Lawyer or lobbyist: UNBA presented a guide to distinguishing professional roles

The Ukrainian National Bar Association has presented a special guide aimed at clearly distinguishing between the legal status of a lawyer and a lobbyist, defining the boundaries of their activities and preventing possible ethical and legal violations in the process of participation in public policy making.

The document was prepared by the members of the UNBA Lobbying Committee Council – Iryna Shapovalova, Valentyna Tyutyunnik and Yulia Kopiyko.

The guide systematizes the key criteria that distinguish advocacy from lobbying: purpose, subject matter, form of interaction with the authorities, and legal consequences.

An advocate provides legal assistance to a client in compliance with the law and the rules of advocacy ethics, while a lobbyist represents the interests of a client in the field of public policy making. Accordingly, the combination of these roles may create a risk of conflict of interest or call into question the professional independence of the advocate.

“A modern lawyer is increasingly working in the field of public communications – interacting with parliament, government, and business. However, such actions have clear boundaries defined by law. That is why our experts have created a practical guide that will help lawyers to work as lobbyists without going beyond the boundaries of legal ethics,”
– said Oleksiy Shevchuk, Chairman of the UNBA Lobbying Committee.