Academic literature on the topic 'Lawyers Civil rights'

Legal privilege and professional secrecy of attorneys relate to the right to a fair trial (Article 6 European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)) as well as to the right to respect for private and family life (Article 8 ECHR). The reason for protecting the lawyer via fundamental rights is the protection of fundamental rights of the lawyer’s clients. All legal orders apply legal privileges and professional secrecy; however, the contents of such are not identical. Traditionally there is an important difference between common and civil law. The professional secrecy of an attorney in civil law jurisdictions is his right and at the same time his obligation based on his membership of the Bar (that is his legal profession). In common law legal privilege comprises the contents of documents issued by an attorney to the client. Professional secrecy of attorneys in civil law jurisdictions applies solely to independent lawyers; in-house lawyers are usually not allowed to benefit from rules on professional secrecy (exceptions in the Netherlands and Belgium). On the other hand, common law jurisdictions apply legal professional privilege, recognized also to in-house lawyers. Slovenian law follows the traditional civil law concept of professional secrecy and sets a limited privilege to in-house lawyers. The article then discusses Slovenian law of civil procedure and compares the position of professional secrecy in lawsuits before State’s courts and in arbitration.

The legal basis for the participation of a lawyer in international cooperation in criminal proceedings are international standards based on the provisions of international legal acts on human rights and freedoms and the implementation of criminal justice, guaranteeing the right to defense and the functioning of the bar. The view is supported that international legal acts regulating the activities of the bar can be divided into several groups, namely: international legal acts that ensure the realization of human and civil rights and freedoms of a general nature; international legal acts guaranteeing the realization of human and civil rights and freedoms of a special nature; international legal acts establishing general principles for the provision of legal aid and the activities of lawyers. A lawyer in criminal proceedings during international cooperation is involved to perform the function of protection in case of certain procedural actions within the framework of international legal assistance, extradition of persons who have committed a criminal offense, the implementation of criminal proceedings subject to its adoption. However, on a general basis, a lawyer in criminal proceedings for the protection of the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of participants in criminal proceedings has the status of defense counsel. It is concluded that international legal acts provide for the exercise of the right to legal assistance of a lawyer in the implementation of international cooperation in criminal proceedings by: ensuring timely access of the lawyer to the client; confidentiality of the lawyer’s contacts with the client; enshrining in the legislation such a scope of professional rights of a lawyer, which in modern conditions of development of the state and society is sufficient for the effective implementation of legal aid; non-interference in the lawful professional activity of a lawyer, etc. The provisions formed in the scientific article can be used with the participation of lawyers in international cooperation in criminal proceedings in order to ensure human protection in pretrial investigation and judicial institutions, representation, participation in certain procedural actions.

This essay examines the theory of individual agency that propels the central thesis in Kenneth Mack's Representing the Race: The Creation of the Civil Rights Lawyer (2012)—namely, that an important yet understudied means by which African American civil rights lawyers changed conceptions of race through their work was through their very performance of the professional role of lawyer. Mack shows that this performance was inevitably fraught with tension and contradiction because African American lawyers were called upon to act both as exemplary representatives of their race and as performers of a professional role that traditionally had been reserved for whites only. Mack focuses especially on the tensions of this role in courtrooms, where African American lawyers were necessarily called upon to act as the equals of white judges, opposing counsel, and witnesses. Mack's thesis, focused on the contradictions and tensions embodied in the performance of a racially loaded identity, reflects the influence of postmodern identity performance theory as articulated by Judith Butler and others. Mack and others belong to a new generation of civil rights history scholars who are asking new questions about contested identities related to race, gender, sexuality, and class. This essay offers an evaluation of this new direction for civil rights scholarship, focusing especially on its implicit normative orientation and what it contributes to the decade‐old debate over how to conceive of agency in social movement scholarship.

This article aims to analyze the defendants’ right to access a lawyer in criminal law, as defined in international legal standards, and determine the extent to which the legislation of Lao pdr complies. This study finds that Lao law is consistent with international law as regards the defendant’s right to gain access to a lawyer, for instance, as enshrined in the National Constitution, Criminal Law, Civil Law and the Law on Lawyers. However, this article will argue that defendants are not aware of their rights due to poor economic resources and the lack of information on the availability of legal aid services and how to access such services. On the other hand, defendants are unable to implement their rights effectively due to the limited and incompetent protection offered by lawyers. Additionally, legal practitioners and local authorities are not familiar with and accepting of the relevant legislation.

