Lawyers professional secrecy – important case before EU Court of Justice

The Constitutional Court of Belgium has requested a preliminary ruling from the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) about exceptions to reporting tax arrangements under the EU Council’s Directive 2018/822 (DAC6). On February 19, 2021, The Belgium high court, Grondwettelijk Hof, filed a request for an opinion from the CJEU (case C-694/20) regarding a DAC6 issue that the Flemish Bar Council and Belgian Association of Tax Lawyers raised on December 21 2020.
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ECJ judgment in Case C-667/19 A.M. v E.M., December 17, 2020

Information as to the ‘function’ of a cosmetic product which must appear…
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ECJ judgment in Joined Cases C-354/20 PPU and C-412/20 PPU Openbaar Ministerie (Independence of the issuing judicial authority), December 17, 2020

The existence of evidence of systemic or generalised deficiencies concer…
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CJE judgment in Case C-336/19 Centraal Israëlitisch Consistorie van België and Others, December 17, 2020

In order to promote animal welfare in the context of ritual slaughter, M…
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ECHR judgment in the case of Béla Németh v. Hungary (application no. 73303/14), December 17, 2020

State moratorium on evictions lawful in property acquirer’s…
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ECJ judgment in Case C-316/19 Commission v Slovenia, December 17, 2020

By unilaterally seizing documents that are part of the archives of the E…
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ECHR judgment in case Sellami v. France (application no. 61470/15), December 17, 2020

A journalist’s conviction for using information obtained in…
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Judgment in Case C-808/18 Commission v Hungary, December 17, 2020

Hungary has failed to fulfil its obligations under EU law in the area of…
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Last Posts

Representation and the Role of a Lawyer in Mediation

On Wednesday, March 15, 2023, an interesting online meeting took Place dedicated to Representation and the Role of a Lawyer in Mediation. The Event was organized by the European Association of Lawyers. The meeting focused on presenting information regarding the European Code of Conduct for Mediators including the priority of interests of the client, the main principles in the mediation process, appropriate ethical behaviors for mediators, as well as “How lawyers can avoid ruining mediation” During the opening speech Maria Ślązak, AEA-EAL President, noted the importance of the role of a Lawyer in the Mediation Process. Our Organization was represented by: Prof. Irakli Kandashvili – Chairperson of the Mediation Committee (AEA – EAL) Djamshid Turdaliev – Mediator, Member of the Board of Bar of Uzbekistan Luiza Romanadze – Mediator, President of the Ukrainian Academy of Mediation Svetlana Sergeyeva – Attorney, Mediator, Vice-President of Ukrainian Academy of Mediation Iain G. Mitchell KC – Barrister and King’s Counsel The event was concluded by Maria Ślązak, AEA-EAL President who represented information regarding the ECHR Knowledge Sharing platform (ECHR-KS). It was highlighted that the mission of the Platform is to share Convention case-law knowledge, complementing the existing information tools such as HUDOC.
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Event dedicated to International Women’s Day

On March 14, 2023, a special event “Everything you always wanted to know about lawyers but were afraid to ask” took place which was dedicated to International Women’s day. The event was jointly organized by The Opole Bar of Attorneys-at-Law and the European Association of Lawyers. The event was featuring lawyers from India, China, Italy, Germany, Austria, Romania, Serbia, UK. AEA-EAL President Maria Ślązak as well as Dean of the District Council of the Chamber of Legal Advisers in Opole Katarzyna Bisowska – greeted all participants and in their welcoming remarks. The meeting was focused on sharing personal experiences by answering questions regarding the personal life of a lawyer woman, work-life balance challenges as well as the system of legal education, and the role of lawyers’ organizations, women vs. men. It was highlighted that, although women slowly found their place in the legal profession since the 19th century, women still face challenges in the Legal Profession. There are still traditional sexual stereotypes, inflexible workplace structures, and inadequate access to mentoring. Special guests and speakers: Sabine Fuhrmann (Germany), Alix Frank-Thomasser (Austria), Arcadia Hinescu (Romania), Tanya Jha (India), Ana Nestorovic (Serbia), Beange Dorota (UK), Sharon Shi (China), Shirin Amirgaliyeva (Kazakhstan)
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Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) – 4th meeting

President of the European Association of Lawyers (AEA-EAL) Maria Ślązak participated in the fourth meeting of the Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) that was held in person from 1 to 3 March 2023 in Strasbourg. The CJ-AV consists of 15 representatives of member States, and representatives of several international bodies such as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers. The Committee itself is tasked with the elaboration of a legal instrument aimed at strengthening the protection of the profession of lawyer and the right to practice the profession without prejudice or restraint, under the authority of the Committee of Ministers and of the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ). Observer members of the Committee are, among others, representatives of international lawyers’ organizations, including the European Association of Lawyers (AEA-EAL). Since 2017, our Association has actively participated in discussions and works on future legal instruments protecting lawyers’ rights. Participants of the meeting concentrated on the continuation of drafting the proposal of legal instrument aiming at strengthening the protection of the profession of lawyer and the right to practice without prejudice or restraint. Part of the meeting was devoted to the consideration of enforcement mechanisms. The work will be still continued at the two following meetings this year and three other meetings next year, including the exchange of the correspondence between the parties in the period between the sessions in person. More information as well as a meeting report about the event can be found here: http://bit.ly/3mwEjvu
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Join an online event – International Women’s Day, “Everything you wanted to know about lawyers but were afraid to ask” – March 14, 2023.

