PASO Council meeting

On July 28, a regular meeting of the PASO Council took place. It was held online via Zoom.

The meeting began with summing up the results of the essay contest on the topic “The Future of the Bar: a Youth Perspective”. Under the terms of the competition, the author of the best essay becomes a representative of the Chamber of Advocates of the Samara Region at the Volga Region Youth Forum of Young Lawyers, which will be held in Samara on August 25, 2022. Participants who submitted essays and presentations were awarded certificates of honor and gifts.

The first place was given to the lawyer, member of the PASO Council A.I. Dyachenko.

The Council then took an oath of allegiance to the lawyer's duty from three applicants.

He then proceeded to work on the agenda. On the basis of personal statements, the status of three lawyers was suspended and one lawyer was renewed. Six lawyers filed applications for termination of status. The Council regretfully decided to terminate the status of two more colleagues due to death.

Nine lawyers were included in the SYP system.

The lawyers notified the Council of the establishment of four new cabinets.

Ten lawyers were thanked based on the personal statements of the principals.

The Council of the PASO provided an explanation on the issues of replacing lawyers participating in criminal proceedings as a defense counsel by appointment.

The agenda of the meeting included the only disciplinary proceedings initiated back in November 2021 on the proposal of the Vice President of the PASO. The Chamber of Lawyers received an appeal from the investigator of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, who reported that the lawyers who came to the pre-trial detention center to participate in the interrogation of the client refused to sign the protocol and left the detention center. In this regard, the investigator recorded the refusal to sign and attached the protocol to the case file. The lawyers, having learned about the investigator’s appeal, filed an application to initiate a criminal case against him in connection with the falsification of evidence. Colleagues asserted that there was no fact of refusal to sign the protocol. The investigator independently prepared a protocol without their participation in order to introduce the necessary evidence into the criminal case. The protocol was also not signed by the principal. Due to the fact that in itself the refusal to sign the protocol under no circumstances is an appropriate way to protect the rights of the principal, the Qualification Commission of the PASO saw the elements of a disciplinary offense in the actions of lawyers. However, in this situation, the only evidence of the lawyers' guilt in committing it was the report of the investigator. Under such circumstances, based on the presumption of good faith actions of a lawyer, enshrined in the CPEA, the Council exercised the right provided for in paragraph 4 of Art. 24 of the CEA, and contrary to the Commission's conclusions, it decided to terminate the disciplinary proceedings due to the absence of violations of the law on advocacy and advocacy in the lawyer's actions.

The creation of evidence by the investigation by groundlessly accusing lawyers of refusing to sign the protocol is unacceptable and cannot be supported by lawyers' self-government bodies.

PASO Press Center