The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
27
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
‘
ABSTRACT
This article highlights certain aspects of the provision of legal services to business entities by legal
consulting organizations in the Republic of Uzbekistan. The author notes that in addition to lawyers,
legal consulting structures are also involved in the provision of legal services. Also, the views of Uzbek
and foreign researchers and scientists on the positive and negative aspects of competition in the legal
services market are analyzed. In particular, established that at the moment there is no single
procedure for the provision of legal services to business entities, in this regard, the problems existing
in practice and in the doctrine have been considered in detail. The author comes to the conclusion that
in order to improve the quality of the provision of legal services by lawyers and other structures, in
particular, to establish their professional ethics, civil liability and uniform standards for the provision
of services, a special law should be adopted.
KEYWORDS
Legal services, organization of legal consulting, lawyer, lawyer monopoly, business entity, uniform
professional and qualification standards
INTRODUCTION
The address of the President of the Republic of
Uzbekistan Sh. Mirziyoyev to the Oliy Majlis on
December 22, 2017 [1] set out the objectives of
the program for further development of the
legal profession, according to which today the
work is underway to take measures to improve
the activities of lawyers in the field of
consulting services - the provision of legal
Characteristics Of Providing Legal Services To Business
Entities By Legal Consultancy Organisations
Nurumov Dilshodbek Djumabaevich
Senior Lecturer Of Department Juridical, Law Enforcement Agencies And Advocacy Of Tashkent
State University Of Law, Uzbekistan
Journal
Website:
https://theamericanjou
rnals.com/index.php/ta
jpslc
Copyright:
Original
content from this work
may be used under the
terms of the creative
commons
attributes
4.0 licence.
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
28
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
assistance to business entities and to expand
the scope of activities of lawyers to provide
legal services.
It should be noted that today in the market of
legal services there is a competition among
lawyers. In particular, in accordance with
paragraph 3 of the Decree of the President of
the Republic of Uzbekistan dated May 12, 2018
No PF-5441, commercial organizations can
provide legal advice without a license,and it
was stated that the mentioned organizations
do not have the right to represent the client in
the courts on civil, criminal (administrative
offenses), economic and administrative cases
[2].
The decree’s goal is to increase legal aid to the
general public, as well as counsel and legal help
for enterprises and international investors.
Therefore, in order to promote a competitive
environment, it is proposed to expand the
range of entities providing legal advices [3].
Pursuant to the Regulation “On the provision
of legal advice by commercial organizations”,
approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of the
Republic of Uzbekistan dated August 17, 2018
No 675, an organization of legal advisers is
referred to as a commercial organization
providing legal advice or providing legal
consulting which is included in the register of
commercial organizations providing legal
advice [4].
The major distinction between a legal adviser
and legal consulting structure is that the legal
advising organization is unable to provide legal
advice and representation on cases before law
enforcement agencies and courts, perform
legal tasks, or participate in the preliminary
inquiry. At the same time, the organization of
legal advisers can be organized and carry out
its activities in any organizational and legal
form, except for joint-stock companies.
MATERIALS AND METHODS OF RESEARCH
The research employs logical, historical,
comparative-legal, clear sociological, complex
examination of scientific sources, statistical
data analysis, interpretation of legislation, and
law enforcement practice analysis.
DISCUSSION OF THE FINDINGS
In addition to advocacy, legal counseling is
becoming more popular in our country. In the
Republic of Uzbekistan, there are now 65 legal
service (legal consulting) organizations [5].
Consulting is a consulting activity that is a
required form of service for nosiness entities in
current age of rapid technological and business
development.
The essence of consulting is reflected in
making proposals and solutions aimed at
solving complex problems for business
entities, determination of the financial
condition of the company and the organization
of production activities, sale of goods that are
the result of production activities and making
recommendations that should be applied in the
process of providing services, efficient use of
assets and attraction of third party
investments, scheduled audit, introduction of
personnel training system, implementation of
management skills in management, improving
the overall efficiency of labor activity in the
organization [6].
The emergence of consulting sector dates back
to the 1960s. Business Week, which has
expanded dramatically since then and now
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
29
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
includes ten large US consulting firms, rose at
a rate of 10% each year in the late 1990s, up
from 14% in 2000. [7] The expansion of
consulting operations has been aided by a
variety of factors. First, many companies lack
the internal workforce to perform all of their
necessary tasks as a result of the corporate
downsizing trend, and second, the complexity
of today’s business environment - as a result of
regulation, globalization, and technological
development,
many
companies
require
practical and effective business development
advice.
