Legea 514 - engleza
The Parliament of Romania
Law no. 514
of 28 November 2003
regarding the organisation and practice of the legal advisor profession
Published in the Official Gazette, Part I no. 867 of 5 December 2003
The Parliament of Romania hereby adopts this law.
CHAPTER I
General provisions
Article 1. - The legal advisor defends the legitimate rights and interests of the state, of teh central and local public authorities, of public and public interest institutions, of other public entities, and of private entities, served by the advisor, in accordance with the Constitution and the laws.
Article 2. - A legal advisor may be appointed or employed, according to the law.
Article 3. - (1) A legal advisor that is appointed in a position has the status of a public servant, according to the position and its category.
(2) An employed legal advisor has the status of an employee.
Article 4. - A legal advisor provides advice and representation for the served public authority or institution, or for the employing entity, protects their legitimate rights and interests in their relations with public authorities and institutions of any kind, and with any natural or legal person, Romanian or foreign; according to the law and any specific bylaws, approves and countersigns legal documents.
Article 5. - Legal advisors may establish professional associations to defend and protect their professional interests, according to the law on association and establishment of legal entities.
Article 6. - Legal advisors have the rights and obligations stipulated by the law according to the professional status and the legal provisions concerning the served or employing legal entity.
Article 7. - Acting as a legal advisor is considered to be seniority time as a magistrate, attorney, notary public or other legal positions, according to the specific legal provisions for each of these professions.
CHAPTER II
Becoming and ceasing to be a legal advisor
Article 8. - A person may be a legal advisor if he/she meets the following requirements:
a) is a Romanian citizen with domicile in Romania;
b) has the exercise of civil and political rights;
c) has graduated from a law school;
d) is medically apt to practice the profession; this requirement is proved with a medical certificate issued according to the law;
e) is not in any of the inability cases stipulated herein.
Article 9. - A person is unable to be a legal advisor if that person:
a) was sentenced with a final judgment for committing an offence that by its nature prejudices the legal advisor profession;
b) while exercising the legal advisor profession, has committed abuses, violating fundamental human rights and liberties, as established by an irrevocable court judgment;
c) is declared unable for other reasons by the law.
Article 10. - Exercising the legal advisor profession is incompatible with:
a) being an attorney;
b) activities that prejudice the dignity and independence of the legal advisor profession or the morals;
c) any other authorised or remunerated profession, in Romania or abroad;
d) being an administrator or a liquidator in reorganisation and judicial liquidation procedures;
e) remunerated journalism;
f) other incompatibilities specified by the law or resulting from a conflict of interests, according to the law.
Article 11. - Exercising the legal advisor profession is compatible with:
a) academic teaching and legal research, literary activities, non-remunerated cultural and journalistic activities;
b) being an arbiter, mediator or expert, in accordance with the law and in keeping with the legal provisions on conflicts of interests;
c) taking part in study boards, boards developing legal enactment projects.
Article 12. - (1) Upon starting to practice the profession, the legal advisor must undertake a 2 year internship, having the capacity of an intern legal advisor during that period.
(2) The requirements for the internship, the guiding legal advisor, the finalisation and the other requirements during the internship are specified in the law on practicing the attorney profession and its professional status, which shall apply accordingly.
(3) Furthermore, with regard to finalisation as a legal advisor, based on seniority in other legal professions, the provisions of Law no. 51/1995 on the organisation and practice of the attorney profession shall apply accordingly.
(4) The rights and obligations of the intern legal advisor are those specified in the appointment document or the employment contract, including all the other rights pertaining to the position, throughout the internship period.
Article 13. - (1) An intern legal advisor may submit conclusions to law courts and tribunals, to criminal prosecution bodies, and to the other administrative bodies having jurisdiction.
(2) A permanent legal advisor can submit conclusions to law courts of all levels, to criminal prosecution bodies, and to all administrative authorities and bodies having jurisdiction.
Article 14. - A legal advisor has the obligation to defend the rights and interest of the represented authority or entity with dignity and competence in his/her verbal or written conclusions, and to comply with the professional ethics rules stipulated in the law on the organisation and practice of the attorney profession and the status of such profession.
Article 15. - Records concerning the activities of the legal advisor, instruments and documents, are kept by the advisor, according to the regulations regarding the activities of the served entity.
Article 16. - A legal advisor has the obligation to comply with the legal provisions on contrary interests in the same case or related cases or the conflict of interests that the represented entity may have; he/she also has the obligation to keep the secret and confidentiality of his/her activities, according to the law.
Article 17. - A legal advisor shall be legally liable for failure to comply with professional obligations, according to the law and specific regulations for the served entity's field of activity.
Article 18. - Authorities and public or private entities employing debutant legal advisor benefit from the favourable financial provisions stipulated by the law.
Article 19. - Legal advisors from the structures of county-level and local public administration have the obligation to provide advice and legal support, on demand, to communal councils and town halls, and their representation can be done based on a delegation issued by the mayor.
CHAPTER III
Organisation and Protection of the Legal Advisor Profession
Article 20. - (1) Subject to the requirements stipulated by Article 5, legal advisors may associate in county-level structures, by industries or areas of activity, according to their professional interests and, as the case may be, at national level, in keeping with the law on associations and foundations.
(2) The forms of association and organisation at county and national level are established in the statutes of the association, required by the law.
(3) Professional associations are established based on the constitutional principles of the right to association and the legal provisions on association and establishing legal entities.
Article 21. - The professional association of legal advisors keeps records of advisors under similar conditions to records kept by attorney bars.
Article 22. - (1) The legal advisor is liable for disciplinary action for failure to comply with the provisions of this law and the legal rules for the activity of the served entity.
(2) Establishing a disciplinary offence, investigating it, the trial procedure and the disciplinary penalties are those stipulated in the regulations pertaining to the entity served by the legal advisor.
(3) The disciplinary authority can be informed by the prejudiced person or by the professional association, as the case may be.
Article 23. - In their professional activities, legal advisors are protected by the law, subject to the conditions stipulated by the law on the organisation and practice of the attorney profession.
CHAPTER IV
Transitory and final provisions
Article 24. - (1) This law shall come into force 3 days after being published in the Official Gazette of Romania, Part I.
(2) Within 60 days of this law coming into force, the public authorities, institutions and all other public or private entities shall make the changes stipulated herein in the employment and status, rights and obligations of legal advisors appointed in office or employed by them.
Article 25. - (1) Professional associations shall be established and their statutes will be adopted within 90 days of this law coming into force.
(2) When this law comes into force, all existing professional associations of legal advisors shall cease to function.
Article 26. - Records of legal advisors and their continuous update shall be kept and made by professional associations at the end of each year and shall be transmitted to the prefecture, county council, law courts, criminal prosecution bodies and to the bar of that county.
Article 27. - As of the date when this law comes into force, Decree no. 143/1955 regarding the organisation and functioning of law offices, published in the Official Gazette, Part I, no. 8 of 30 April 1955, as subsequently amended, shall be abrogated, as shall any provisions that are contrary to this law.
This law was passed by the Senate in its session on 22 May 2003, in keeping with the provisions of Article 74 par. (1) of the Constitution of Romania.
CHAIRMAN OF THE SENATE,
DORU IOAN TĂRĂCILĂ
This law was passed by the Senate in its session on 4 November 2003, in keeping with the provisions of Article 76 par. (1) of the Constitution of Romania.
CHAIRMAN OF THE CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES
VALER DORNEANU
Bucharest, 28 November 2003.
No. 514.