License issuance competences will be delegated to the Bar Association

The licenses for lawyer activity will be remitted by the Bar Association. The Parliament approved in second reading a draft law on this issue. The draft law includes several amendments to the mentioned-above law, which will offer broader competences to the Bar Association and will ensure practicing the lawyer activity according to the principle of non-interference of the state bodies. The amendments stipulate creating a License Commission as a structure within the Bar, which would have the duty to organize qualification examinations, adopting decisions regarding the results of the qualification examination. The disciplinary competences on canceling the lawyer license will be given to a higher extent to the Commission for Ethics and Discipline. Until now, the Ministry of Justice had the mentioned above competences. 1140 lawyers are registered at the Bar Association.