Regulations

Law Regulations

LEGAL PRACTICE

„NARODNE NOVINE“ BR. 09/94, 117/08, 50/09, 75/09, 18/11

The Law on Legal Practice regulates the organization and functioning of legal practice as an independent and autonomous service that ensures the provision of legal assistance to individuals and legal entities in realizing and protecting their rights and legal interests.

Lawyers engage in legal practice independently and autonomously as a free profession, and are authorized to provide all forms of legal assistance, particularly:

  • Providing legal advice
  • Drafting documents (contracts, wills, statements, etc.)
  • Drafting lawsuits, appeals, proposals, requests, petitions, extraordinary legal remedies, and other submissions
  • Representing clients

Lawyers are obligated to provide legal assistance conscientiously, in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, laws, the Chamber’s statute, and other general Chamber acts, as well as the Code of Lawyer Ethics. They have the right and duty, within the limits of the law and granted authorities, to undertake whatever actions they deem beneficial to the client they are providing legal assistance to.

In the representation of clients, one lawyer may be replaced by another lawyer, and under conditions provided by law, a trainee lawyer working in their office or the office of the replacing lawyer may substitute for them.

A lawyer is required to provide legal assistance to a client who approaches them, and may only refuse assistance for reasons prescribed by law, the Chamber’s statute, and the Code of Lawyer Ethics.

A lawyer is obligated to refuse legal assistance in the following cases:

  • If they or another lawyer who worked or is working in the same office represented the opposing party or both parties in the same matter or a matter legally connected to it, provided legal advice to them, or received instructions from them
  • If, in the same matter or a matter legally connected to it, they worked as a trainee lawyer under the lawyer who represented the opposing party
  • If, in the same matter or a matter legally connected to it, they worked as a judge, state attorney, or as an official in administrative or other proceedings
  • In other cases provided by law, the Chamber’s statute, and the Code of Lawyer Ethics

The client has the right to revoke the power of attorney from the lawyer at any time, without stating reasons for the revocation. In this case, the lawyer is not obliged to continue representing the client. If the lawyer revokes the power of attorney, they are obligated to continue providing legal assistance for 30 days.

After the cessation of representation, the lawyer is required to hand over to the client, upon their request, all their documents and records. The lawyer is required to keep these records for at least ten years after the legal proceedings in which they represented the client are legally concluded.

A lawyer’s duty, in accordance with the law, is to maintain lawyer-client confidentiality for everything entrusted to them by the client or what they learned in the course of client representation. Other individuals who work or have worked in the lawyer’s office are also obligated to maintain lawyer-client confidentiality.

Lawyers have the right to receive compensation for their work and reimbursement of expenses related to their work, in accordance with the tariff determined and issued by the Chamber with the consent of the Minister of Justice.

For cases of official defense, the amount of the lawyer’s fee is determined by the Ministry of Justice.

Lawyers are required to join the Chamber as an independent and autonomous organization with legal entity status. The Chamber represents the legal profession of the Republic of Croatia as a whole.

The Chamber Assembly adopts the Code of Lawyer Ethics. The Code of Lawyer Ethics, based on the fundamental values of society, establishes a set of principles and rules that lawyers and trainee lawyers are required to adhere to when practicing law.

The right to practice law is obtained by enrolling in the register of trainee lawyers. A trainee lawyer is obligated to work on all legal matters assigned to them by lawyers and to follow the instructions received.

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Kodeksi

CODE OF LAWYER ETHICS

“NARODNE NOVINE” BR.  64/07, 72/08 I 64/18

The Code of Lawyer Ethics was enacted by the Assembly of the Croatian Bar Association on February 18, 1995, with amendments introduced at the Assembly of the Croatian Bar Association on June 12, 1999. It was published in the Official Gazette No. 64 on June 20, 2007.

Amendments to the Code of Lawyer Ethics were introduced by the Assembly of the Croatian Bar Association on June 14, 2008 (published in the Official Gazette No. 72 on June 23, 2008).

Further amendments to the Code of Lawyer Ethics were made by the Assembly of the Croatian Bar Association on July 7, 2018 (published in the Official Gazette No. 64 on July 18, 2018).

The Code of Lawyer Ethics establishes the principles and rules of conduct that lawyers are always obliged to follow in performing their duties, aiming to preserve the dignity and reputation of the legal profession.

A lawyer is allowed to protect their client’s interests only using means that are in accordance with the law, the dignity of the legal profession, and good practices, and that are not contrary to their conscience.

A lawyer is obligated to maintain as confidential everything they learn during the provision of legal assistance, particularly in the course of representation or defense, which has been disclosed to them as confidential by their client or by other means. The rules on the duty to maintain lawyer-client confidentiality are equally applicable to other lawyers and employees in the lawyer’s office, and the lawyer must explicitly include the breach of lawyer-client confidentiality as a reason for terminating the employment contract with their employees.

A lawyer must devote all their expertise and conscientiousness to representing the client and provide them with legal assistance promptly and without delay. Therefore, when taking on representation, the lawyer must be cautious not to compromise the timeliness, thoroughness, and conscientiousness of performing their duty due to being overburdened. If a lawyer is approached by too many clients, they should direct some clients to other lawyers. A lawyer can only refuse a client’s request for legal assistance for important reasons, such as being overburdened, having weak prospects of success, or if the reasons for seeking assistance are immoral…

If it is in the client’s interest, the lawyer will strive to reach a settlement between the parties without initiating court or other proceedings. The lawyer will aim to resolve disputes through negotiation during legal or other proceedings if it is in the best interest of their client.

A lawyer’s presentation before courts, whether in submissions or speeches, should be as factual and concise as possible, to the extent that it does not harm the client’s interests. The scope of submissions and speeches should depend on the circumstances of each case, the complexity of the matter, whether it is a legal issue that frequently or exceptionally arises in practice, and to what extent legal and factual issues in the case have been resolved in legal practice.

A lawyer must ensure that their office space and working methods reflect the prestige of the legal profession as an independent and autonomous service. A lawyer is required to maintain accurate and up-to-date records of cases, file storage, and precise records of deadlines and hearings, so that both the lawyer and the client can always access the case file to ascertain the status of the matter. Additionally, the lawyer must promptly provide information about their work to the bodies of the legal profession, in accordance with the Statute, so that there is transparency in their work.

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