Business entities should assess the nature of
the actual problem, the reasons for not being
able to address it rationally using internal
resources, and the assumption of positive
outcomes that may be expected by inviting a
consultant when considering whether to
engage their services.
According to John Adams, there are numerous
scenarios in which a consultant's services are
necessary, including a company's real income
rising flat or slowly, an increase in expenditures
compared to income, and the obsolescence of
the business management system [8].
David Jones states that when the need for the
services of a consultant in the company's
activities arises when the manager has a desire
to have an optimal program to reorganize the
entire system and the production process, at
the
necessary
stages
of
increasing
competitiveness, it also occurs when a
company goes bankrupt or engages in harmful
production activities and in the process,
consulting firms will be tasked with rescuing
their respective businesses from the crisis.
In the selection of qualified consulting
professionals by business entities and before
signing a contract with them, attention should
be paid to reports on the work of previous
trustees, the cost of services provided,
experience and potential of the consultant, for
the period of operation of the consulting
company [9].
Based on the scope of the topic, if we consider
the activities of providing legal consulting
services to business entities, first of all, legal
consulting is the assistance of legal
professionals in solving problems arising from
the relationship between individuals and legal
entities, verbal advice and explanations on the
issues, as well as a system of processes related
to the submission of written references.
In practice, there is a category of organizations
that are not regulated by law, which provides
legal advice and complex procedures in the
process of registration and liquidation of legal
entities, which is called legal consulting.
Unfortunately, the provision of legal advice by
these entities has been overlooked by the
authorities [11]. It is important to pay attention
to the fact that these entities have access to
and use of commercial and confidential
information of trustees - legal entities, as well
as
personal
information
about
their
employees.
I.Azizov was right when he noted that other
categories
of
legal
entities
providing
consulting services operate in the unregulated
zone:
1)
Consulting firms - residents and non-
residents operating in the field of business
(without
declaring
a
narrow
specialization);
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
30
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
2)
Consulting firms that have announced a
narrow specialization. For example, in the
field of construction, securities market, TIF
contracts examination and pre-shipment
inspection, in the field of engineering, etc .;
3)
Freelancers
-
individual
consultants
(residents and non-residents) [11].
I.Azizov says that taking into account foreign
practice, consultants-lawyers can operate in
their narrow specialties and apply only to
entities engaged in commercial turnover in the
field of substantive law (eg, tax law,
accounting, banking law, financial law,
securities circulation, etc.). should be allowed
to advise [11].
We agree with this opinion and tpropose the
followings for their operation:
Introduction of licensing procedures for
consulting activities in narrow specialties;
Uniform qualification and service quality
requirements for all specialties;
Consultancy operations be fully regulated and
insured, and liability risks be resolved;
Establishment of a state entity to supervise
consulting organizations or a single self-
governing div for legal advice organizations.
The 2015 report of the International Bar
Association states: “Most lawyers work
outside the system of self-government (bar or
other independent structure) - this means
trusting individuals who do not comply with
the requirements of the legal system, mainly
the code of ethics and the disciplinary system.
Consequently, many people who have applied
for justice, including the restoration of violated
human rights, they cannot prosecute their
legal representatives, even if they find that
their actions have been carried out by
incompetent, negligent or immoral persons.”
[12]
It should be highlighted that in foreign nations,
the regulation of granting and denying legal
assistance remains under governmental
supervision,
with
various
degrees
of
independence for professional groups of
attorneys [11]. On the contrary, the existing
lack of regulation in Uzbekistan may have a
detrimental impact on the quality of legal
assistance supplied to the population, as it
permits unscrupulous individuals to exploit
citizens'
and
legal
entities'
personal
(confodenial, commercial) information and
assets.
