High level of professionalism and integrity – 150 years of the civil-law notarial profession

The rule of law requires dedicated, conscientious and well-trained legal professionals in every era, said Tamás Sulyok at a ceremony marking the 150th anniversary of civil-law notaries. The event, organised by the Hungarian Chamber of Civil Notaries and the Faculty of Law and Political Sciences of Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church, was held under the patronage of the President of Hungary.

According to the Head of State, Hungary needs people like those who have been serving as its civil-law notaries since 1875, whose professionalism, accuracy, and impartiality are beyond doubt. They are guardians of credibility guided by justice.

Tamás Sulyok recalled that 150 years ago, the entire legal system in Hungary was reformed, with new laws first regulating the work of the courts, then prosecutors, and from 1875 onwards, civil-law notaries and lawyers.

The law on notaries established the profession of civil-law notaries. As the embodiment of non-litigation justice, the notarial profession is one of the main pillars and an important part of our constitutional order, emphasised the Head of State. He added that civil-law notaries have always needed a high level of legal expertise and that integrity is a fundamental requirement, with several criteria for avoiding conflicts of interest to be met.

In addition to their extensive knowledge, accuracy and precision in their work have also become their hallmarks. Their task had been to represent the primacy and unassailable credibility of the law in the development and strengthening of the rule of law, said Tamás Sulyok, adding that it became the mission of the notarial profession to demonstrate the stability and unquestionable authority of the legal system. Civil-law notaries thus became the guardians of public credibility, pledging their allegiance to the Fundamental Law in their oath of office.

The civil-law notarial profession was established by a law passed 150 years ago, but it was subsequently actively built and refined into a true profession by the notaries and their deputies who held office, said the Head of State, who thanked legal historian Gábor Rokolya for his thorough research into the history of the notarial profession.