Morocco legal sector faces coding proposals and strike tensions

Morocco's Ministry of Justice and legal professional bodies are navigating tensions regarding new regulations for the legal profession. Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi has proposed a new national coding system for lawyers to unify identification across courts. This system would include 17 specific codes to distinguish different bar associations, such as RA/01 for Rabat and CA/02 for Casablanca, as part of implementing the new civil procedure law.

Simultaneously, the legal sector faces internal division over a new law regulating the profession. While the Association of Moroccan Bar Associations has called for a strike and a cessation of professional services following the law's publication in the Official Gazette, some lawyers in Casablanca have chosen to resume work. Among those appearing at the Casablanca Court of Appeal was former Justice Minister Mustafa Ramid. The professional associations maintain their protest, citing procedural issues regarding the law's constitutionality.