Access to Justice Blog

European Small Claims Procedure – normative and positive dualism in access to justice

mgramatikov — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 19:17:56 +0000

In 2009 the European Small Claims procedure was established by Regulation 861/2007. Easier and cheap access to justice for consumers and other parties in civil and commercial trans-border transactions was the main rationale behind the new device. A recently released empirical study (although methodologically not very robust!) illustrates well how intentions to provide more access to justice might be hindered by mundane but tangible barriers.

First, finding of the study is that the procedure is barely known among consumers but also courts and other judicial authorities. There is anecdotal evidence of claims being turned down because courts allegedly did not know about Regulation 861/2007 and the procedure.

Second, there is significant evidence that language, service of judgments and enforcement might rise as serious barriers. Many courts require all foreign documents officially translated. It is the claimant herself who has to manage through the complex rules and procedure of serving documents and enforcing court decisions of foreign courts. The report tells the example of a claimant who has obtained a favorable judgment, contacted a bailiff in the country of execution but never received a response.

Not surprisingly, there is lack of systematically collected data on the application of the procedure. Lastly, the report emphasizes on the fact that often the claimants do not have access to forms and templates as stipulated by Regulation 861/2007.

Several policy changes are recommended as a way to bridge the apparent discrepancy between the goals of the Regulation and its implementation. Common language, appointment of courts which are solely responsible for dealing with the small claims procedure and awareness campaigns are the three most salient options.

Read here the report on the application of the European Small Claims Procedure

President Zuma of South Africa calls for more access to justice and diversity in the legal profession

mgramatikov — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 20:27:44 +0000

South African President, Jacob Zuma, called for measures which can ensure the poor access to justice in the country which is torn by social conflicts. At the general meeting of the Johannesburg Attorney Association he declared:

“We are all seized with the matter of how to make our courts more accessible to the poor. Simply put, how do we make it easy for people who live far from the cities or who cannot afford to pay for justice, to obtain justice.”

Furthermore, Zuma cited some worrying proportions. Of the 2384 members of the Bar 1733 (73%) are white. Only 24% are female. Out of the 21,007 practising attorneys 13,643 (65%) are white.

Read more about Jacob Zuma and access to justice here

Economic benefits from civil legal aid

mgramatikov — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 20:13:19 +0000

My fellow bloger Richard Zorza from the inspirational accesstojustice.net blog has brought to my attention a succinct depiction of the direct and indirect benefits of civil legal aid. The analysis has been prepared by the Laura K. Abel from the National Center for Access to Justice at Cardozo Law School. Briefly, the value of civil legal aid delivered to people who cannot afford to procure legal services from the free market comes to:

- Savings of public money by reduction of domestic violence. Requests for protective orders within the serviced area fall by 35.2%. Less public money is spent on medical care, special education for affected children and police and prisons resources devoted to perpetrators;

- Savings of public money by helping children leave foster care more quickly. “In Washington State, the rate at which children were reunited with their parents was 11% higher when the parents were represented by lawyers whose caseloads were kept to a manageable level than when the parents were represented by high-volume contract attorneys.”;

- Savings of public money by reducing evictions. Tenants who are represented are significantly more likely to retain possession. In 2009-2010 New York state saved $116 million in shelter costs’;

- Savings of public money by protecting patients’ health. Civil legal aid helped patients of asthma improve their housing conditions which allowed them to stop taking steroids for about 6 months. Others were helped with health insurance, disability benefits or alleviation of health-related job discrimination;

- Savings through helping low-income people participate in safety-net programs. In 2011 the federal benefits awarded to beneficiaries of civil legal aid totalled to $348 million.

Download the Economic Benefits of Civil Legal Aid from here

Argentina – legal aid centres increase access to justice in slum beighborhoods

mgramatikov — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 20:29:55 +0000

Since 2008 the Argentinian government is experimenting with opening legal aid centres in a couple of “villas” – slum neighbourhoods. Up to now about about 40 such centres have been established and deliver legal services to immigrants, victims of domestic violence and other people in need. According to a study of the National Office for the Promotion and Strengthening of Access to Justice these centres provided assistance in more than 150 000 cases. Issuing documents to migrants, helping ex-convicts re-integrate in the society, help for battered women are some of the most frequently sought services. As one staff-member of the centres shares:

“Many of the situations can be solved by picking up the telephone.”

Read more about the legal aid centres in Argentina here.

UN Special Rapporteur: “The rule of law is meaningless for people living in poverty without effective access to justice”

mgramatikov — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 19:59:07 +0000

Less than a week before the UN high-level meeting on the Rule of Law, Magdalena Sepúlveda, UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty, emphasized on the importance of access to justice. In her recent report Dr. Sepúlveda claims that ““The rule of law is meaningless for people living in poverty without effective access to justice, which is a human right in itself, and essential for tackling poverty”. Furthermore, she urges the UN member states to take measures and guarantee that “poverty is never a barrier to enjoying the benefits of the rule of law”. To achieve this goals the report recommends bold steps towards securing access to justice for the poorest and most marginalised individuals and groups.

