Bar association affirms authority over lawyer supervision

The supervision of lawyers must remain under the Cyprus Bar Association, its president Michalis Vorkas said on Thursday, following a meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides.

Called to comment on the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) ‘Cyprus Confidential’ reports, he told reporters he assured the president of the Bar Association’s readiness to tackle future issues regarding “activities of dubious legality” and ensure their elimination through measures.

The Bar Association is a supervisory authority which is enshrined within the framework of specific legislation, he said, and its job is to investigate complaints, to carry out checks and to intervene where there are reprehensible actions.

“I must assure you – as we assured the president himself – that we will act towards achieving the best actions in this particular case, so that society, Cyprus and its name in general will be protected abroad,” he said.

Asked if he and Christodoulides discussed the measures that should be taken, he said that they exchanged some views, noting that a schedule has been drawn up according to which they should act in collaboration with the executive power, so that they can see how they proceed collectively in solving existing problems and eliminating them in the future.

He also said that as the supervisory authority of the legal world, the Bar Association emphasised to the president its firm position that the supervision of lawyers should remain under its jurisdiction; but are open to consultations on improving the situation.

“We are not supporting this to be totalitarian,” he said, “but because this is justified through the law itself, and its principles, through regulations, legislation and jurisprudence both in Cyprus and abroad”.

Asked if there are any new cases before the association’s disciplinary bodies at the moment, or some that have seen the light of day, Vorkas said that checks are carried out daily.

“Especially in the last three years we have modernised, we have hired additional, specialised staff and checks are carried out on a regular basis,” he said.

“Yes, there are cases that are ready for study in order to conclude whether we will finally forward any indictments or not against some individual cases, which unfortunately exist, insulting the reputation of our country, but also the legal profession world, which we are duty bound to protect,” he added.

On whether these cases involve well-known names, Vorkas said that some involve names that have been made public, with some related to the ‘Cyprus Confidential’ investigation.

Adding that it is important to protect lawyer confidentiality, he said that “we should be very careful in what exactly we will do.”

On another note, Vorkas said he highlighted the serious problem that prevails in the infrastructure of the new courts, saying that this is another thing that causes more issues in general, even delays in the adjudication of cases.

“In the absence of courtrooms, trials cannot take place,” he stressed.

“And aside from the difficult situation that exists at the Nicosia district court, there’s also the fact that our courts are scattered across Nicosia,” he said.

He said that Christodoulides showed a special interest in the issue and asked to be given specific proposals on how to solve it.

He finally said that the Bar Association will come back to the president with proposals for all the issues that concern them within the next 15 days.