EU Court of Justice upholds ban on legal services for Russian companies

The Court of Justice of the European Union has rejected a lawsuit filed by Belgian lawyers seeking to overturn the 2022 sanctions banning legal services for Russian companies and state institutions.

In response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the EU implemented restrictive measures, including a ban on providing legal consultancy services.

Several Belgian bar associations filed a lawsuit with the EU General Court, demanding that the ban be annulled.

It was argued that the restriction "violates fundamental rights guaranteeing access to legal consultation, professional confidentiality, the duty of independence of lawyers, the values of the rule of law, as well as the principles of proportionality and legal certainty."

The EU Court of Justice rejected the claim, clarifying that the ban on providing legal consultancy services to the Russian government or Russian legal entities does not apply to legal proceedings or individuals.

"The Court believes that the contested ban, which includes provisions for exceptions and exclusions, indeed serves the goals of public interest without undermining the fundamental role of lawyers in a democratic society."

Last month, the EU Court of Justice refused to lift the European sanctions against Russian oligarchs Gennady Timchenko and his wife Yelena, Mikhail Fridman, Peter Aven and German Khan.