According to Directive 2013/48/EU, suspects and accused persons shall have the right of access to a lawyer in such time and in such a manner so as to allow the persons concerned to exercise their rights of defence practically and effectively. They shall have access to a lawyer without undue delay: before they are questioned by the police or by another law enforcement or judicial authority; at the time of carrying out, by investigating or other competent authorities, of an investigative or other evidencegathering act; without undue delay after deprivation of liberty; and where they have been summoned to appear before a court having jurisdiction in criminal matters, in due time before they appear before that court57. The Polish authorities have not yet transposed Directive 2016/1919 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2016 into the national law. Pursuant to the directive, suspects who lack sufficient resources to pay for the assistance of a lawyer are to have the right to legal aid when the interests of justice so require. Legal aid should be provided without undue delay and at the latest before questioning of the person concerned, by another law enforcement authority or by a judicial authority, or before the specific investigative or evidence-gathering acts. In 2016, the ECHR stated that the right of a person charged with a criminal offence to defend himself through legal assistance, guaranteed under Article 6(3)(c) of the European Convention on Human Rights, is one of the fundamental features of a fair trial. Prompt access to a lawyer constitutes an important counterweight to the vulnerability of suspects in police custody, and a fundamental guarantee against coercion and ill-treatment by the police58. 57 Directive 2013/48/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2013 on the right of access to a lawyer in criminal proceedings and in European arrest warrant proceedings, and on the right to have a third party informed upon deprivation of liberty and to communicate with third persons and with consular authorities while deprived of liberty (Journal of Laws UE.L.2013.294.1). 58 ECHR judgment of 13 September 2016, case Ibrahim and Others v. the United Kingdom (Grand Chamber, complaints no. 50541/08, 50571/08, 50573/08 and 40351/09). 42