Kurdistan Lawyers Speak Out Against New Law

He confirmed that Kurdish lawyers submitted a memorandum to Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani requesting him not to ratify the law and to refer it back to parliament to cancel the amendment. Rwandouzi continued, “Following the referral of the draft amendment to parliament, it shall be referred to the bar association, who shall either ratify it during the next conference or hold a referendum on it.”

Moreover, Article 10 of the Law of the Presidency of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq specifies that “the president of the region is authorized to promulgate laws enacted by the Iraqi Kurdistan National Assembly (KNA) within 10 days as of the date of their enactment. The president may completely or partially object to these laws and refer them back to the assembly for re-examination. The assembly’s decision on these referred laws shall be deemed final.”

The chairman of the Kurdistan Bar Association, Wirya Saadi, indicated that the association agreed on this amendment, in cooperation with the government. The bar association supports referring the matter to its board, instead of keeping it in the hands of the Court of Cassation, and on issuing instructions in this regard as an association.

Speaking to Al-Monitor, Saadi added, “There is a decision from the Court of Cassation that allows foreigners to practice law in the Kurdistan region. This law applies to all those who are not part of the association. The purpose of the amendment was to put the ball in the court of the association’s board to agree or disagree on allowing foreign lawyers to practice in the region.”

Article 5 of the law governing the bar association in the Iraqi Kurdistan region specifies the following: “Any lawyer registered with another bar association shall be entitled to plead before all of the Kurdistan Region’s courts in accordance with his jurisdictions that are similar to those conferred to a member of this bar, provided the reciprocity principle is applied and following the president of the bar association’s approval or the vice president’s approval in the former’s absence.”