Can defence counsel defend two or more clients before the Tribunal?
If two accused are being tried in the same case at the same time, Article 16(A) of the Directive on the Assignment of Defence Counsel (Directive) states that each accused shall be entitled to request the assignment of separate counsel. Even if both accused consent to having the same counsel represent them at the same time, the Registry would not be likely to grant their request since the workload would be likely to impact upon the ability of counsel to provide effective representation. Furthermore, it is possible that the two persons accused may have conflicting interests or defences that could give rise to a conflict of interest at some stage of the proceedings. For these reasons, Article 16(G) of the Directive prohibits the assignment of the same counsel to more than one suspect or accused, unless the Registrar is satisfied that the interests of neither accused will be jeopardised as a result of the dual assignment. Similarly, if an accused is charged under the same or closely relate
