Federal Minister of Justice Vedran Škobić said today in Mostar that the new Law on the Notary Service of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been harmonized with the Notary Chamber of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and referred to the parliamentary procedure.
After the meeting with representatives of the FBiH Chamber of Notaries, Škobić said that during the drafting of the law, positions on key issues were agreed upon, and that it is expected to be discussed in the Parliament of the Federation of BiH.
“The law is harmonized with the views of the Chamber of Notaries of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and we expect that it will soon be submitted to the representatives,” said Minister Škobić.
One of the important segments of the new law refers to its application in the system of preventing money laundering, as well as the resulting obligations for notaries and lawyers as obligees of legal measures. According to the minister, the law is also significant in the context of international evaluations of system efficiency, including MONEYVAL evaluations.
“This law directly enables the implementation of measures to prevent money laundering. I believe that its adoption is more important for the future evaluations of BiH in this area than a number of other topics that have been in the public’s focus in recent months,” said Škobić.
The minister stated that during the last year in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, about 18,000 contracts were certified before the courts, where, as he pointed out, there was no equal degree of control when it comes to the application of measures to prevent money laundering.
“Notaries and lawyers who will be able to make contracts according to this new law will be obliged to apply the law. On the one hand, you have about 18,000 contracts that have not passed this control filter, and on the other hand, you have the possibility of lawyers being obliged to apply them. I think that, if the law is adopted, its application will fully enable the protection and prevention of money laundering in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” said Minister Škobić.
The Federal Ministry of Justice and the Chamber of Notaries of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina pointed out that the adoption of the new Law on Notary Services represents an important step in harmonizing domestic legislation with European and international standards.
It was emphasized that the notary has an important role in ensuring legal security and transparency of legal transactions, especially in areas recognized by international standards as risky for money laundering, such as real estate transactions, the establishment of business companies and the disposal of assets of higher value, the Federal News Agency reported.
The Ministry and the Chamber of Notaries called on the competent institutions to support the urgent adoption of laws and accompanying regulations, in order to further strengthen the financial crime prevention system and improve legal security in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, writes RTV Slon.
