October 2010
In early September, the High Qualification Commission of Advocates in Ukraine adopted a continuing legal education (CLE) regulation, making CLE mandatory for all licensed advocates. Continuing its support of legal profession reform in the country, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) assisted the commission in developing the CLE requirements.
With assistance from ABA ROLI and vigorous involvement of leading bar associations, the commission sponsored a working group to draft the CLE regulation, which has now been adopted. The regulation, which will go into effect on January 1, 2011, will require licensed advocates to take at least 60 CLE credits every five years to maintain their licenses.
The mandatory CLE complements ABA ROLI’s defense advocacy and bar development efforts in the country, which facilitate the establishment of an independent, unified and self-governing bar association. The CLE will provide advocates opportunities for substantive law and practical skills trainings.
Over the next year, ABA ROLI and the High Qualification Commission will train advocates on various legal issues including ethics, land law, criminal procedure and application of the European Court law. To expand the trainings’ reach, ABA ROLI has begun pilot distance learning courses for advocates in remote regions.
To learn more about our work in Ukraine, contact the ABA Rule of Law Initiative at <rol@staff.abanet.org>.