LEGAL CLINICS AS A NEW ERA OF LEGAL EDUCATION IN UKRAINE: ITS SOCIAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASPECTS - Наукові конференції
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Рік заснування видання - 2014

LEGAL CLINICS AS A NEW ERA OF LEGAL EDUCATION IN UKRAINE: ITS SOCIAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASPECTS

14.02.2014 20:31

[Секція 3. Цивільне та сімейне право. Цивільне процесуальне право. Комерційне право. Житлове право. Зобов’язальне право. Міжнародне приватне право. Трудове право та право соціального забезпечення]

Автор: Kishchak Yuriy Ivanovich, PhD in Law Mykolaiv National University n.a. V.O. Sukhomlinskiy Mykolaiv, Ukraine


An injustice committed against anyone is a threat to everyone

Montesquieu

Human rights protection issue is one of the key values in any country which declares itself democratic. World community adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10, 1948 where the basic freedoms and rights were proclaimed. In 1991 Ukraine got its Independence and as a sequence in 1996 it adopted the Constitution which declares all people to be free and equal in their dignity and rights. Human and citizens` rights are proclaimed to be the highest social value.  The continuing changes of the economic, social and political systems bring about the need to adopt to them both the Ukrainian legal system and the system of teaching law. It is the young people – the students of today, whose knowledge, social and professional status are being shaped by the present educational system – who will determine the direction in which this "new world" goes.

International practice proves legal clinics play a significant educational role as well as having a great social impact. They show young lawyers the extent of injustice, poverty and misfortune that surrounds them. These young people gain the experience that tells them never, even when they become partners of big law firms, forget the needs of a great many of people. As to its social aspect, legal clinics often help the government to solve problems of providing necessary access to legal assistance for indulgent people. On one hand, it reduces governmental expenses on ex officio defense attorneys.  On the other hand, it instills students to the real life experience and supplies the local community with free of charge legal aid.

Legal professions are professions of social trust which means that lawyers are given extensive powers that are however accompanied by equally great expectations. Before their professional and personal experience gives a sense of equilibrium between the power and the duties, they need to receive their first instruction in this respect during the time of their studies.

The hitherto law studies in Ukraine have been clearly academic in character. It remains certain that vocational education sensu stricto is not the aim of the university. Its role is to convey to students theoretical knowledge that would constitute a sound foundation for further studies – more specialized and better fitted to the requirements of the future profession. The distinction between academic studies and "professional" studies is still too clearly-cut in Ukraine. The present legal educational system – university law studies coupled with apprenticeship, significantly prolongs the formative process of lawyers. The limited number of apprenticeship openings available to students of law deprives many of them of the opportunity to learn their profession. Although the primary reason for the existence of legal clinics is their educational aspect, it must be emphasized that in the Ukrainian context particularly the social role of legal clinics is not to be underappreciated. It is undoubted that the society needs the students' assistance. The scale of such assistance is large and growing. The best interest of the society would also seem to require cooperation between clinics and the coordination of their works by the centered body -Legal Clinics Association. Such cooperation would mean that detailed statistics prepared by each clinic could be collected and compiled to assist in determining the scale of social demand for legal services and the spheres of life. Delivering legal assistance to the indigent develops the students' compassion for social needs, allows them to learn the often dramatic personal and legal problems of citizens, to come in contact with injustice or the heartlessness of procedures and institutions. This kind of experience may and often does result in an attitude of openness to social needs after completion of the educational process. Regardless of the choice of professional career made by the legal clinics' students – whether within legal corporations or state institutions – their awakened sensitivity and compassion for the hardship of socially marginalized groups will "civilize" the law and its practice.

The clinical legal education program, created in the United States of America in the 60's, is the answer to the need of bringing university education closer to real life and stepping up the process of the future lawyers' coming in contact with their real trade.  The first attempt to create a legal clinic in Ukraine was undertaken in 1998 at Odessa National Law University. Due to the university administration support, this clinic has been working for 15 years. This experience has been helpful and valuable for this region. Since that time law clinics have been growing in big cities, though its effectiveness and number is not sufficient to provide all indigent people with legal assistance. At the same time new epoch in legal education in Ukraine is still very immature and vague, as it requires thorough methodological reformation and legal framework. Essential reasons should be named for that.

First, legal clinics and pro bono work in Ukraine hasn`t got its necessary social understanding and its expansion. Unfortunately, remnants of soviet time perceptions in Ukrainian community still prevail over liberal and progressive thinking. University administrations often neglect students’ innovative proposals as to the creation of legal clinics. On the contrary, American university curricula include legal clinics courses into its obligatory program. Ukrainian educational system doesn`t incorporate such activities into its educational curricula. All work is usually based on enthusiasm and private funds or donations. This explains the low level of students and faculty motivation of getting into and running such extra-activity.

Second, Ukrainian legislation doesn`t clearly determine a status of a legal clinic within legal educational system. It is considered to be volunteer work not obligatory. Ukrainian legal educational reform is only at the initial stage of its implementation. That is why it is very important to examine the similar experience of other countries and to adopt the most relevant elements of that experience.

Third, there should be created and included into educational program of studies such introductory course as Legal clinic education and training. Future lawyers have to be aware of getting hand-on practice opportunity at the first year of their studies. Theoretical aspects, historical background, legal ethics, social importance and other core features should be taught at the pre – practical stage. American universities have a great experience in teaching, researching and creating diverse courses concerning these particular aspects.

Apart from purely academic challenges of creating such courses, university administrations face the problem of clear and effective management of legal clinics. There are many questions that should be learnt: how to organize the work of a legal clinic, how to choose its board and its head, how to solicit support, how to provide an effective PR campaign, how to arrange legal clinic`s work with governmental authorities and many other vital questions.

To sum up, the role of legal clinics should not be underestimated in our society. Ukrainian legal system and cohesively its legal educational system have been overcoming through changes and challenges for 21 years. It is a new era of experiencing and providing the true governance of law. I am strongly convinced that future lawyers should be involved in hand-on practice and realize their social mission in future. At the same time, our society can benefit from such practice by providing low-income people with free of charge legal assistance. The initial stage of implementing legal clinics has been launched; the next level is its enhancement and further development. Social transformations in Ukrainian society would be incomplete without thorough reformation of its legal educational system



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