Lawyer Irina Gak was stripped of her status due to living outside of Russia, lawyer Karinna Moskalenko reported on her Facebook* page.
«With regret, I inform you that today in Russia there is one less true lawyer. The Bar Association of the Rostov Region obediently stripped Irina Gak of her lawyer status at the demand of the Ministry of Justice — a person truly devoted to the lawyer's duty!
For what? Because she, for personal (valid) reasons, could not be in Russia», — wrote Moskalenko.
Irina Gak defended anti-war activist Anatoly Berezikov, who died on June 14, 2023, in a Rostov special detention center under administrative arrest. Gak represented his interests, recorded traces of torture with an electric shocker, and expressed suspicions of pressure from law enforcement. In addition, she defended Kirill Skripin, a lawyer for an insurance company, detained in Rostov-on-Don in a case about the inscription «Putin — thief» on a building.
After searches in her home on June 22, 2023, related to the case of «incitement to suicide», she left Russia and moved to Georgia.
As noted by «Word to the Defense», the case of Irina Gak became the first known case of stripping a lawyer's status on the grounds that she is not in Russia.
In April 2024, amendments were made to the law «On Advocacy and the Bar in the Russian Federation» (No. 63-FZ), according to which a lawyer can be stripped of status if they leave Russia for more than one year or for permanent residence. Exceptions include leaving for treatment, study, for the official necessity of family members, or for «valid reasons».
The public organization of lawyers «Initiative 2018» believes that these changes contradict a number of norms of Russian and international law.
Firstly, the amendments violate the Constitution of the Russian Federation: Article 27 guarantees the freedom to leave the country, and Article 37 — the right to freely choose one's occupation and dispose of one's abilities to work. The new law effectively punishes lawyers for exercising these rights.
Secondly, the law No. 63-FZ itself does not provide for the requirement of permanent residence in Russia for a lawyer. Article 17 contains an exhaustive list of grounds for termination of status: voluntary renunciation, death, loss of legal capacity, or disciplinary violation. Living abroad is not included.
The amendments also contradict international standards. According to the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers (adopted in 1990), lawyers should be able to move freely, advise clients abroad, and not be subject to sanctions for lawful professional actions. The document explicitly prohibits discrimination against lawyers based on their place of residence.
* Meta is recognized in Russia as an «extremist» organization.