Uzbekistan Expands Lawyers’ Rights in Courts

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan has adopted in the first reading a draft law “On Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Uzbekistan,” aimed at expanding the procedural rights of lawyers and strengthening adversarial principles in the judicial system.

The document provides for amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code and the Law “On Advocacy.” Its objective is to ensure equality of the parties in court proceedings and improve the quality of the administration of justice.

Under the draft law, materials of a criminal case will be sent to court not only with an indictment or prosecution act, but also with the defence position. In addition, it proposes to establish the right of the defence counsel to submit a “defence position” within five days after the completion of preliminary investigation or inquiry.

In this document, the lawyer will be able to present objections to the charges, analysis of evidence, mitigating circumstances, a list of persons to be summoned to court, as well as other arguments in the interests of the defence.

It is noted that the proposed amendments are aimed at strengthening equality of the parties in the judicial process, enabling the court to become familiar in advance with arguments from both sides, and improving the efficiency of court proceedings.

Following consideration, the draft law was supported by deputies and adopted in the first reading.