Representatives of the Bar in the HCJ resigned because of disagreement with unconstitutional status restrictions
Deputy Chair of the High Council of Justice Oleksiy Malovatskyi and Member of the High Council of Justice Pavlo Grechkivsky resigned from January 26, 2022.
The resignations were supported at a meeting of the HCJ on Thursday, January 20, 2022.
Thus, advocates elected to the HCJ by the Congress of Advocates in February 2019 fulfilled the recommendation of the BCU from August 2021 to resign due to the establishment of discriminatory requirements for HCJ Members during judicial reform and restriction of the independence of the status of advocates – representatives of the legal community.
In particular, the BCU drew attention to the lack of constitutional foundations for the formation of Ethics Council with the pre-emptive right to vote of international experts, as well as the restriction of the independence of HCJ members in their decision-making within the framework of their powers.
Recall that in August 2021, the Bar Council of Ukraine held an emergency meeting at which it discussed the state of implementation of law No. 1635-IX "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine regarding the Procedure for Election (Appointment) to the positions of Members of the High Council of Justice and the activities of disciplinary inspectors of the High Council of Justice" and law No. 1629-IX "On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On the Judiciary and Status of Judges" and some laws of Ukraine on resumption of work of the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine".
Having discussed the requirements established by law 1635-IX for HCJ members, the BCU recommended that HCJ members consider resigning due to the inability to independently carry out activities under the conditions of the amended legislation.
In October 2021, the Plenum of the Supreme Court appealed to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine regarding the verification of compliance with the Constitution of Ukraine (constitutionality) of the provisions of paragraph thirteen of paragraph 23-1 of Section III "Final and Transitional provisions" of the Law of Ukraine of December 21, 2016 No. 1798-VIII "On the High Council of Justice", paragraphs one (in terms of re-evaluation of judges-members of the High Council of Justice), the sixth and the eleventh paragraph 4 of Section II "Final and Transitional Provisions" of the Law of Ukraine of July 14, 2021 No. 1635-IX "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine regarding the Procedure for Election (Appointment) for the positions of Members of the High Council of Justice and the activities of disciplinary inspectors of the High Council of Justice.Popular news
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.
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.
Rule of Law Roadmap
Advocacy, European integration and the limits of intervention: an American report presented in Kyiv
Following its presentation in Brussels, the report «The Ukrainian advocacy in the context of the rule of law and European integration» made its way to Kyiv. It highlighted critical issues both in understanding the very nature of the self-governing profession and in the emergence of a «shadow market» surrounding the Ukrainian advocacy.
Discussion
ETAIDF and MMC: where the system fails
The new system for assessing a person’s daily functioning and the practice of undergoing medical-legal examinations have already raised numerous questions — ranging from unclear procedures to difficulties in appealing decisions. These issues were examined by advocates during the roundtable discussion «Problematic issues of the ETAIDF and MMC», organized by the UNBA Committee on the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities and the All-Ukrainian public organization «Human rights union of persons with disabilities».
Rule of Law Roadmap
Access to the advocate profession: a subgroup has identified the direction of change
On Monday, March 16, a meeting was held of the subgroup «Access to the profession and training of advocates. Organizational forms of legal practice» of the Working Group on the implementation of the Rule of Law Roadmap.
Appointment
A representative of the UNBA has arrived in Cairo
Advocate Irena Maria Ostrozka-Sangushko has been appointed as the representative of the Ukrainian National Bar Association in the Arab Republic of Egypt, in the city of Cairo. The corresponding Order No. 80, dated March 10, 2026, was signed by the President of the UNBA, BCU Lidiya Izovitova.
Rule of Law Roadmap
Organization of advocacy: subgroup agrees on approaches to regulatory reform
On March 13, a meeting was held of the «Organization of the advocacy and self-government» subgroup of the Working Group on the implementation of the Rule of Law Roadmap regarding bar reform. The event was conducted via videoconference.
Abroad
Where does legal information end and legal assistance begin?
Law firms find themselves in a dilemma: they want to make the most of artificial intelligence, but at the same time, more and more people are entrusting their legal matters to large language models. And this, as experts point out, entails countless risks.
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
