Troika-imposed reforms raise concerns for lawyer independence

The Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) and the American Bar Association (ABA) have written to the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to express their growing concern about the independence of the legal profession in a number of European countries.

The main concerns expressed in the letter is that there seems to now be a trend in places where the economic crisis has hit the hardest, like Greece, Ireland, and Portugal and the intervention of the Troika has become necessary that governments are being forced to propose radical reforms of the legal profession.

In their joint letter, the CCBE and the ABA say that lawyers and bars and law societies are open to reform if necessary, especially in these difficult economic times.

However, the proposed changes are disproportionate and unnecessary as fundamental questions arise to the questionable complaince with international norms.

Specifically, it states: “Initiatives are being taken based on a purely economic approach, without taking account of the purpose/justification of professional regulation and without analysing the impact of such proposals on the administration of justice.

The establishment of the Regulator will be in clear breach of one of the core principles of the legal profession: regulation independent from the executive branch of the state - a principle recognised in Europe, the United States, and internationally. It is the cornerstone of any democratic society based on the rule of law and also necessary for the sound administration of justice.”

What is underlined with the letter is that it is not completetly about the lawyers, but more so about the public. The public's access to justice is being hampered, and independent lawyers with the responsibility of putting the client first and the privileged communication and confidentiality that is a core value of that relationship “are the very foundation of an open legal system and a free society”.

The CCBE is the representative organisation of around 1 million European lawyers through its member bars and law societies. The ABA is the world’s largest voluntary professional organisation, with a membership of almost 400,000 lawyers.