Julija Kiršienė

Advokato nepriklausomumas teisinių paslaugų rinkos komercializacijos kontekste: reliktas ar būtinybė?

The lawyer’s professional independence is considered to be the core principle of the profession. It is often used as defense against the state intervention in the regulation of lawyers. However, drivers in the legal market, such as an increase in competition, concentration of lawyers in large law firms, as well as the globalization, development of information technologies and social networks, which influence the commoditizing of the law and consumer awareness, certainly have shaken up the foundations of the legal profession and require the renewed approach to seemingly immovable values of the profession, including the principle of lawyer’s independence. Hence, the goal of the article is to answer the question whether this principle is still valid in the context of commercialization of the legal market. The first part of the article analyzes the dimensions of the principle of lawyer’s independence, i.e. independence from the state, from the client and other influences, by comparing continental and common law systems. The second part reveals how different approaches to the role of the lawyer influence the realization of this principle in legal regulation and practice. The third part is devoted to the analysis of radical changes in the legal market and new forms of legal services, such as incorporation of law firms, that affect the devaluation of the principle of lawyer’s independence. The article justifies that the lawyer’s independence from the state is realized primarily through strong self-governance and independence of the bar, but the trends in common law countries show that legal professional associations have lost their previous positions, especially in the area of self-disciplining, as they were not able to cope effectively with customers (clients) complains. In addition, the legal market liberalization reforms in Australia and the UK, which enable outside capital invest into law firms, have a tendency to expand to other jurisdictions. Changes in capital ownership structure of legal firms can change the governance and decision-making processes that may lead to the devaluation of the principle of lawyer’s independence yielding to the idea of entrepreneurship.

Lithuanian Private Law

The section on private law covers five basic areas of Lithuanian law that are essential for understanding the basic rules of conduct that persons should follow in private relations. These are Property Law, Contract and Tort Law, Company and Insolvency Law, Family and Inheritance Law, and Civil Procedure Law. Authors provide a definition and describe the system of property rights (and their encumbrances) stipulated in Lithuanian Civil Code. Starting from a descriptive analysis of the formation of contracts, the authors continue with a review of the rules on content and interpretation of contracts and, additionally, the performance (nonperformance) and termination of them. The part on tort law describes the four elements of tort action (unlawful actions, causation, fault, and damages), then the authors continue with a review of basic defenses from tort liability and finish the tort law part with a presentation of rules on joint tortfeasors, right of recourse, and some other special rules of delictual liability. In company law, the possible types of companies in Lithuania and their main features, such as requirements for incorporation, management, and activity, are introduced. In the second subchapter, the authors provide a brief overview of the bankruptcy proceedings. In family and inheritance law, the in-depth review of the major aspects of family law and inheritance law is provided. In civil procedure, the authors explain the issues of jurisdiction in civil cases and continue with explanation of the basics of the right to apply to court.