We are pleased to announce that on March 14, 2023. there will be an online International Women’s Day event featuring lawyers from India, China, Italy, Germany, Austria, Romania, Serbia, UK. The event will be in the form of an interview titled “Everything you wanted to know about lawyers but were afraid to ask.” Date: March 14, 2023 Time:16:00 pm – 19:00 pm (CET) Online zoom platform Register in advance for this meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwrc-6srzgrGdf39keDR9OLLWH-mpNb-Jxj Registration for the event will be possible from March 6 Organizers and partners: OIRP – Okręgowa Izba Radców Prawnych in Opole European Association of Lawyers – Association Européenne des Avocats (AEA-EAL)
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Join the webinar ‘Representation and the Role of Lawyer in Mediation’ – March 15, 2023

Date: March 15, 2023 Time: 12:30 pm – 14:00 pm (CET) Online zoom platform Register in advance for this meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYud-6przwpGtxYALGNIQMqw92N7aP16J3G Participation is free of charge Language: English Agenda: Opening remarks: Maria Ślązak -President of the AEA – EAL Prof. Irakli Kandashvili – Chairperson of the Mediation Committee (AEA – EAL) Speakers: General Review of the Issue Prof. Irakli Kandashvili – Chairperson of the Mediation Committee (AEA – EAL) Mediating Ethically – Deontological Issues Djamshid Turdaliev – Mediator, Member of the Board of Bar of Uzbekistan Luiza Romanadze – Mediator, President of the Ukrainian Academy of Mediation Svetlana Sergeyeva – Attorney, Mediator, Vice-President of Ukrainian Academy of Mediation Discussion, Q/A session Life Hacks – How lawyers can avoid ruining mediations` Iain G. Mitchell KC – Barrister and King’s Counsel Discussion, Q/A session Closing remarks
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45 European Presidents Conference in Vienna

Our President Maria Ślązak participated in the 45 European Presidents Conference in Vienna – the biggest gathering of leaders of Bars and lawyers’ organizations on the continent. More information about the event can be found here. The AEA-EAL activity report is available for download.
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Call for aid – earthquake in Turkey

Dear members of the international legal community, We are writing with a heavy heart once again, after the Izmir Earthquake in 2020, to appeal to the international legal community to mobilise and support the relief efforts in support of the lawyers’ community in Turkey who have been among those severely affected by the devastating earthquake of February 6, 2023. As you might have been following, the country woke up to a series of high-magnitude earthquakes, in the magnitudes of 7.8 and 7.5. Central and southeastern Turkey was hit severely by these. Lives of around 15 million people, many members of already disadvantaged minority groups including Kurds, Arabs, and immigrants, have changed forever. The heavy winter conditions impact the search and rescue efforts severely. Initial reports indicate that many people either lost their lives or are still under the rubble, and thousands were left homeless in cold weather conditions or cannot enter their homes. Despite the incremental weather, search and rescue teams continue. It is also among the information that some districts were completely destroyed. There is still no news from thousands of people. It is reported that many lawyers, including those who are members of Maras, Hatay, Antep, Diyarbakir, Urfa, Adana, Adiyaman, and Osmaniye Bar Associations, and their families have suffered from serious loss of lives, homes, and workspaces among others. There are many who are under rubble waiting to be rescued. As a response to this catastrophe, the Union of Bar Association of Turkey (TBB) has started a campaign in support of efforts aiming at providing relief to the lawyers’ community and their families. We have been in contact with them on this initiative and would like to support their efforts by undertaking the task of conveying this call abroad on their behalf. The TBB started a donation campaign that enables the organisation to accept donations from abroad. Please see the details below. We would like to draw your attention to this important campaign and ask for your and your organisations’ kind consideration of support and mobilization. The donations will be made directly to the TBB’s Turkey-based USD and Euro accounts, there will be a wire fee. We, therefore, encourage your organisations or network to coordinate the efforts and, if possible, to create a point of collection through which the donations could be made without many hurdles and unnecessary costs. As such donation campaigns are subject to official approval and time limits, the TBB will be able to accept donations to these accounts until the deadline of 15 March 2023, 17:00 pm (Turkey time). We would also appreciate it if you could let us know of your actions so we can inform the TBB accordingly and ensure a safe receipt on Turkey’s end. No need to say that any support, regardless of the amount, will count. Please mobilise, support, and help us spread the word. With gratitude and solidarity. Ayse Bingol Demir & Ceren Uysal Here is the necessary info for donations: The Name of the Bank: DENİZBANK Branch of the Bank: BALGAT BRANCH USD Account: IBAN: TR540013400000265362702334 EURO Account: TR270013400000265362702335 Name of the Account Holder: T. BAROLAR BİRLİĞİ BAŞKANLIĞI [Please be sure that the name is written correctly and as it is written here] Swift Code: DENITRIS134
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Tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine – a legal assessment

The Subcommittee on Human Rights of the European Parliament examines the possibility of establishing the Tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. to check all possibilities, a legal assessment has been prepared by Olivier Corten and Vaios Koutroulis, Université libre de Bruxelles. The paper evaluates the innovative nature of the proposed tribunal and analyzes 3 key elements related to its creation and operation: legal foundation, immunity issues, and implementation and enforcement of decisions. In conclusion, the authors consider two possibilities taking into account the critical importance of legitimacy. The first option is to base the tribunal’s creation on Ukrainian domestic law and self-defence rights, enabling the prosecution of foreign nationals for aggression crimes with UN or other organization agreement. The second, more legitimate option is to expand existing legal mechanisms, particularly the “Uniting for Peace” resolution, due to the UN Security Council’s inability to act due to a permanent member veto (Russia). In either case, significant legality issues persist. Subcommittee activities follow the resolution of the European Parliament adopted on 19 January 2023 demanding the Russian political and military leadership be held accountable for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. Documents for download: EP Resolution Tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine – a legal assessment
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AEA – EAL European Association of Lawyers

Association Europeenne des Avocats _ European Association of Lawyers