During 2020 almost every day attorneys applied for violations of their rights
Violations of attorneys' rights remain a central issue in activity of the Ukrainian National Bar Association (hereinafter – UNBA) throughout its existence.
For 9 months of 2020 attorneys 97 times claim the violation of their rights to regional bar councils. During this period Bar Council of Ukraine (hereinafter – BCU) received 83 appeals. The UNBA Committee for the Protection of Attorneys' Rights received 73 appeals during first three quarters of this year.
This was announced by the Head of UNBA, BCU Lidia Izovitova during a meeting of the BCU on December 18th.
The most frequent violations of attorneys' rights occur in Kyiv region and Kyiv city, Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk region. There are the biggest numbers of searches and detentions. Thus, in the third quarter in Ukraine 62 authorized searches of attorneys took place, 18 of them were in the Kyiv region.
During this period, regional bar councils made 95 searches and detains of attorneys. Most often it happened in Kyiv region (36 times), Odessa region (23 councils), Kyiv city (19 times). In addition, during July-September another 33 searches and detentions of attorneys took place without notifications to the regional bar councils, which constitutes a violation of the Law "On the Bar and Legal practice". Kyiv region (18) and Odesa region (8) hold negative records for the number of such cases.
In 2020 the legal community faced the problem of violations of attorneys' rights by judges, and not only the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court. One week ago in the Zaporizhia region there was a glaring case when an attorney was attacked in the courtroom, and law enforcement officers took part in it.
"It is important that these statistics are as widely known as possible, because direct violations of the relevant law should be known not only to attorneys or law enforcement agencies. Journalists and society should be aware about this. We always make every effort to ensure that both specific stories and such analytics are available to the press, and journalists should be our allies in this,” said Lidia Izovitova.
Popular news
Legislation
Advocates have warned that the draft Labor Code would curtail workers' protections
Certain provisions of the draft Labor Code of Ukraine regarding collective labor disputes undermine labor protections and do not comply with constitutional and international standards.
Educational events
The right of minors to marry: how judicial oversight works
The issue of granting minors the right to marry lies at the intersection of family law, child protection, and judicial discretion. The UNBA Committee on family law dedicated a webinar held on March 30 to this very topic.
Self-government
BCU: The HCJ’s decisions undermine the constitutional guarantees of the independence of the advocacy profession
The Bar Council of Ukraine has concluded that, in its recent decisions, the High Council of Justice has, without legal grounds, called into question the right of bar self-governing bodies to protect the guarantees of legal practice and has, in effect, attempted to grant one of its members — who retains the status of an advocate — special immunity from the Rules of professional conduct and disciplinary responsibility.
Announcements
The Bar Council of Ukraine begins its meeting
Today, April 2, a meeting of the Bar Council of Ukraine is taking place in Kyiv. On the agenda are issues related to the activities of bar self-governing bodies, consideration of a decision by the High Council of Justice, a number of appeals, as well as a discussion of the current state and pressing issues regarding the functioning of the legal aid system.
Interaction
The UNBA and the National Guard have agreed to cooperate on legal protection for military personnel
Servicemembers of the National Guard, their family members, and veterans are to receive additional legal tools to protect their rights, while the National Guard’s legal services will receive methodological and expert support.
Interaction
Protecting the rights of service members: The UNBA and the Military Ombudsman have agreed on cooperation
Servicemembers, reservists, conscripts during training exercises, members of local community volunteer units, and other individuals covered by the Law «On the Military Ombudsman» should have better access to professional legal assistance.
Discussion
New Labor Code: advocates highlight the strengths and risks of the draft
The draft Labor Code contains a number of progressive provisions aimed at modernizing labor legislation: digitizing procedures, expanding forms of employment, and increasing transparency in wage payments. At the same time, certain systemic issues require further refinement.
Rule of Law Roadmap
Reform without data and advocacy: what the Ministry of Justice’s launch has revealed
The Ministry of Justice hosted the first meeting of the working group on bar reform. But instead of professional preparation of legislative changes, we saw exactly what Armada Network Director Dale Armstrong had spoken about the day before in Kyiv: not reform, but a struggle for control over the agenda through a narrow circle of “stakeholders” who create an echo chamber of influence for themselves.
Publications
Volodymyr Matsko Extradition during wartime: when the risks outweigh the request
Volodymyr Matsko Extradition as a systemic form of rights violations
Victoria Yakusha, Law and Business The anti-corruption vertical cannot «take care» of the Bar as an institution, - acting head of the HQDCB
Censor.net Protecting advocates – protecting justice: addressing concerns about the new law
Ihor Kolesnykov A BRIEF SUMMARY REGARDING THE APPLICATION OF THE ORDER ON EXTENDED CONFISCATION IN LATVIA REGARDING FINANCIAL ASSETS OF…
Valentyn Gvozdiy WORKING IN A WAR ZONE
Lydia Izovitova Formula of perfection
Sergiy Vylkov Our judicial system is so built that courts do not trust advocates
