The Minister of Justice, Nikola Selaković, met today with the President of the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE), Aldo Bulgarelli, with whom he discussed about the current situation in the Serbian judiciary and about suspension of work of lawyers in Serbia, which has been in effect since 10 September 2014.
At the meeting, Minister Selaković pointed out that Serbia is committed to negotiations on European Union membership, and that the Ministry of Justice was complimented by the European Commission on the first draft Action Plan for Chapter 23.
During the discussion, Minister Selaković referred to the strike of lawyers and emphasised that the Ministry of Justice is ready to resume talks with the leadership of the Bar Association of Serbia and Belgrade Bar Association.
Also, with regard to the laws disputed by members of the legal profession, Selaković reminded that members of the legal profession addressed the Constitutional Court of Serbia through a number of initiatives to assess constitutionality, and pointed out that the Ministry of Justice will respect any decision of this Court.
During the discussion, Minister Selaković and Aldo Bulgarelli agreed that it is unacceptable to create blockages in the judiciary and that it is necessary to continue the talks as soon as possible and make efforts to resolve this problem.