The European Young Bar Association (EYBA) has elected its first Ukrainian president.

Sergiy Barbashyn, who runs his own IP boutique firm in Kyiv, was chosen to lead the group at its summer conference and AGM, which was held in Oslo from 22-25 June. Barbayshyn, who was previously vice president, succeeds Moldova’s Vladimir Palamarciuc as the EYBA brings to a close its 30th anniversary celebrations.

Under Palamarciuc’s tenure, the EYBA staged a reunion of former presidents in Lisbon when it forged new links with the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE), which subsequently formed its own young lawyers' committee and the Federation of European Bars.

Other initiatives during the EYBA’s anniversary year included the creation of a new mentoring scheme, while it added member groups from Istanbul and Azerbaijan. 

“We will continue uniting young lawyers worldwide, maintain the EYBA’s current achievements and reach new ones,” said Barbashyn.

The AGM saw the election a new executive committee, which includes new vice-president, Shannon Gawley, of Belfast’s Carson McDowell Solicitors; Romanian technology lawyer Andrada Persu, who takes up the role of secretary; and treasurer Carmen del Castillo Vericat, a lawyer at Caixa Capital Risc in Barcelona. The association also elected its executive officers: Gianni & Origoni’s Chiara Palombi, Portugal’s Roberto Luz Vieira and Moldovan lawyer Cristian Papanaga.

A new initiative see the creation of a president’s committee to heighten alumni connections. Members include David Taylor, a Paris-based IP partner at Hogan Lovells, London-based Kennedys disputes partner John Farrell, Arthur Cox disputes partner Richard Willis, and Elijus Burgis and Simona Oliškevičiūtė-Cicėnienė, who are both partners at Baltic firm COBALT.

The summer conference was addressed by the president of the Norwegian Bar Association, Jon Wessel-Aas, and the leader of the Norwegian Young Lawyers Association, Liv Minde. There were presentations on digitalisation, eyewitness psychology, climate litigation, electronic platforms and smart negotiations.