(London, 22 April 2011) – Today MANS held a working meeting with representatives of the global legal firm Latham & Watkins. The two sides agreed to the modalities of pro bono assistance that Latham & Watkins will offer in the fields of access to information and human rights related to freedom of expression.
On the basis of the Agreement that we signed with Latham & Watkins, this legal office will help us bring cases against Montenegrin institutions that violate the Law on Free Access to Information before the European Court for Human Rights. Latham & Watkins will also prepare relevant legal analysis based on previous European Court for Human Rights rulings related to access to information. Moreover, we will also be receiving relevant legal information in cases related to the curbing of the rights to freedom of expression of NGOs and media outlets (through the filing of libel suits and requests for compensation for non-pecuniary damages allegedly suffered by public functionaries and the representatives of private companies).
We are convinced that the legal advice that we will receive from Latham & Watkins will advance respect for the Law on Free Access to Information in Montenegro. We also believe that this will lead to a reduction in violations of the freedom of speech of NGOs and media personalities in our country. Domestic courts will receive the relevant legal praxis of the European Court for Human Rights, which prevents public functionaries or individuals linked to organized crime to persecute journalists and members of civil society by targeting them for libel and enormous compensation claims made for emotional distress and non-pecuniary losses.
Latham and Watkins, which will provide pro bono legal advice to MANS was established in London in 1934 and currently employs over two-thousand lawyers with offices all over the world. Latham & Watkins currently have offices in the following cities: London, Abu Dhabi, Barcelona, Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Doha, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Madrid, Milan, Moscow, Munich, New Jersey, New York, Orange County, Paris, Riyadh, Rome, San Diego, San Francisco, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington.
Vuk Maraš
Director of the monitoring programme
