Welcome speech delivered by Dr. Tamás Sulyok, President of Hungary, on Hungarian Lawyers’ Day

"Even with the best laws and the best judiciary, justice is incomplete without high-minded, respectable legal professionals."
Dear Mr President!

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Bar!

With love and respect, I welcome you all to Hungarian Lawyers’ Day with a thought from Károly Csemegi.

Károly Csemegi, who is rightly regarded as one of the most knowledgeable Hungarian legal professionals of the 19th century and who was himself a lawyer in the early stages of his career, made the quoted statement about the role of legal professionals in 1874, i.e. in the year of the publication of Article XXXIV of Act XXXIV of 1874 on the Code of Conduct for Lawyers, which he himself participated in drafting as Secretary of State for Justice.

With the passing of the Act - 150 years ago - a new era began in the history of the legal profession and, by extension, the whole of the judiciary. The statute provided that "the high-standing and high-spirited members of the legal profession" were to be organised into chambers. The regional chambers that were created embodied the bulwark of independence, strengthened public confidence and further enhanced professional prestige. The emergence of the chambers made lawyers even more visible and accessible.

At that time, the Hungarian legal system was showing signs of a marked historical turnaround: the right of defence, the right to a fair trial, the right to legal remedy were becoming a reality. Above all it meant the emergence of equality before the law, leading from the feudal world to the democratic world of the rule of law. To support all of this, lawyers who demonstrated their expertise have stood as advocates for the rule of law, choosing as their profession the protection of the legally safeguarded and legally representable interests of all citizens.

The strengthening of the role of the legal profession and the creation of chambers was a sign of the rule of law. In the year of the Reconciliation, the Austrian Empire declared in the Staatsgrundgesetz that everyone is equal before the law. The same ruler, the same Vienna as in the Bach era and as on 6 October 1849. The same power as that, which had previously kept the legal profession under the supervision of the courts, made the practice of law subject to a licence from the Minister of Justice and outright dismissed the necessity of the collective organization of lawyers. Yet, everything changed then. 

The turn of 1874 was an important step in the great transformation of the Hungarian legal system. It is part of the process of separation between the judiciary and the public administration, and the separation between the bar and the judiciary. The profession of lawyer has evolved from representing litigants in cases to a recognised legal profession in its own right. However, behind the changes in the legal system and the steps towards the rule of law, there was the transformation of the state of society. The masses of subjugated and rights-restricted people became citizens. 

Citizens who demand and fight for equality before the law. It was this fundamental right that gave our whole legal system a new focus.

This was the right that the '48 War of Independence also called for. It is also the one that we find in the triumphal manifesto of the Fifteenth of March, in the Twelve Points.

What does the Hungarian nation want? - The Twelve Points answer this question: Point Four: "Equality before the law in civil and religious matters." 

Also, Point Eight: "Jury, representation on the basis of equality." The text of the national manifesto was drafted by József Irinyi, a lawyer by profession. The freedom fighter's ethos of equality in opposition to absolutism and feudalism so powerfully captivated the March Youth and Irinyi that the form of the Twelve Points read at the bottom: 'Equality! Liberty! Fraternity!, reversing the original order of the well-known and coveted slogans "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité".

The era that fought for the nation's freedom simultaneously waged a battle to abolish feudal rights and to ensure legal equality for its citizens. The success of this struggle brought about the rise of the legal profession. A strong and independent legal profession was needed to ensure that the law belonged to all, that the same law applied to all and that legal capacity was equally enjoyed by all.

However, this is not just about the more efficient organisation and logistics of justice, but about the freedom of the nation and the respect of its citizens, the victory of 1848. It follows from all this that the birth and functioning of the Bar, which is inextricably linked to the idea of a Hungary of citizens, derives from the spirit of 15 March, from the soul of the people. 

If we turn to István Széchenyi's work titled Stádium, also the chapter on Act XII, we find under point V: " Everyone stands equally under the protection and weight of the law." It is easy to suspect that Irinyi may have been inspired by this work, and may have drawn the relevant passage in the Twelve Points of 15 March from it. In this case, we can trace the emergence of the call for the acceptance of this fundamental right in our country back to the pen and desk of the Greatest Hungarian. The right proclaimed today in the first paragraph of Article XV of the Fundamental Law of Hungary: 'Everyone is equal before the law. Everyone has legal capacity". Further, the first paragraph of Article XXVIII states that „Everyone has the right to have any accusation brought against them, or any case regarding their rights and obligations, adjudicated by an independent and impartial court established by law, in a fair and public hearing, within a reasonable time frame”.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

150 years on, we might ask: what does it take to be a good lawyer?

What are some of the biggest challenges and difficulties facing the legal profession? What are the main characteristics of truly excellent lawyers?

While the success of a surgery depends on the doctor, and the outcome of a battle depends on the general, the effectiveness of a lawyer's work determines no less than the fate of a citizen's property, freedom, honour, and position at work.
We all know that eloquence is useful, but far from sufficient for a prospective lawyer. Success requires knowledge of the law, expertise, persuasive reasoning, insight and practical experience, as well as a great deal of hard work. In addition, however, there is another indispensable characteristic of being a lawyer: integrity and morality.

The requirement of professionalism may seem obvious at first sight. However, a lay client who is not versed in the law does not know how much knowledge of substantive law and procedural law is required, which, moreover, is constantly subject to change. 
Many people would never guess that, in addition to their knowledge of all branches of domestic law, our lawyers also need to be familiar with EU law, which can have exclusive effect. And I haven't even mentioned the constant challenges of digitalisation.
It is also not the clients' primary approach to understand that the lawyer indeed lives off the market, sustaining themselves through their expertise and the trust they have built. The clients pay the fees; it is from them that the lawyer receives compensation, rather than being the dependent of the state. 

We have not yet seen an era where the client pays the lawyer's fee or court costs in good humour. However, the service that clients should receive is more than just expertise and practical experience; it must also include the fact that the lawyer they turn to possesses high moral standards. They will maintain confidentiality, conduct proceedings fairly, be free from outside influence on the merits and be worthy of public trust. The lawyer never colludes with the opponent, nor unnecessarily drags out the lawsuit. In their well-performed work, both the rule of law and morality are reflected.

The right to a fair trial is a fundamental right guaranteed by the Fundamental Law. A lawyer protects this fundamental right. Their work represent both the interests of the client and the rule of law. 150 years ago, the same was stated in the explanatory memorandum to the Code of Conduct: The lawyer directly represents only individual citizens and defends the rights of individuals; however, the basis of their actions is the idea of law itself, the principles of which they must never lose sight of, nor come into conflict with, even for a moment."

The legal profession is an excitingly complex one, affecting many different aspects of life and the legal system. The lawyer, who swears allegiance to Hungary and the Fundamental Law in their oath, defends the right to a fair trial as a constitutional fundamental right. They provide assistance to ensure that their client can enforce their private interests in accordance with the law amidst the maze of regulations. However, while possessing substantial knowledge and weighing complex situations, the lawyer must not lose sight of the fact that it is not man for the law, but the law for man.
I believe that our finest lawyers are those who excel in this as well.

It is a great pleasure for me – a former colleague - to welcome you all today, as we approach the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Bar Associations. I am proud to have practised as a lawyer for many years. On this Hungarian Lawyers' Day, I wish you all success in your work and much joy in your profession.

Thank you for your attention!

(Budapest, 16 November 2024)