of Justice Denys Maslov. According to a statement from the ministry, the parties discussed joint efforts to implement systemic changes in the justice sector, improve legislation and advance Ukraine’s course toward European integration.