Justice Ministry opposes recognition of law firms and bureaus as business entities

The Justice Ministry of Uzbekistan considers it inappropriate to recognize law firms and bureaus as business entities and tax them in this regard. The new version of Article 488 of the draft Tax Code provides for such a novelty.

The ministry emphasizes that the Law “On the Bar” recognizes law firms and bureaus as non-profit organizations, profit is not the main goal of their activities, and profit is not distributed among their participants (members).

“The proposed procedure will lead to an increase in the tax burden of law firms, and this, in turn, may impede the development of the institution of advocacy, adversely affect the quality of professional legal assistance to citizens and businesses,” the ministry said.

These provisions do not correspond to the reforms carried out in the judicial sphere, in particular, on strengthening the role of the legal profession and providing legal services to the population.

“Taking these into consideration, the Ministry of Justice considers it inappropriate to classify law firms and bureaus as business entities, as well as taxing them as business entities, and will express its position on this issue to authorized bodies in the process of conducting a legal examination of the draft of this code,” the Justice Ministry said.