Cour constitutionnelle : le secret professionnel des avocats est renforcé
Auteur | Thierry Afschrift |
Fonction | Licencié en droit, avec grande distinction de l'Université Libre de Bruxelles |
C'est une décision en trompe l'oeil qu'a rendu la Cour d'arbitrage ce 23 janvier 2008, en annulant très partiellement la loi anti-blanchiment du 12 janvier 2004.
Cette loi était attaquée par les Ordres des avocats belges et la Confédération des Barreaux européens, parce qu'elle restreignait le secret professionnel, en obligeant, dans certaines hypothèses déterminées, les avocats à dénoncer leurs clients en cas de soupçons renforcés de blanchiment.
Certes, cette loi comportait des garde-fous importants, notamment dans le fait que les avocats n'étaient jamais soumis à aucun devoir de dénonciation, lorsqu'ils défendaient leurs clients dans le cadre d'une procédure judiciaire, ni lorsqu'ils procèdent «à l'évaluation de la situation juridique du client».
La tendance des autorités étant, il faut bien le reconnaître, de plus en plus répressive et hostile aux secrets, un doute persistait toutefois quant à la question de savoir ce qu'il fallait entendre par l'évaluation de la situation juridique du client.
La Cour constitutionnelle a décidé de rejeter pour l'essentiel le recours introduit par les Barreaux, non pas parce qu'elle l'estimait non fondé, mais parce qu'elle a reconnu le secret professionnel comme un des éléments essentiels du droit de la défense, et a procédé, sur cette base, à une interprétation très favorable à la notion de secret professionnel de la loi incriminée.
C'est ainsi que la Cour constitutionnelle dit explicitement que le secret professionnel s'applique non seulement aux activités de l'avocat en tant que défenseur devant les juridictions, mais aussi à tout ce qui relève du conseil juridique. La notion d' «évaluation de la situation juridique du client» est ainsi assimilée à celle de conseil...
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