Timely and effective access to a lawyer and confidential communication
27. 7. 2026 | Human Rights and Minorities
The right of access to a lawyer is one of the fundamental procedural safeguards that ensures the fairness of criminal proceedings and the effective exercise of the right of defence. It enables suspects and accused persons to understand their legal situation, make informed decisions, and effectively exercise the procedural rights to which they are entitled throughout criminal proceedings. However, the effectiveness of this right depends not only on its legal recognition, but also on whether it is provided in a timely and effective manner, while ensuring the confidentiality of communication between the lawyer and the suspect or accused person.
These issues are at the heart of the new FULL-PROOF video animation, which explains the right of access to a lawyer as established under Directive 2013/48/EU on the right of access to a lawyer in criminal proceedings and in European arrest warrant proceedings. The animation is part of a series of awareness-raising materials on the procedural rights of suspects and accused persons.
The animation highlights three essential elements of effective access to a lawyer: access should be provided without undue delay, it should ensure confidential communication between the lawyer and the suspect or accused person, and it should be available early enough to enable the lawyer to provide effective legal assistance before important procedural steps, particularly police questioning.
The new animation builds on the first FULL-PROOF video animation, which focused on the right to information. Together, the two videos illustrate how procedural safeguards are interconnected in practice: being informed of one’s rights is the first step towards their effective exercise, while timely access to a lawyer enables suspects and accused persons to understand, exercise and effectively rely on those rights throughout criminal proceedings.
To further strengthen understanding of these rights, FULL-PROOF also offers interactive quizzes, allowing users to test their knowledge of procedural rights in criminal proceedings.
🔗 Access the quizzes here: https://okat.info/bhc/full-proof/home/si; https://okat.info/bhc/full-proof/home/en
