Council of the Lithuanian Bar

The Council of the Lithuanian Bar is a self-governance institution of the Lithuanian Bar Association, supervising, coordinating and controlling activities of advocates and advocates’ assistants and seeking to represent their interests, maintaining the optimal balance between traditions of the Lithuanian Bar Association and its modern needs and expectations.

The first Council of the Lithuanian Bar was elected in 1920, then it was called the Council of Sworn Advocates of Lithuania. It had 7 members (the chairperson, the vice-chairperson and other members). The Council of the Lithuanian Bar was elected annually at the beginning of the year in the general meeting of sworn advocates. 15 advocates of 28 sworn advocates that existed at that time arrived to take part in the first election of the Council of the Lithuanian Bar.

The Council of the Lithuanian Bar had the right and the duty to decide issues of admission to the Lithuanian Bar Association, examine advocates’ disciplinary cases, to appoint an advocate for conducting a case of a poor person, to manage finances of the organisation, to set the amount of advocates’ fee (if there was no agreement on the fee between an advocate and a client) and to prepare reports for the General Meeting of Advocates.

During the past century, the composition and the number of members of the Council of the Lithuanian Bar, the duration of their term of office changed, the list of their functions was supplemented.

The contemporary Council of the Lithuanian Bar has 11 members: the Chairperson, the Deputy Chairperson and other members of the Lithuanian Bar Association – practising advocates, who have practised as advocates for at least 10 years. The Council of the Lithuanian Bar is elected for a term of four years in the General Meeting of Advocates. The Council of the Lithuanian Bar meets at least once per month. The next election of the Council of the Lithuanian Bar will be held in the General Meeting of Advocates in 2026.