Certain Issues of the Legal Nature of Decisions of the Council of Advocates of Ukraine and their Entry into Force

Abstract

The article examines certain issues of the legal nature of acts of the bar self-government bodies, namely, whether the decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine has the features of a normative act (1), whether the publication of the decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine on the official website of the Ukrainian National Bar Association constitutes bringing it to the attention of the public in accordance with the procedure established by law (2), and whether the decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine on the organizational support of the Unified Register of Advocates of Ukraine determines the constitutional rights and obligations of citizens.
 The author analyzes the concepts of "normative act”, "regulatory legal act” and "individual legal act". The author concludes that the Bar Council of Ukraine may adopt both normative (regulatory legal acts) and individual legal acts. The legal nature of a particular act of the Bar Council of Ukraine is determined by its content. The author establishes that the decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine on the organizational support of the Unified Register of Advocates of Ukraine has the features of a normative act.
 The article examines the procedure for promulgation of regulatory legal acts in Ukraine. The Constitution of Ukraine defines the obligation to publish only legal acts that define the rights and obligations of citizens. This is required to ensure that citizens are aware of their rights and obligations. It is determined that Ukrainian legislation determines the procedure for bringing to the attention of the public only certain legal acts. It is concluded that publication of a decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine on the official website of the Ukrainian National Bar Association is its communication to the public in accordance with the procedure established by law.
 The author also makes a comparative analysis of the rights and obligations of Ukrainian citizens as defined by the Constitution of Ukraine and the rights and obligations of citizens as defined by the decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine on the Register of Advocates. The author concludes that the decision of the Bar Council of Ukraine on the Unified Register of Advocates does not define the constitutional rights and obligations of citizens.