Specialization in the Bar: a New Special Operation of the Federal Chamber of Advocates Against the Independence of Lawyers in Russia

The article examines the roundtable held by the Federal Chamber of Advocates of the Russian Federation (FCA) on December 9, 2025, titled «Prospects for Introducing Specialization in the Legal Profession in CIS Member States». The author views this event as part of a systematic campaign to undermine the independence of the Russian bar, disguised as an international exchange of experience. It criticizes the use of foreign models to justify mandatory specialization, which could become a tool for corruption, «purging» undesirable lawyers, and state control. The FСA’s initiative contradicts UN international standards, the Russian Constitution and the federal law, threatening the universality of the profession and citizens’ rights to qualified legal aid. In conclusion, it calls for rejecting compulsory specialization in favor of voluntary self-determination, emphasizing the need to restore the bar’s true independence.