Institutional Independence of the Defence Lawyer in Criminal Proceedings: Theory, Practice and Human Rights

Abstract

This scientific article is devoted to a systematic and multilevel analysis of the phenomenon of the institutional independence of the defence lawyer in criminal proceedings in the context of the modern concept of the rule-of-law state, the human rights paradigm and the doctrine of fair trial. The study conceptually reinterprets the independence of the lawyer not only as professional freedom or a set of procedural rights, but as a fundamental institutional guarantee that determines the legitimacy, normative stability and constitutional essence of criminal justice. The article interprets the legal profession as a balancing actor within the system of the state's repressive mechanisms, and shows on a scientific basis that where its real independence is lost, criminal proceedings turn into a formalistic, simulative and declarative legal space. The author substantiates that the independence of the lawyer should not be limited to recognition at the normative level, but must be genuinely guaranteed in organisational, economic, procedural, communicative and access-to-information dimensions.