Lawyer to cost more than fine for driving without license
The new Administrative Code continues making surprises. For example, the detained may be surprised by the fact that they must be informed they have a right to counsel only three hours after the detention.
A lawyer Vera Stramkouskaya explains this injustice:
“A person may be detained for up to three hours for questioning. If he or she is released after it they do not even consider it a detention. That’s why you should not inform them about their rights, etc.
If they are detained for more than three hours it is considered to be a detention. From that moment the detention should correspond to the rules. They should be informed about their rights. First of all they should be told about the right to counsel”.
You can hire a lawyer in advance but the lawyer will not come if you don’t arrange it personally and pay for everything. According to the new law, the detained does not have a right for a state lawyer even if he or she has no money.
If the detained has no lawyer he or she can turn to the legal advice office where they will be assigned a lawyer for a sum amount of money.
How much is the lawyer’s service nowadays? There is no particular price. It depends on the agreement with the advocate. The advocate decides on the price taking into account the complexity of the case, its duration, the average local fee and his or her own professionalism.
The deputy head of the Republican Bar Tatstsyana Matusevіch tried to count how much money she would ask for a case about making up a fire in a wrong place:
“An average citizen may think it’s an easy case. The protocol was drawn up in 30 minutes. The hearing lasted 45 minutes. What kind of case can it be?
But they do not take into account the lawyer’s preparation, searching for proofs and explanations of witnesses. This work should also be paid for. How much money would I take? For making up a fire… and the person thinks the detention is unjust… Well, maybe about 80 thousand BRB”.
The fine for this infringement is up to 370 thousand BRB. A defender Vera Stramkouskaya says: the price of the lawyer’s service may reach 300 thousand BRB which is comparable to the fine for making up a fire in a wrong place.
The same amount of money can be spent on cases about grazing cattle near a railway, unauthorized burial, opening the door while driving, violation of the term of tax return presenting…
Are there enough lawyers for the detained? There are 5255 citizens above the age of 14 for one Belarusian defender.
What other pitfalls are there in the new Administrative Code? A legal expert (a former judge of the Constitutional Court) Mіkhaіl Pastuhou says:
“A natural person can no longer use the help of public lawyers.
A large number of cases will be considered by courts now. On the one had it is good because there will be guarantees of protection of citizens’ rights and freedom. On the other hand is a great deviation from the work they should be doing – namely, consideration of criminal, administrative and economic cases.
The Administrative Code has introduced responsibility for everyone above 14 years old. It used to be 16 in the previous code. Almost every rule has become stricter”.
ERB NOTE:
What infringements lead to punishment? There are some of them:
- not using land assigned for farming for a year;
- smoking in places where it is forbidden;
- crossing the railway lines in wrong places;
- throwing garbage from a vehicle’s window;
- cruel treatment of animals;
- walking pets in wrong places;
- unauthorized pairing of animals.
The maximum fine is 1.550.000 BRB for a natural person, 6.200.000 BRB for a private entrepreneur and 31.000.000BRB for a legal entity. Such fines are sky-high for some people. We can only hope that Belarusians will not break laws.
Photo by magazines.russ.ru
A lawyer Vera Stramkouskaya explains this injustice:
“A person may be detained for up to three hours for questioning. If he or she is released after it they do not even consider it a detention. That’s why you should not inform them about their rights, etc.
If they are detained for more than three hours it is considered to be a detention. From that moment the detention should correspond to the rules. They should be informed about their rights. First of all they should be told about the right to counsel”.
You can hire a lawyer in advance but the lawyer will not come if you don’t arrange it personally and pay for everything. According to the new law, the detained does not have a right for a state lawyer even if he or she has no money.
If the detained has no lawyer he or she can turn to the legal advice office where they will be assigned a lawyer for a sum amount of money.
How much is the lawyer’s service nowadays? There is no particular price. It depends on the agreement with the advocate. The advocate decides on the price taking into account the complexity of the case, its duration, the average local fee and his or her own professionalism.
The deputy head of the Republican Bar Tatstsyana Matusevіch tried to count how much money she would ask for a case about making up a fire in a wrong place:
“An average citizen may think it’s an easy case. The protocol was drawn up in 30 minutes. The hearing lasted 45 minutes. What kind of case can it be?
But they do not take into account the lawyer’s preparation, searching for proofs and explanations of witnesses. This work should also be paid for. How much money would I take? For making up a fire… and the person thinks the detention is unjust… Well, maybe about 80 thousand BRB”.
The fine for this infringement is up to 370 thousand BRB. A defender Vera Stramkouskaya says: the price of the lawyer’s service may reach 300 thousand BRB which is comparable to the fine for making up a fire in a wrong place.
The same amount of money can be spent on cases about grazing cattle near a railway, unauthorized burial, opening the door while driving, violation of the term of tax return presenting…
Are there enough lawyers for the detained? There are 5255 citizens above the age of 14 for one Belarusian defender.
What other pitfalls are there in the new Administrative Code? A legal expert (a former judge of the Constitutional Court) Mіkhaіl Pastuhou says:
“A natural person can no longer use the help of public lawyers.
A large number of cases will be considered by courts now. On the one had it is good because there will be guarantees of protection of citizens’ rights and freedom. On the other hand is a great deviation from the work they should be doing – namely, consideration of criminal, administrative and economic cases.
The Administrative Code has introduced responsibility for everyone above 14 years old. It used to be 16 in the previous code. Almost every rule has become stricter”.
ERB NOTE:
What infringements lead to punishment? There are some of them:
- not using land assigned for farming for a year;
- smoking in places where it is forbidden;
- crossing the railway lines in wrong places;
- throwing garbage from a vehicle’s window;
- cruel treatment of animals;
- walking pets in wrong places;
- unauthorized pairing of animals.
The maximum fine is 1.550.000 BRB for a natural person, 6.200.000 BRB for a private entrepreneur and 31.000.000BRB for a legal entity. Such fines are sky-high for some people. We can only hope that Belarusians will not break laws.
Photo by magazines.russ.ru
