Researcher: "Bar leader term limits are constitutional"

A legal researcher has stated that provisions preventing bar leaders from seeking re-election are fully compliant with the constitution. Sabah Al-Maskini, who specializes in professional and judicial legislation, aims to refute what she describes as "suspicions and fallacies" surrounding a proposed law for the legal profession.

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The objective of my article is to respond to what I described as suspicions and fallacies raised about the draft law of the legal profession.

Al-Maskini argues that the parliament's power to regulate various professions is constitutionally grounded. She asserts that establishing rules for these professions does not deviate from constitutional mandates but falls within the legislature's inherent powers. This discussion gained traction after the Speaker of the House of Representatives forwarded a bill, prepared by the Justice Minister, to the Constitutional Court. The bill faced opposition from several bar leaders who viewed proposed amendments, banning the renewal of a bar leader's term, preventing former leaders from running for leadership or council positions, and limiting those who served two terms from seeking a third, as unconstitutional. They contend these changes infringe upon the profession's self-governance and reverse prior gains.

Al-Maskini distinguishes between the self-regulation of a profession, which allows professionals to manage their affairs through elected bodies, and the monopolization of legislative rule-making. She maintains that setting eligibility criteria, election mechanisms, term lengths, and disqualification conditions falls under parliament's primary jurisdiction, provided the regulations do not grant the executive branch power to appoint the body's officials or interfere with election outcomes. The constitution, she emphasizes, does not grant an acquired individual right to repeated re-election for bar leadership or council membership, nor does it prohibit the legislature from imposing time limits on professional roles.

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The self-regulation of the profession does not mean monopolizing the legislation.

Reviewing past bar association laws from 1924, 1959, 1979, 1993, and 2008, Al-Maskini notes the legislature's consistent intervention in regulating professional body elections. This included modifying candidacy requirements, setting age limits, determining council sizes, and introducing new disqualifications, underscoring that regulating the profession has always been a legislative prerogative. She points out that the "bar leader" position was only introduced in the 2008 law, suggesting that the legislature, which established this privilege, legally possesses the authority to revise or abolish it in the public interest. Al-Maskini assesses that while bar leaders have had opportunities to reform the profession since 2008, the outcome has been a decline in the profession's status, attributed to the suspension of disciplinary proceedings and a failure to uphold professional ethics.

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The constitution does not contain any provision granting an acquired individual right to repeated re-election for the position of bar leader or council membership.

Al-Maskini rejects the notion that these amendments specifically target the legal profession. She argues that limiting electoral terms reflects a general legislative trend applied to various institutions. As an example, she cites the Organic Law of the Supreme Council of the Judicial Power, where elected judges serve a non-renewable five-year term, while appointed members serve a renewable five-year term. This, she contends, demonstrates that restricting electoral terms does not conflict with the principle of continuity in leadership.

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Limiting the number of electoral terms is a general legislative trend that includes several institutions and bodies.