IBA Executive Director Mark Ellis met with the UNBA leadership
On February 27, 2023, at the invitation of the Ukrainian National Bar Association, Mark Ellis, Executive Director of the International Bar Association, arrived in Kyiv as part of a working visit.
At the UNBA, he met with Ms. Lidia Izovitova (the UNBA President), Igor Kolesnikovthe (the UNBA Bar Council Secretary), the Head of the Highest Qualification and Disciplinary Commission of the Bar Serhii Vilkov, and the Head of the UNBA Secretariat Vadym Krasnyk. The meeting was also attended by Hanna Lazarchuk, a member of the Bar Council of Ukraine and Chairwoman of the UNBA Board of Trustees, and Oleg Klymiuk, Secretary of the UNBA International Relations Committee.
During the meeting, the participants discussed the activities of the Ukrainian Bar during the period of martial law, as well as problematic issues related to the development of the Bar.
The UNBA President thanked the IBA for assisting Ukrainian lawyers, including purchasing the necessary equipment for the arrangement of the Ukrainian Bar Support Centers.
Mark Ellis assured that the IBA would continue to support the Ukrainian Bar. This assistance is currently focused on purchasing 30 Starlink systems further to arrange the Advocates' Support Centers in the regions of Ukraine.
It is Mark Ellis' second working visit to Ukraine during martial law. The first one took place in August 2022.
Popular news
Guarantees of the practice of law
Ukraine has signed the Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer
Today, on 9 March, Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe Mykola Tochytskyi signed the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer. This makes our country the 28th to sign this important international treaty.
European integration
A translation of the report on advocacy presented to the European Parliament has been published
A translation of a research report on the Ukrainian advocacy profession in wartime, previously presented to the European Parliament in Brussels, has been published. The document is presented as a basis for discussion on the rule of law, Ukraine's European integration aspirations, and countering Russian disinformation in the legal sphere.
Legal defence of military personnel
How to formalize discharge from military service: practical workshop
The issue of discharge from military service remains one of the most pressing and complex for Ukrainian defenders and their families. Due to constant changes in legislation, military personnel often face refusals to discharge them from service or even to consider their reports.
Legislation
The Verkhovna Rada Committee criticized the format of the government working group on advocacy
The implementation of the Roadmap on the rule of law (approved by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 475-r of May 14, 2025) in relation to advocacy raises the practical question of who exactly should prepare legislative changes and how.
Self-government
The BCU demands a review of the composition of the government working group on reforming the advocacy profession
The President of the UNBA, BCU Lidiya Izovitova, appealed to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to review the composition of the working group on improving legislation in the field of advocacy and legal practice.
Guarantees of the practice of law
The President has determined, who will sign the Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy authorized Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe Mykola Tochytskyi to sign the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.
Legislation
After the war amnesty for criminals or exemption from responsibility?
To ensure national reconciliation, rehabilitation of persons who have been persecuted for political reasons, restoration of justice, and establishment of lasting peace, it is proposed to introduce an amnesty after the war.
Discussion
Why lowering the age of marriage lacks legal logic
Although until 2012 there was a provision in family law that allowed children to marry from the age of 14 under certain circumstances, its return to Ukrainian law would contradict international obligations and the logic of criminal law.
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
