UIA-IROL Expresses Concern over Threats and Pressure against Lawyers in Serbia

The Institute for the Rule of Law of the Union Internationale des Avocats (UIA-IROL) has been informed of threats, intimidation and sustained public attacks against lawyers in Serbia representing individuals alleging ill-treatment by police officers in connection with the events that took place in Valjevo on 14 and 15 August 2025. UIA-IROL is gravely concerned by reports that lawyers acting in these proceedings have themselves become the targets of personal attacks and public accusations in connection with the performance of their professional duties.

According to the information received, criminal proceedings concerning alleged ill-treatment and torture by police officers during the events in Valjevo in August 2025 are currently pending before the Public Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime in Belgrade. Against this background, several members of the legal team representing the injured parties, including Jana Aćimović Planojević, Luka Aćimović, Vera Aćimović and Nikola Mirković, have been subjected to repeated personal and professional attacks, including serious allegations concerning their professional conduct and personal integrity. Some of these attacks have also extended to members of their families.

The earlier media attacks against the lawyers prompted public condemnation by the Bar Association of Šabac[1] and, subsequently, by the Bar Association of Serbia[2], which stressed the right of lawyers to perform their professional duties without pressure, threats, intimidation or media campaigns. The attacks, however, subsequently intensified, including through further television broadcasts and public statements concerning the lawyers.

UIA-IROL is particularly alarmed by the serious accusations directed against the lawyers in television broadcasts, including by senior public officials. In view of the nature and escalation of these attacks, and the threats reportedly received by the lawyers concerned, UIA-IROL has serious concerns for their safety.

UIA-IROL recalls Principle 16 of the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers,[3] adopted in Havana in 1990, which provides that governments shall ensure i.a. that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference, and that they shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognised professional duties, standards and ethics.

UIA-IROL further recalls Principle 17 of the Basic Principles, according to which, where the security of lawyers is threatened as a result of discharging their functions, they shall be adequately safeguarded by the authorities. This obligation is of particular relevance in the present circumstances, given the reported threats against the lawyers concerned.

Finally, UIA-IROL recalls Principle 18 of the Basic Principles, which provides that lawyers shall not be identified with their clients or their clients’ causes as a result of discharging their functions. The public targeting of lawyers because they represent persons alleging ill-treatment by police officers raises serious concerns in light of this fundamental safeguard.

UIA-IROL also recalls the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer, opened for signature on 13 May 2025[4]. The Convention reinforces the protection of lawyers against threats, attacks, harassment and intimidation arising from the exercise of their professional activities and requires effective measures to safeguard their ability to practise independently. UIA-IROL notes that Serbia has not yet signed the Convention and encourages the Serbian authorities to take the necessary steps towards its signature and ratification.

The ability of lawyers to represent persons alleging human rights violations, including allegations of ill-treatment by law enforcement authorities, independently and without fear of reprisals is an essential safeguard of access to justice and the right to a fair trial. Attacks or threats directed against lawyers because of the clients they represent or the actions they undertake in the course of their professional activities may also undermine the proper administration of justice and, more broadly, the rule of law.

In light of the above, UIA-IROL:

• Calls upon the Serbian authorities to take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of lawyers who have been subjected to threats or intimidation in connection with the performance of their professional duties and to ensure that any credible threats against them are promptly, thoroughly and effectively investigated;
   
• Urges all public authorities and officials to refrain from statements or conduct that may stigmatise, intimidate or otherwise improperly interfere with lawyers because of the clients they represent or the professional activities they undertake;
   
• Calls upon the competent authorities to ensure that any criminal proceedings involving lawyers are conducted in full accordance with applicable due process and fair trial guarantees and are not used to intimidate, retaliate against or otherwise improperly interfere with lawyers for carrying out their professional duties;
   
• Calls upon the Serbian authorities to take the necessary steps towards signing and ratifying the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer thereby reinforcing the protection of lawyers and the independence of the legal profession in Serbia.

 
UIA-IROL will continue to follow closely the situation of the lawyers concerned and developments affecting the independence and safety of the legal profession in Serbia.

[1]See https://n1info.rs/vesti/advokatska-komora-sapca-osudila-napade-na-advokate-iz-valjeva-nakon-emisije-na-tv-informer; https://www.advokatskakomorasapca.rs/index.html
[2] See https://aks.org.rs/sr_lat/saopstenje-upravnog-odbora-advokatske-komore-srbije/; https://vreme.com/en/drustvo/advokatska-komora-srbije-tv-informer-jana-acimovic-planojevic-policijska-brutalnost-valjevo
[3] United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, adopted by the Eighth UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, Havana, 1990.
[4] Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer, May 2025.