Madar (Rabat) - The Association of Moroccan Bar Associations has called on bar associations to hold local protests outside appeal courts and stop work for one hour on Monday, 30 November 2026, as part of its rejection of provisions of Law No. 66.23 on the legal profession, according to a statement issued by its bureau on Saturday, 14 November.
According to the statement, reported by the Moroccan news site Madar21, the association's bureau met on Saturday at its headquarters in Rabat to discuss the situation of the profession and decided to mark National Lawyers' Day, which falls on Sunday, 29 November, with protest activities.
The bureau restated its position on the law, saying it "undermines acquired rights" and erodes the profession's independence, immunity, self-regulation and its role as a balance between powers within the justice system.
The association said the law contains provisions that are "unenforceable, contradictory and unconstitutional", called for urgent action to correct them and warned that they would plunge the profession into an "unprecedented institutional crisis".
It said it would approach majority and opposition groups in parliament to urge them to correct what it sees as flaws, and criticised the way the government had responded through Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi's statements in the House of Representatives.
The association plans to hold an international symposium in Rabat on 11 December 2026 titled "Law No. 66.23 on the legal profession in light of the Constitution and international standards", including a mock trial of the law, the statement said.
In a statement dated 20 September 2026, the bureau had suspended its halt to professional services to give the new constitutional institutions room to correct what it described as flaws in the law's legislative process. The new statement refers to a detailed memorandum setting out the amendments the association is seeking, on immunity, independence, relations between professional bodies and the public prosecution, and self-regulation, addressed to the justice minister.
