Shahla Humbatova disbarred from the Bar Association

Court has approved the disbarment of Shahla Humbatova, one of the last remaining independent human rights lawyers in the bar.

On March 5, the Baku Administrative Court upheld a claim by the Bar Association to terminate Humbatova's membership.

According to the Bar Association, Humbatova was dismissed for having not paid her membership fee for more than 6 months, owing AZN 460 in fees.

She confirmed that she had owed eight months of membership fees, but insisted the association did not make any effort to notify her of this. Speaking with OC Media ‘I learned about this from the media the day after the Board’s decision [to take me to court]’, she said.

Humbatova said that she immediately made the payment, so when the Bar went to court with her disbarment request there was no longer any debt.

Humbatova is known in Azerbaijan for her high-profile human rights claims, including by feminists and queer people.

Her removal from the bar association is a continuing result of systemic pressure. Many independent lawyers have been suspended from the Bar in recent years due to pressure on human rights defenders.