A lawyer was fined 10,000 euros and reprimanded by the disciplinary board on Monday over a Facebook post about a schoolgirl’s appearance that the board found sexist and suggestive of misogyny.
The lawyer, then an official of a local bar association, had represented the association in 2021 at the inauguration of a new building, where students from a music school performed. In his post, he commented on the appearance of a schoolgirl who took part and criticised those who had allowed her to perform.
The post drew a wave of reactions from people who attended, who went on to complain to the Cyprus Bar Association. The lawyer deleted the comments after one to three days.
The board ruled that the post, made in his institutional capacity, “constitutes improper behaviour and amounts to conduct incompatible with the profession of lawyer”. It found that a lawyer’s disciplinary liability is not limited to conduct in the course of professional duties but extends to acts that tend to damage the standing of the profession.
Lawyers, particularly when they represent local bar associations or other professional bodies, have a responsibility to protect the standing and reputation of the profession and to bear in mind their duty as officers of justice, the board said.
It said views suggestive of sexism and misogyny “constitute offensive and demeaning public discourse” and can lead to intimidation or stigmatisation and reproduce negative stereotypes, especially when they concern or are directed at minors. Such views are incompatible with the honour and dignity of the profession and cannot be tolerated, the board said.
In setting the penalty, the board took into account that five years had passed since the offence, and in particular that the original disciplinary proceedings had been suspended, causing a delay for which the lawyer was not responsible. It also considered that he no longer holds any office, that the offence is serious, and his complete lack of remorse.
Mitigation plea
In his plea for a lighter sentence, the lawyer told the board he had witnessed an unacceptable event and that the girl’s appearance was unacceptable, especially as she was singing a Mikis Theodorakis song. He said what he had written was entirely true and was aimed at those who allowed her to appear as she did, with a clear message to take measures next time.
“What are you punishing me for? For telling the truth?” he asked. If things reached that point, he said, they would be heading down a very, very dangerous path, and it was necessary to restate what freedom of speech means.
The charges
The board unanimously found the lawyer guilty last September of disgraceful conduct, or conduct incompatible with the legal profession, in breach of section 17(1) of the Advocates Law, Cap. 2, as amended, and of behaviour contrary to Regulations 4 to 9 and 11 of the Advocates’ Code of Conduct Regulations.
He originally faced five charges. The first three were dismissed because the prosecuting authority did not pursue them, and he was acquitted of a fourth, which concerned allegations that he had recorded meetings of a council on which he sat.
