Possible disbarment of lawyers
Russian Federation
On 27 May 2016, a Supreme Court judge in the Chechen Republic issued a special ruling which may lead to the disbarment of human rights lawyers Marina Dubrovina and Dokka Itslaev. The lawyers were accused of committing actions that “challenge the honour and injure the dignity of an advocate”. This was reported by Frontline Defenders on their website.
Marina Dubrovina and Dokka Itslaev work in close cooperation with the Human Rights Centre “Memorial” in the Krasnodar region and in the Chechen Republic. At present, they are representing Ukrainian nationals Mr Nikolai Karpyuk and Mr Stanislav Klykh. Karpyuk and Klykh were allegedly involved with “Ukrainian National Assembly-Ukrainian People’s Self-Defence (UNA-UNSO”and were found guilty of taking part in warfare in Grozny in 1994. They were sentenced to 22.5 and 20 years imprisonment. Both men denied their involvement in the conflict and reported that they had been tortured during the investigation.
On 27 May 2016, a Supreme Court judge of the Chechen Republic, issued a special ruling suggesting to deprive Marina Dubrovina and Dokka Itslaev from their license to practice law. The judge’s decision was based on the fact that the human rights lawyers had represented the interests of Nikolai Karpyuk and Stanislav Klykh during the court proceedings. This special ruling of the judge will be sent to the Chambers of Advocates of the Krasnodar region and the Chechen Republic. These Chambers can decide whether to start disciplinary proceedings against Marina Dubrovina and Dokka Itslaev.