This article is devoted to the study of the theoretical and scientific-practical nature of the institution of representation in the EU countries and the development of proposals based on them on improving the legal status of a lawyer in Ukraine, taking into account the best European practice. The place of the advocacy in the modern legal system can be characterized as one of the ways of self-restraint of state power through the creation and functioning of an independent human rights institution that promotes its activities by fulfilling the constitutional function of the state – the realization and protection of human rights and freedoms. The constitutional and legal status allows advocates to participate in ensuring the rights not only of everyone, but of the whole civil society, to implement the human rights function, ensuring the interaction in the activity of the institutional systems of the state and civil society. Since 2012, the advocacy reform has been initiated and brought to the standards of the European Union. However, over 6 years have passed, but no significant positive changes have taken place in this field. Ensuring the constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens still leaves much to be desired. The issue of voluntary admission of lawyers to the National Association of Advocates of Ukraine will be resolved, and so-called "lawyer's monopoly" needs to be substantially revised. Therefore, the review of the grounds, the rules, and the regularity of the prosecution in civil proceedings, which is carried out by the two advocates, needs a substantial improvement. In order to create in Ukraine the model of legal assistance taking into account modern legal frameworks, that is a guarantee of the right of accessibility and effectiveness of judicial protection in civil proceedings.

We consider the importance of advocateship in the process of protecting human rights and freedoms, the interests of organizations, society and the state. We indicate the grounds and circumstances of the provision by lawyers of qualified legal assistance to certain categories of citizens, including on a non-refundable basis. We reveal the importance of the professional and business qualities of a lawyer, as a representative of the lawyer community, in providing legal assistance. We pay attention to the high moral, ethical and legal nature of the lawyers activities, in particular, the moral requirements for the lawyer personality; activity in defending the interests of the grantor (client); legal guarantees for the independence of a lawyer and others. Advocateship, as an institution that does not belong to state power, but to civil society, which has such characteristics as autonomy, independence, cor-poratism, self-government, has a significant role in the law enforcement ac-tivity of the state. Envisage to increase the role of the lawyer community in advocacy, to increase the qualifications of lawyer personnel, expand the rights of lawyers in providing legal assistance, and significantly improve the information and technical base. A number of legislative transformations to increase the effective functioning of the lawyer community, enhancing the professional advocateship independence of the Russian Federation, can be-come productive only when the state ensures the trust of citizens on the part of the lawyer community, it is also necessary to end impunity in the advocacy sphere, and increase the level of legal order and legality, to strengthen the supervision quality of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen observance institution.

The article investigates is the role of civil society in the implementation of law enforcement. The analysis allowed to identify the role of human rights social organization, religious denominations, Cossack brigades, the media, local authorities, lawyers and notaries in ensuring the protection of rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of citizens and legal entities.

Abstract This article raises the problem of the inclusion of gender in the civil status of the person and argues that public lawyers are now called on to understand whether a genderless civil status is constitutionally permissible and desirable. Admittedly, this is not an easy task. Gender categories are deeply rooted in our legal systems. Arguably, they may prove necessary for the achievement of constitutionally grounded public interests and protect fundamental rights, such as equality between men and women. The task that public lawyers are faced with is further complicated by the affirmation of the right to gender recognition based on self-determination, and the inclusion of nonbinary genders in the law. These developments are indeed profoundly transforming the way in which gender is registered and controlled. Importantly, they put in doubt the effectiveness of gender as a criterion of legal categorization.

Lawyer's "strike" in Serbia is a new practical instrument of pressure for the protection of professional and economic interests. The author points to the Rawls theory of civil disobedience, considering that the crisis of the legal system and general endangering of freedom and rights, claim from lawyers that their interests should subordinate to interests of citizens and that the protests and discontents should be expressed in other ways, different from the obstruction of their own function and the function of the administration of justice.