At the end of the first week of the boycott declared by the Bar Association (OA) on the registration of court-appointed lawyers, the assessment indicates the postponement of two proceedings, one of which occurred today, according to a statement from the Directorate-General for Justice Administration (DGAJ).
Regarding today’s postponement, the directorate-general stated that the Court attempted to conduct the first interrogation of a defendant detained for drug trafficking and forgery crimes, who has pending international warrants.
As the scheduled lawyer informed that he was ill, “several efforts were made, including contacting the Bar Association for the appointment of a substitute,” the DGAJ said.
According to the statement, following the appointment of a lawyer through the non-presential scale, “telephone contact was attempted several times without success.”
The defendant remains in custody, as the deadline has not expired, and the interrogation was postponed to Saturday.
The protesting lawyers demand a revision of the fee schedule for court-appointed defenses – a service provided to disadvantaged citizens without means to hire a private lawyer – arguing that the schedule has not been revised for almost 20 years and that the values are “out of touch with reality.”
The Ministry of Justice (MJ) informed Lusa that the revision of the system for access to law and courts (SADT) is underway, including the issue of fees, with a work schedule in place.
According to the MJ, by the end of September, the study by the appointed working group is expected to be completed, and a proposal will be presented to the Deputy Secretary of State for Justice, Maria Clara Figueiredo.
In early October, the presentation of conclusions and the government’s draft decision to the Bar Association is scheduled, with a meeting already set for October 9.
The MJ says it informed the OA of this schedule more than a month ago, when the OA’s initiative to call for a boycott of court-appointed lawyer registration scales was not yet known.