Members of Parliament, representatives of state bodies, lawyers and the legal community, Kazakhstani and foreign experts, and scientists discussed today at the round table actual issues of improving legislation in the field of advocacy and legal assistance.
The event was organized by the Institute of Parliamentarism under the DPA of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Presidential Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
President Kasym-Jomart Tokayev's speech at the fifth meeting of the National Council of Public Trust emphasized that "the building of the rule of law state is impossible without a strong and independent Bar".
A draft law initiated by deputies on improving procedural legislation, advocacy and providing legal assistance, out-of-court and pre-trial dispute resolution is currently under consideration in the Mazhilis of Parliament.
According to the deputies who initiated the bill, the changes and additions being made are aimed at creating appropriate guarantees of the independence of the activities of lawyers and legal consultants, providing high-quality legal assistance to citizens, expanding the procedural powers of lawyers and ensuring guarantees of legal practice.
The following issues were discussed at the roundtable: expansion of procedural powers of an advocate; ensuring guarantees of advocacy, revision of norms on liability for obstruction of advocate's activities; provision of state-guaranteed legal assistance (SGLA); "entry" into the profession and termination of powers; organization of advocacy and legal assistance, areas of client relations, strengthening the organization of the Bar, grounds for disciplinary liability.
Opening the roundtable, Deputy Director of the Institute of Parliamentarism Berik Bekzhanov expressed confidence that the roundtable is the beginning of a major effort to improve the legislation on advocacy and legal aid.
The round table was attended by Deputies of the Senate and Mazhilis Amangeldy Tolamisov, Abzal Kuspan; Judge of the Constitutional Court Aizhan Zhatkanbaeva; Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Council of the Republican Bar Association - Sergey Sizintsev; Chairman of the Republican College of Legal Consultants of Kazakhstan Serik Akylbay. Lawyers-colleagues from the CIS countries joined online at the meeting: Chairman of the Presidium of the Bar Association of the Azerbaijan Republic - Anar Bagirov, Member of the Council of Lawyers of the Bar Association of the Kyrgyz Republic - Aizhan Kadyrova, Chairman of the Union of Lawyers of the Republic of Tajikistan - Alisher Khaidarov and others.
Recommendations based on the materials of the round table will be sent to the authorized bodies and the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