It is important to note that the following steps
should be done to ensure that individuals and
legal entities receive high-quality legal
representation:
Development of a method for lawyers from
legal advisory organizations who do not have
the status of a lawyer to be admitted to the
legal field, as well as quality monitoring of legal
services supplied by them;
Introduction
of
uniform
training
and
qualification requirements for legal advisers in
the organizations of legal advisers, which are
the same as the requirements for lawyers,
including the following requirements for
lawyers in the field of consulting:
Having law degree and credentials;
Having passed an examination on
substantive and procedural law of the
Republic of Uzbekistan in order to provide
legal advice on Uzbekistan’s laws;
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
31
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
A lawyer’s professional civil liability
insurance is required;
The lawyer’s personal liability before the
client is required;
A lawyer’s participation in the advanced
training is required;
Lawyers are subject to the same
disciplinary oversight and termination of
entrance to the profession as the institute
of advocacy;
Maintaining a public register of consulting
lawyers (showing expertise, credentials,
experience, and other relevant information
for customers);
Independent introduction of mandatory
compliance with the rules of disciplinary
control and professional ethics of lawyers
in the field of consulting.
In practice, the accomplishment of all of the
above standards, in our opinion, eliminates the
distinction between advocacy and legal
consulting.
However,
progressive
strengthening of these standards is important,
as the sudden removal of the democratic,
popular, and flexible nature of consulting
agencies in compared to today’s advocacy may
result in a large reduction in their composition.
In light of the foregoing, it is prudent to
gradually implement the following processes
for state supervision of the legal services
market: First and foremost, licensing (there are
still corporate and individual licensing or
professional permits, but in practice it always
turns out to be an individual legal advisor).
Lawyers who engage in consulting activities, in
our opinion, should obtain a separate permit
(license, certificate, or certificate) to do so
(except, of course, for tax, notary, advocacy,
audit and other activities).
Second, regardless of their place of
employment, all lawyers must recognize and
follow the same principles of ethics and
professional conduct. To accomplish so, the
legal community must adopt uniform rules of
behavior and professional standards, as well as
the sequence in which they must be followed
and disciplinary measures to be taken in the
event of a violation.
Third, the lawyer has full responsibility for the
consequences of his professional activity and
the legal advice he provides. In Western
nations, the types of limited liability
organizations utilized only limit the culpability
of the remaining parties, and the guilty lawyers
are held completely responsible in any instance
[14].
Special organizational and legal forms for legal
consultation, as well as the legal structures
presently operating in Uzbekistan, such as:
a)
Foreign individual lawyers or legal
organizations;
b)
Local business consulting lawyers, should
be established in the law.
These businesses operate in a different way
than lawyers, in the form of commercial
entities.
Fourth, insurance of civil liability of lawyers to
ensure that the clients’ or sgents’ rights are
not violated as a result of fraud and abuse or in
other words, it is necessary to envisage their
professional liability insurance (“professional
indemnification” - PI [11]). All professionals
wishing to engage in legal services must have a
license as well as an insurance card.
The execution of these recommendations, of
course, necessitates a thorough examination
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
32
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
of all areas as well as an assessment of the
benefits and drawbacks. For example, a special
licensing system for legal consulting agents
could be established (a similar system exists in
Poland) [14].
The development and implementation of a
specific law - the Law “On qualified legal
services” - is, in our opinion, the solution to the
challenges faced by law firms and other
organizations in providing competent legal aid
and advisory services to businesses. Because it
provides direct accountability for unskilled
services, the implementation of such a
regulation will help to improve the quality of
legal aid. Improving the quality of legal services
and providing qualified legal advice would aid
in the resolution of issues such as dishonesty in
the execution of their obligations. To remove
unqualified legal activity in the current
circumstances, it is important to create norms
at the legislative level. The introduction of
uniform qualification requirements for people
who supply professional legal services restricts
the ability to engage in legal activities in the
labor market without passing the lawyer
qualification examination and proving the
obtained qualifications.
Given the possibility that Uzbekistan would join
the World Trade Organization in the near
future, it is critical that it adhere to the
organization's regulations in order to promote
international collaboration. The only way out
of this scenario is to provide similar
requirements (standards) and conditions for all
legal service providers on Uzbekistan's
territory.
The following duties will need to be handled if
the proposed law “On qualified legal services”
is passed:
The introduction of certain professional
and other qualification requirements for all
people involved in the legal assistance
process;
Maintaining control over admission to the
practice of advocacy and other legal
professions;
Development of additional rules to ensure
control over the quality of legal aid;
Establishment of mandatory requirements
for the provision of reliable information on
their
qualifications
and
possible
professional risks to the person providing
confidence to persons providing qualified
legal assistance, the mechanism of civil
liability insurance.
It should be noted that the adoption of this law
will further liberalize the legal profession in
Uzbekistan, increase its popularity and
attractiveness
to
investors.
