European Democratic Lawyers (AED/EDL) welcomes the adoption one year ago of the European Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer (Luxembourg Convention) as a historic achievement for the legal profession, the rule of law and the protection of fundamental rights throughout Europe.
This long-awaited instrument was adopted in response to an increasingly alarming reality: lawyers across Europe and beyond are facing growing threats, intimidation, harassment, surveillance, criminalisation and attacks because of their professional activities and their commitment to defending the rights of their clients.
The Convention represents a recognition of a fundamental principle: there can be no effective access to justice, no fair trial and no genuine rule of law without independent lawyers able to perform their professional duties free from interference, pressure, fear or retaliation.
At a time when lawyers are subjected to arbitrary prosecutions, unlawful searches, violations of professional secrecy, disciplinary harassment and smear campaigns in a number of European countries, the Convention sends an essential political and legal message: attacks against lawyers are attacks against justice itself.
However, while welcoming this important development, AED/EDL expresses serious concern regarding the slow pace of ratification and implementation by European States.
As of 13 June 2026, the Luxembourg Convention has only been signed 31 signatures by states and other eligible parties and no ratification has been deposited so far.
Therefore the Convention has not yet entered into force.
The Convention can only fulfil its purpose if States move rapidly from declarations of principle to concrete legal commitments. Every delay in ratification leaves lawyers without the additional protections that this instrument is intended to provide and weakens the collective commitment to safeguarding the independence of the legal profession.
AED/EDL regrets that, despite repeated warnings from international institutions, bar associations and human rights organisations, attacks against lawyers continue to increase in several jurisdictions. In some countries, lawyers are still identified with their clients, prosecuted for carrying out their professional duties, subjected to surveillance measures, denied access to detained clients or exposed to campaigns aimed at undermining their credibility and independence.
Such practices are incompatible with democratic standards and with the fundamental role lawyers play in ensuring access to justice and protecting human rights.
The entry into force of the Convention must therefore not be treated as the conclusion of a process, but rather as its beginning.
AED/EDL calls on all Member States of the Council of Europe to sign and ratify the Convention without delay and to ensure its full and effective implementation in domestic law and practice.
We further call upon governments to:
- guarantee the independence of lawyers and bar associations;
- ensure the effective protection of professional secrecy and legal privilege;
- prevent all forms of intimidation, harassment and retaliation against lawyers;
- investigate and prosecute attacks against lawyers promptly and effectively;
- ensure that lawyers can carry out their professional duties without fear of sanctions, threats or interference from public authorities.
The protection of lawyers is not a corporatist demand. It is a democratic necessity.
A society in which lawyers cannot act independently is a society in which citizens cannot effectively defend their rights. A State that fails to protect lawyers ultimately weakens the very foundations of justice and the rule of law.
AED/EDL will continue to monitor the implementation of the Convention and to support all lawyers, bar associations and human rights defenders working to ensure that its promises become a reality.
The entry into force of this Convention is a victory. Its effective ratification and implementation throughout Europe must now become an urgent priority.