Advovate has recently been notified of the decisions of March 1 and 2

Advovate has recently been notified of the decisions of March 1 and 2

Advocate Nina Karapetyants received the decision for March 1 of 2018 of the Board of the Chamber of Advocates several days ago.

The decision of Artush Gabrielyan, the judge of the Court of General Jurisdiction of the Erebuni and Nubarashen administrative districts of Yerevan, regarding the application of a judicial sanction, was registered in the Chamber on August 9 of the previous year.

During a regular court session on 03/08/17, a protocol on the security check of a certain person was handed over to the court. According to the protocol, immediately before the session began, the court bailiff requested to search the belongings of Nina Karapetyants after the metal detector was set off, which she refused. Consequently, she then refused to enter both the court building and to the court session.

Nina Karapetyants presented a written objection on the protocol, announcing that she had come to the court to fulfill her duties, when she was offered to go through the security check. According to her account, she agreed, but these actions suddenly turned into a search, which she refused to undergo, as it is against the law. The court bailiff suggested for her to leave her handbag in the safe, however as she held important criminal case materials and tools within the bag, she declined the offer.

The Court found that Nina Karapetyants had used her judicial rights unfaithfully and without a valid reason, that she failed to fulfill her judicial duties that led to the obstruction of the court session and that she showed disrespect towards the court and parties at trial.

After a discplinary case was initiated in the Chamber of Advocates, Nina Karapetyants was found guilty of violating the requirements under the Code of Conduct for Advocates, and under Article 19, Paragraph 1, Part 1 of the RA Law on Advocacy the proceedings were terminated.

Its important to note that application of Article 19, Paragraph 1, Part 1 of the RA Law on Advocacy was illegitimate and unwarranted, as this section only stipulates that “the advocate is obliged to defend the rights and legitimate interests of the client honestly and conscientiously by all means and methods not prohibited by the RA legislation”.

For her refusal to open her bag at the request of judicial bailiff prior to entering a court hearing on 20/07/2017, advocate Nina Karapenyats received a disciplinary warning as penalty, during a disciplinary hearing at the Chamber of Advocates on March 2.

The first time the metal detector was set off by the bag, Nina refused to open it. After being questioned by the bailiff as to whether her bag contained unauthorised items, she assured him that there wasn’t any and she was then allowed to enter the court. However, upon noticing that her colleagues Arayik Papikyan and Musgegh Shushanyan were being forced to open their bags, she intervened and accused the bailiff of discrimination, as she was permitted entry but not her collegues. Subsequently, Nina Karapenyats was also banned from entering the court room. Judge Artush Gabrielyan held that the advocates’ failure to enter the courtroom was disrespectful towards the court.

However, the advocates who are involved in high-profile cases are confident that the security searches being conducted have been deliberatley hindering their ability to both enter court rooms and attend the court proceedings as legal representatives. There have been many instances where people’s belongings and bags have set off the metal detectors, only to find out that it was only a pen.