Lawyers demand Civil Service Authority allow attorneys to attend disciplinary investigations

The Kuwait Lawyers Association addressed Dr. Essam Al-Rabiean, Head of the Civil Service Bureau, urging him to permit lawyers to attend disciplinary investigations and hearings involving employees referred for investigation to government entities under the Bureau’s jurisdiction, thereby ensuring the protection of employees’ rights and reinforcing the principles of justice.

In its letter, the Association explained that some government entities prohibit lawyers from accompanying employees during disciplinary investigation sessions, citing the absence of a legal provision obligating them to allow such attendance. The Association considered this justification “incorrect, lacking in accuracy and correctness.”

It emphasized that although the legislator has not explicitly regulated the presence of lawyers in employees’ disciplinary investigation sessions, this matter finds its basis in the general principles of legal jurisprudence and the rules of fair trials, including the principle that “the default rule is permissibility” and that “the absolute is applied as such unless there is evidence to the contrary.”

The Association stressed that, in the absence of any legal provision prohibiting lawyers from accompanying employees during investigations, the general rules must be applied to guarantee the accused’s right to legal counsel for defense and to monitor investigative procedures, ensuring that the formal and substantive legal safeguards afforded to them are not violated.

The Kuwait Lawyers Association called on the Civil Service Bureau to communicate with all government entities under its jurisdiction, affirming the right of officially licensed lawyers to accompany employees referred for investigation, thereby safeguarding their rights, enhancing defense guarantees, and achieving justice.