Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV)
The profession of lawyer plays a central role in the administration of justice, the defense of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. Nowadays, lawyers, both individually and institutionally, are increasingly the target of attacks of all kinds which put in difficulty, even in danger, the independent and secure exercise of their profession.
In 2020, the Council of Europe's European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ) has looked into possible actions to ensure an adequate level of protection to lawyers when exercising their profession. It considered the feasibility of a new European legal instrument, taking into account possible alternatives through which the protection for lawyers could be enhanced, considering the existing international instruments, notably the Committee of Ministers Recommendation R(2000)21 on the freedom of exercise of the profession of lawyer and the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights.
On the basis of this study, the Committee of Ministers established as of January 2022 a Committee of experts on the protection of lawyers (CJ-AV). The CJ-AV consists of 15 representatives of member States, as well as participants and observers as set out in the adopted Terms of reference. The Committee is tasked with the elaboration of a legal instrument aimed at strengthening the protection of the profession of lawyer and the right to practice the profession without prejudice or restraint, under the authority of the Committee of Ministers and of the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ).
The CJ-AV meets 3 times a year, in closed session. Access to information about specific meetings and documents of the CJ-AV is available below, or depending on their classification, can be consulted in line with Resolution Res(2001)6 on access to Council of Europe documents.
List of documents in relation to the work of the CJ-AV (Non exhaustive list)
9th meeting (9-11 September 2024)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
8th meeting (13-15 May 2024)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
7th meeting (30 January-1 February 2024)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
6th meeting (17-19 October 2023)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
5th meeting (3-5 July 2023)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
4th meeting (1-3 March 2023)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
3rd meeting (8-10 November 2022)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
2nd meeting (11-13 July 2022)
Strasbourg, France
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
1st meeting (6-8 April 2022)
Videoconference
Agenda (access to restricted documents restricted to authorised persons)
CJ-AV - 9th and last meeting on the preparation of a draft convention to strengthen the protection of lawyers
The CJ-AV held its last meeting devoted to the drafting of the future convention for the protection of the profession of lawyer. This new binding instrument aims to strengthen the protection afforded to lawyers so as to allow them to freely practice their profession without prejudice or...
CJ-AV – 8th meeting : work on a convention to improve the protection of lawyers continues
The Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) met on 13-15 May 2024 to continue its work on the drafting of the future convention aiming to improve the protection of the profession of lawyers. During this meeting, the CJ-AV examined the contributions received as part of a...
CJ-AV - 7th meeting on a draft convention for the protection of lawyers
At its 7th meeting held in Strasbourg on 30 January - 1 February 2024, the Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) examined both the draft future convention for the protection of the profession of lawyer and its draft explanatory report in their entirety with a view to preparing...
CJ-AV - 6th meeting on the further preparation of a draft convention on the protection of lawyers
The Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) held its 6th meeting on the drafting of a convention aiming to improve the protection of lawyers and the right to practice their profession without prejudice or restraint on 17-19 October in Strasbourg. During this meeting, the CJ-AV...
CJ-AV - 5th meeting on the preparation of a draft convention on the protection of lawyers
The Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) held its 5th meeting on the drafting of a convention aiming to improve the protection of lawyers on 3-5 July in Strasbourg. During this meeting, the CJ-AV continued working on the text of the draft convention and examined possible...
4th meeting of the Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV)
The Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) held its fourth meeting in Strasbourg on 1-3 March 2023 and continued its discussions on the future draft convention aiming at strengthening the protection of the profession of lawyer and the right to practice the profession without...
2nd meeting of the Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV)
The Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) held its second meeting in Strasbourg on 11-13 July 2022 and continued its work on a future convention to strengthen the protection of the profession of lawyer and the right to practise the profession without prejudice or restraint....
Work started on the elaboration of a new legal instrument to strengthen the protection of lawyers
The Committee of Experts on the Protection of Lawyers (CJ-AV) held its first meeting in Strasbourg, embarking on the work of a future legal instrument to strengthen the protection of the profession of lawyer and the right to practise the profession without prejudice or restraint. The CJ-AV,...
European Lawyers’ Day 2021: CDCJ Vice-Chair joins lawyers to discuss a new European legal instrument on the profession
Christophe Poirel, Director of Human Rights of the Council of Europe, and Christoph Henrichs, Vice-Chair of the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ), engage with lawyers by taking part on 25 October in the virtual round table organised by the CCBE on the occasion of the European...
Profession of Lawyer
Protection of lawyers: Feasibility study on a new European legal instrument
The European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ) of the Council of Europe publishes today its feasibility study on a new binding or non-binding, European legal instrument to protect the profession of lawyer. This study examines the problems faced by lawyers in the 47 member States of the...
Profession of Lawyer
Ensuring effective protection of the profession of lawyer: call for a legally-binding instrument
PACE’s Standing Committee today expressed its concern at the numerous cases of violations of lawyers’ rights, including attacks on their safety and independence, in recent years. Lawyers continue to be targeted for their involvement in human rights-related cases, or for their work denouncing...
