Montenegro Lawyers Face Penalties for Abusing Serbian Strike

The head of the Montenegrin Bar Association, Zdravko Begovic, said action will be taken against any Montenegrin attorneys taking advantage of the strike by Serbian lawyers to represent suspects before courts in Belgrade.

Begovic told BIRN on Monday that the Bar Association had initiated proceedings against a lawyer from the north of Montenegro for undertaking legal representation in Serbia. In a second case, it has been determined that there is no legal ground for questioning the attorney's action.

Begovic on Saturday met the president of the Serbian Bar Association, Dragoljub Djordjevic, to discuss claims that some lawyers from Montenegro were using the protest by lawyers in Serbia to earn extra money, and help the protest's opponents.

"All cases will be processed immediately on receipt of evidence that Montenegrin lawyers acted against their colleagues in Serbia and their historic struggle," Begovic said.

Penalties could include temporary or permanent removal from the register of the Bar Association of Montenegro.

Belgrade lawyers went on strike on September 10, and their colleagues from around Serbia joined the action a week later.

The lawyers are angered mainly by the reintroduction of notaries to the legal system who have taken away some of their responsibilities and sources of income.

The three month-long strike has seriously affected the working of Serbia's judicial system.