Ukraine has signed the Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer: why is this important?
Ukraine has signed the Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer: why is this important?
On March 9, 2026, Mykola Tochytskyi, Ukraine’s representative to the Council of Europe, signed the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer. Ukraine became the 28th country to sign this international treaty.
The Convention on the Protection of Lawyers is the first international treaty in history aimed at protecting this profession. The document establishes uniform approaches to guarantees of lawyers’ independence and provides for a mechanism to monitor compliance with its provisions. It was developed in response to the growing number of reports of attacks on members of this profession, whether in the form of harassment, threats, or assaults, or in the form of interference with the performance of professional duties (obstructing access to clients, etc.).
Signing the Convention is only the first step. Now Ukraine must ratify it in accordance with the procedure set forth in Article 9 of the Law of Ukraine “On International Treaties of Ukraine.” Yevhen Krapivin, Head of the “Law and order” Division at the Agency for Legislative Initiatives, noted that the treaty enters into force upon the eighth ratification (six of which must be by member states of the Council of Europe). As of today, no signatory country has yet ratified the Convention.
Ukraine’s pace of work on ratification is on par with other countries, despite isolated claims of government delays in this process. It is important to align Ukraine’s European integration commitments regarding the bar with the ratification of the Convention on the Protection of the Independence of the Bar and its reform in accordance with European standards. This naturally requires time for the thorough preparation of all ratification documents.
Yevhen Krapivin, Head of the “Rule of Law” Practice at ALI
In particular, ratification requires an official translation of the document into Ukrainian by the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Daria Pysarenko, Director of Tomorrow’s Lawyer, emphasizes that this is not merely a technical question; it concerns the scope of guarantees for the independence of the legal profession. The explanatory memorandum to the Convention is available on the Council of Europe’s website.
The Ministries of Justice and Foreign Affairs must approach the translation of the Convention with particular meticulousness. As noted in the explanatory memorandum, the Convention was drafted taking into account the big diversity of legal systems and methods of organizing the legal profession in Council of Europe member states. The translation must accurately reflect this diversity while also taking into account the specific features of the Ukrainian system, where legal assistance is provided not only by attorneys but also by other categories of legal professionals who do not hold an attorney’s license. An inaccurate translation could narrow the scope of persons covered by the Convention’s protections or, conversely, create legal uncertainty.
Daria Pysarenko, Director of “Tomorrow’s Lawyer”
Tomorrow’s Lawyer and the Agency for Legislative Initiatives congratulate Ukraine on signing the Convention and, at the same time, draw attention to the fact that the threat to the independence of the legal profession comes not only from outside but also from within the profession itself. In 2022, the terms of all bodies of bar self-governance (BSG) expired, yet the Bar Council of Ukraine (BCU) has not announced elections for the fourth consecutive year. The principle of the bar’s accountability to lawyers themselves has been violated. Lawyers have not seen reports on the use of their fees since 2021; disciplinary procedures are used as punishment for criticizing the decisions and actions of the SGA; and admission to the profession remains untransparent and carries risks of abuse. These and other issues were described in the “Reform of the Bar” part of the Shadow Report on Chapter 23 of the EU acquis and outlined in the European Commission’s Enlargement Report.
Since the bar plays a central role in the justice system alongside the courts and the prosecution service, it is impossible to discuss justice sector reform without a reform of the Bar. For its part, the European Commission has also repeatedly noted the need for changes, and in its latest Enlargement Report clearly stated: “It is necessary for Ukraine to urgently launch a comprehensive reform of the Bar”—and provided its own proposals regarding the content of such changes.
In response to the deep institutional crisis in the Ukrainian bar, the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine initiated the creation of a working group to address questions related to improving legislation in the bar and legal practice. Thus, as early as January 2026, the Government established a working group on improving legislation in the bar and legal practice, which included representatives of the ALI and Tomorrow’s Lawyer.
The text of the Convention is available in the official languages of the Council of Europe.
The explanatory memorandum to the Convention can be found on the Council of Europe website.