Read here more about the report of the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and access to justice

Namati’s efforts on promoting legal empowerment

mgramatikov — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 19:16:17 +0000

An interview with Namati’s Vivek Maru provides interesting insights into the goals of the network, its current projects and ambitions. Namati aspires to bring together advocates for access to justice and legal empowerment from around the world in order to avoid “reiventing the weel” efforts. According to Vivek many legal empowerment programs work in isolation and this inevitably leads every now and then to repetition of mistakes and omission of economies of scale.

Namati is not only providing networking opportunities but also conducts field work. In Sierra Leone they pilot test a national program of paralegals, in Mozambique, Liberia and Uganda they work focuses on community land titling programs, and in India on regulation of coastal eco-systems.

Read the whole blog post on legal empowerment here

New Innovating Justice blog post: Court reform, the Italian way?

mgramatikov — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 20:59:22 +0000

In a recent blog post HiiL‘s prof. Maurits Barendrecht critically reviews court reforms that recently take place in Italy and other South European countries. A vivid image of certain aspects of the described legal systems is the opening sentence of the blog: “In Italy, a good wine matures faster than a court case.”

Reforms instigated by donors such as the IMF and the World Bank are unlikely to deliver results because:

Courts should focus not on performance figures but on actual problem solving;
There are little incentives for courts to perform as (most of) the society wants them to;
Civil justice procedures are stuck in old paradigms.

What might be the solutions? Specialisation of neutral decision makers, flexible procedures which deviate from the ‘one size fits all’ philosophy and other innovations in the legal world.

Read Court reform, the Italian way? blog post here

Leiden University: Summer School on Human Rights and Transitional Justice

mgramatikov — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 17:51:17 +0000

From 2 to 6 July 2012 the Leiden University, Campus The Hague organises Summer school with focus on:

The right to truth and access to justice
Human rights approaches to justice
Fairness, remedies and transitional societies
Truth, justice and rule of law reform

To apply for the Summer School on Human Rights and Transitional Justice email to m.e.wierenga@cdh.leidenuniv.nl

PILnet’s European Award for Partnership in the Public Interest

mgramatikov — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 17:32:35 +0000

PILnet: The Global Network for Public Interest Law is seeking nominations for the second annual European Award for Partnership in the Public Interest, which will recognize the best pro bono legal project (or projects) undertaken jointly between a non-governmental organization and a law firm in Europe.

Nominations for the award should consist of a narrative no longer than two pages describing projects that have achieved positive results in at least one European country and were completed in the 12 months prior to September 2012. Submissions will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

The degree to which the project(s) demonstrates a significant, positive impact on the protection of rights and/or delivery of justice through legal representation or reform of law and policy.

The extent of legal resources and other forms of lawyer/law firm engagement that were deployed through the project(s).

The degree to which the work fostered a deep relationship between the NGO and the lawyers/law firm and created prospects for future collaboration of a durable nature.

PILnet will accept nominations from 21 June to 15 September 2012. The award will be bestowed on 26 October 2012 during the closing session of the 2012 European Pro Bono Forum in Madrid. PILnet’s prestigious European Award for Extraordinary Contribution to the Development of Pro Bono Culture will also be announced at that time.

Access to justice jobs: UNDP Access to Justice and Rule of Law Project Manager – South Sudan

mgramatikov — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 20:46:47 +0000

he South Sudan Development Plan (SSDP) outlines priorities of the Government of the Republic of South Sudan in the interim period from independence to the end of 2013. The overarching objective of the SSDP is to ensure that: “South Sudan is a united and peaceful new nation, building strong foundations for good governance, economic prosperity and enhanced quality of life for all“. The SSDP identifies national policy goals and priorities across four priority pillars: (1) Governance; (2) Economic Development; (3) Social and Human Development; and (4) Conflict Prevention and Security.

The Rule of Law sector is part of the Conflict Prevention and Security Pillar and comprises the following institutions: Ministry of Internal Affairs now Ministry of Interior; Ministry of Justice; SS Police Service; SS Prison Service; SS Fire Service; SS Human Rights Commission; Law Review Commission; Community Security and Small Arms Control Bureau; Customs; Immigration; Judiciary

The objective of the Rule of Law Sector of the South Sudan Development Plan (SSDP) is “to strengthen the Rule of Law in South Sudan by enforcing and maintaining law and order, providing equitable access to justice and a functioning criminal justice system, increasing security in communities, and promoting and protecting human rights for all.” The SSDP identifies strengthening the rule of law institutions as a top priority and emphasizes the need for a sectoral approach to reform. The plan recognizes that the work of the police, prosecutions, judiciary and prisons services is inextricably linked and that gaps in service delivery in one institution could negate the gains in another.

UNDP, South Sudan supports the Rule of Law sector through a three pronged approach. The Governance and Rule of Law Unit’s Access to Justice and Rule of Law programme supports State building through technical institutional support to key sector institutions including the Judiciary, Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the Police and Prison Services to improve service delivery; and also seeks to increase the scope and reach of the State through infrastructure development. The programme also supports access to justice through empowerment of right holders through support to the human rights commission, civil society organizations, community led rule of law forums; and promoting access to justice and strengthening of the customary justice system.

UNDP South Sudan now seeks Technical Advisory support to be co-located in the Ministry of Justice and to provide results based project management for the Access to Justice and Rule of Law Programme.

Read here more about the position of UNDP Access to Justice and Rule of Law project manager in South Sudan