Pursuant to Section 19(c) of the RPVS Act: “An authorized person may not perform acts under this Act if they have any relationship with a public sector partner or with members of its bodies that could call into question their impartiality, especially if they are linked to the public sector partner through personnel or property ties.” According to the above, the “attorney-client” relationship should not be an obstacle to the authorized person providing services to those clients to whom the attorney also provides legal services.
OPINION OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC:
An explanation of this issue can be found in the FAQ section on the Ministry’s website. In our opinion, the “attorney-client” relationship does not constitute an obstacle to the authorized person performing activities for this client as a public sector partner. Given the specific status of authorized persons and their activities as attorneys, notaries, etc., where they are subject to the provisions of special regulations (e.g., the Act on the Legal Profession), we do not consider this “professional relationship” to be a reason for excluding an authorized person from performing activities for their existing clientele, also based on the fact they possess more knowledge about the ownership or management structure of the public sector partner, which may ultimately contribute to a more accurate and simpler identification of the ultimate beneficiary. Of course, it is up to the public sector partner to decide whether to choose the person who provides certain legal services to them or, conversely, to choose a person who does not know them at all. Therefore, provided that the attorney or authorized person is not connected through personnel or property ties, nor has any other relationship that could compromise their impartiality in performing the activities of an authorized person, that person may perform the aforementioned activities for their clients.
