Lawyers' Chamber Under Target: Government Seeks Candidate for Chamber President

According to information from the daily newspaper 'Zhoghovurd', the domestic government is searching for a candidate to participate in the elections for the President of the Lawyers' Chamber, scheduled for September 12.

Our sources indicate that the government aims to bring the chamber under its control, as it was unable to impose authority on the current president, Ara Zograbyan, and is now attempting to bring in a loyal figure to fully manage the Lawyers' Chamber.

According to our sources, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has tasked his team with proposing a qualified lawyer or expert to participate in the presidential elections. It is noteworthy that the election campaign for the President of the Lawyers' Chamber will begin on August 21, while candidate nominations will be accepted until August 20. This means that today, by the end of the day, the government must clarify whether it will have its own candidate or if it will abstain from the elections due to a lack of suitable candidates.

It is known that the director of the Law School, Simon Babayan, has been nominated as a candidate for the Lawyers' Chamber presidency; however, his candidacy is considered unacceptable to the government as he is regarded as an ally of Zograbyan.

Our sources do not rule out the possibility that the government’s candidate could even be Nikolay Baghdasaryan, a former parliamentary member of the ruling party. This time, the government did not place Baghdasaryan on the electoral list for the National Assembly elections. Colleagues in the legal profession often mention that his childhood dream is to become the president of the Lawyers' Chamber.

Recall that back in April 2014, Ara Zograbyan removed Nikolay Baghdasaryan from the position of director of the Chamber, after which Baghdasaryan took every dirty step against Zograbyan.

Additionally, it should be noted that Nikolay Baghdasaryan's legal practice license has also been suspended, as he is a person holding a public office—an advisor to the Prime Minister.

This article can be read in full in today's edition of the newspaper.