Justice Minister: ‘I urge lawyers not to fall prey to vicious practices’
At the International Conference of the Union of Lawyers of Moldova, an event dedicated to the Day of Lawyers, which is celebrated every year on 9 September, the Minister of Justice, Veronica Mihailov-Moraru, spoke about the role, risks and vicious practices of the legal profession.
“The many changes and challenges we are going through in the legal system lead us to reflect on the role of the lawyer, the challenges of the legal profession – a profession that is as noble as it is responsible, which is the foundation of a state based on the rule of law and respect for human rights”, said the Minister of Justice, recalling that before coming to the Ministry of Justice, she practised law for 15 years.
“I follow with great interest how the legal profession is developing in our country. I appreciate the fact that more emphasis is being placed on training lawyers and trainee lawyers, especially on specialized training, the number of lawyers working with foreign law firms is increasing, more and more foreign companies are using the services of lawyers in our country – an indicator that we can provide quality services”, said Veronica Mihailov-Moraru, stressing that “we also have lawyers who discredit the profession either out of indifference and professional incompetence or lack of integrity. And I urged lawyers not to fall prey to vicious practices, especially considering that the lawyer’s mission is to defend justice, to bring out the truth by legal, fair and discerning means. The fight against corruption must be a common goal; only in this way will we be able to move towards European integration and gain society’s trust in all those involved in the justice system”.
Referring to the risks of the profession, the Minister announced that, in order to minimise interference in the work of lawyers, amendments to the Criminal Code have been made and voted in Parliament in the first reading. “The Criminal Code has been supplemented with a new criminal offence – interference in the work of a lawyer or trainee lawyer with the aim of hindering the representation and/or defence of the client”, the Minister of Justice said, calling for responsibility and fairness on the part of the bodies within the Lawyers’ Union, the application of the mechanism for access to the legal profession or the objective verification of complaints on the actions of lawyers, to the detriment of citizens’ rights or the law.
