December 2019 saw three intense days for a delegation from the Uzbek Ministry of Justice, tasked with the making of recommendations relating to the reform of Uzbek civil and commercial legislations. From the 11th until the 13th, the delegation met with a series of French legal experts, who agreed to provide the delegation some guidance on the 8 areas of the law which are currently under reform in Uzbekistan.
The Civil Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan was adopted in 1996. The code played an important role in the civil-legal regulation of the country during its “transition period” from a Soviet Republic to a market economy.
But the time for reform has come in the Republic of Uzbekistan. In fact in 2017, the new Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev launched an unprecedented economic reform. Since then, the country has been opening itself to the world as never before. However legal challenges remain.
According to the Research Institute of Legal Policy under the Ministry of Justice it is necessary to further liberalize the country’s economy in order to:
• reduce state participation in the regulation of economic relations,
• protect the guarantees of private property,
• stimulate the development of entrepreneurship, and
• actively attract foreign investment.
These objectives will only be achieved with the implementation of modern, directly applicable, civil and commercial norms that meet the expectations of a real market economy and leading international standards.
On April 5, 2019, the decree of the president of the Republic of Uzbekistan on measures to improve the civil legislation of the Republic of Uzbekistan was adopted, following which tasks were defined and 8 thematic working groups were formed:
1. General provisions of the Civil Code;
2. Legal entities (commercial and non-commercial organizations);
3. Property law;
4. Law of obligation;
5. Securities;
6. Intellectual property;
7. International private law;
8. Family and inheritance law.
The Research Institute of Legal Policy under the Ministry of Justice has been made responsible for the project. It took the initiative to meet with international experts in Paris, and Warsaw.
During the Paris meetings, it was recommended to establish a clear distinction between public and private law, within a country where 70% of the companies are publicly held. The way in which these companies could be transformed and privatized was subject to in-depth discussions. Throughout the meetings, emphasis was continuously placed on how the new legislation should accommodate foreign direct investment (FDI), especially in the field of new technologies, including crypto-industry and blockchain technologies.
An international legal forum will be held in April 2020 in Tashkent. Around that time a draft submission of the legal reforms will also be submitted to the Uzbek President.
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