This
is
substantiated by surveys as well, for instance,
in a public opinion poll, 80% of respondents
agreed that it would be appropriate for law
enforcement agencies and other organizations
in Uzbekistan to adopt a special law on
qualified legal assistance and consulting
services for individuals and legal entities.
CONCLUSION
1.
Given the foreign practice, consultant-
lawyers can operate within their narrow
specialties and they should be allowed to
advise the subjects of trade only in areas of
substantive law (eg, tax law, accounting,
banking law, financial law, securities
turnover, etc.). This activity should be
carried out on the following grounds:
Introduction of licensing procedures for
consulting activities in narrow specialties;
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
33
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
Introduction of uniform qualification and
service quality standards for each specialty;
Full regulation and insurance of consulting
activities, resolution of liability issues;
Establishment of a state div supervising
organizations engaged in consulting activities
or
a
single
self-governing
div
for
organizations of legal advisory activities.
Accordingly, there should be a mechanism in
place to monitor and prevent all types of legal
advice from practicing their profession in cases
of abuse, incompetent assistance, fraud, and
other forms of dishonesty.
2.
It is expedient to include the following
procedures in the state control over the
market of legal services:
First, licensing.
Second, all lawyers, regardless of the
workplace, must recognize and adhere to the
same rules of ethics and professional conduct.
Third, the fundamental principle is that the
lawyer
is
fully
responsible
for
the
consequences of his professional activity and
the legal advice s/he gives.
Fourth, the activities of legal advisers should be
insured against civil liability.
3.
Development of a special law - the Law "On
qualified legal services", which should
address the following issues:
Establishment of certain professional and
other qualification requirements for all
persons involved in the process of
providing legal assistance;
Ensuring control over the admission to
advocacy and other legal professional
practice;
Development of additional rules to ensure
control over the quality of legal aid;
Establishment of mandatory requirements
for the provision of reliable information on
their
qualifications
and
possible
professional risks to the person providing
confidence to persons providing qualified
legal assistance, the mechanism of civil
liability insurance.
REFERENCES
1.
Address of the President of the Republic
of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the
Oliy
Majlis,
22.12.2017,
https://president.uz/uz/lists/ view / 1371.
2.
National
Database
of
Legislation,
14.05.2018, No. 06/18/5441/1210.
3.
Decree of the President of the Republic of
Uzbekistan dated May 12, 2018 No PF-5441
“On measures to radically increase the
efficiency of the Bar and expand the
independence of lawyers.”
4.
4. National database of the legislation,
18.08.2018, No. 09/18/675/1885.
5.
https://www.minjust.uz/uz/interactive/ree
str-law-serv/.
6.
Goldsborough Reid. "How to Hire a Web
Consultant." Link-Up. 17.09.99.
7.
"It's Getting Quieter in the Advice
Business." Business Week. 26.02.01.
8.
Adams Joan. "Do's & Don'ts of Hiring
Consultants."
Supply
House
Times.
05.03.05.
9.
Teichgraeber Tara. "What to Look For: E-
Commerce Consultants." Dallas Business
Journal. 14.07.2000.
The USA Journals Volume 03 Issue 07-2021
34
The American Journal of Political Science Law and Criminology
(ISSN
–
2693-0803)
Published:
July 30, 2021 |
Pages:
27-34
Doi:
https://doi.org/10.37547/tajpslc/Volume03Issue07-05
I
MPACT
F
ACTOR
2021:
5.
952
10.
Zahn David. The Quintessential Guide to
Using Consultants. HDR Press, Inc.,
12.01.04.
4.
11.https://www.norma.uz/uz/bizning_shar
hlar/har_bir_yurist_advokat_bula_olmayd
i.
11.
http://icj.wpengine.netdna-
cdn.com/...ssion-Publication-2015-RUS.pdf
12.
Collection of legislation of the Russian
Federation. 2013. No. 34. Art. 4479.
13.
Mrowczynski, R. (2012). Self-Regulation of
Legal Profession in State-Socialism:
Poland and Russia Compared. Journal of
the Max Plank Institute for European
Legal History, 20, 170–188.
14.
Moiseeva E., Skugarevsky D. The market
of legal services in Russia: what the
statistics say. SPb.: IPP EUSP, 2016.
(Analytical reviews on the problems of law
enforcement).
