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General Information
Private travelers to Hungary are under the jurisdiction of Hungarian law, just as under general international law they would be subject to local jurisdiction in other countries. Hence, the Embassy cannot require or command the release of an arrested American. When an American citizen is arrested, the Hungarian Police will notify ACS of that arrest. If the American citizen is detained, a consular officer will endeavor to make a prison visit as soon as possible and assist in communicating with relatives, friends, or attorneys. However the Embassy has no official funds or authority to pay Americans' legal bills, local indebtedness, or fines. Please note that attorneys who assist Americans often require payment in dollars, and the costs can be quite high.
American Citizens Services has a list of lawyers. Although the persons whose names appear in the list have been selected with care, the Embassy assumes no responsibility for their professional ability or integrity. The names listed are arranged alphabetically, and the order in which they appear has no other significance.
All attorneys listed are Hungarian citizens and are authorized to practice before Hungarian courts. They are not notaries public, this function being separated from that of an attorney in Hungary, as in most continental European countries. However, they can obtain notary services through qualified notaries public. Correspondence with any of the listed attorneys may be conducted in English, German or Hungarian. Each lawyer on the list speaks English sufficiently well to discuss cases with U.S. citizens who do not speak Hungarian.
Office hours are irregular and generally dependent upon the attorney's appointment schedule. Appointments can generally be made by telephoning the attorney's office in the afternoon, or his/her home telephone number in the early morning hours. It is recommended that airmail be used for transmittal of letters to Hungary. Registered mail from the United States is accepted by the Hungarian postal service and a return receipt may be requested. International reply coupons should be used when you want to prepay for a reply.
Links to Sources of Information about the Hungarian Legal System
Hungarian Web Resources
Last updated: 01/02/2008
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