Advocates of Legal Alliance Company held round table on journalist rights protection

On September 26th, 2018, criminal law practice team of Legal Alliance Company held round table “Is Protection of Journalists up to Journalists Themselves?” During the event speakers partner Illya Kostin and counsel Taras Bezpalyy shared practical knowledge and advice on peculiarities of journalist rights protection and ensuring guarantees of their independent activities.

At the round table participants discussed peculiarities of calling journalists to interrogation, status of witness in criminal proceedings, responsibility of journalists and mass media for dissemination of information, as well as peculiarities of disclosure of journalist secret.

Speakers also shared experience on requirements to rebuttal of unreliable information and collection of moral damage, analysed based on practical cases boundaries of responsibility, what journalists should expect and how to protect their own rights.

Illya Kostin, partner at Legal Alliance Company, underlines “Today the issue of legal ensuring to guarantee of independent activities of journalists is crucial as never before. Taking into consideration the mentioned, provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Information”, under which nobody can be brought to liability for expression of estimative judgements, and provisions of the Criminal Code of Ukraine which envisage liability for creation of intentional obstacles to legal professional activities of journalists, are important”.

Contact the speakers: partner Illya Kostin, kostin@l-a.com.ua; counsel Taras Bezpalyy, bezpalyy@l-a.com.ua.