Date: 03 September 2008
Title: The International Bar Association denounces the raid of law firms’ offices in Russia

The International Bar Association (IBA) is deeply concerned by recent reports of law firms’ offices being raided by the Russian police.

Eduard Khairetdinov, who is representing Hermitage Capital Management and its trustee HSBC, saw his office raided by police officers on the night of 20 August 2008. Moreover, he and two other lawyers were apparently issued summonses to appear as witnesses in a case they are involved in. This not only contravenes Russian legislation, but also goes against the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers adopted by the United Nations. 

The President of the IBA, Fernando Pombo, recalls that ‘According to the Basic Principles, governments need to ensure that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation or harassment. Improper searches of lawyers’ offices constitute a clear disregard of these international principles.’
 
Mark Ellis, Executive Director of the IBA, states that such actions indicate another sign of deterioration of the rule of law in Russia. ‘Respect for the role of lawyers and the independence of the judiciary represent an essential feature of the rule of law’, he said. ‘When government agents interfere with the work of lawyers, it is not only the legal profession that is threatened, but the overall legal order in the state’.

The IBA urges the Russian government to ensure the protection of lawyers’ rights and to refrain from any unjustified interference in their work.
ENDS

For further information please contact:
Romana St. Matthew - Daniel
International Bar Association
Press Office
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United Kingdom

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