The provision

PRESENTATION AT THEof
2NDlegal aid services
NATIONAL byCONFERENCE
LEGAL AID state-
funded mechanisms in Uganda: challenges
and opportunities
 
Ag. Senior Technical Advisor, Justice Law
and Order Sector
Thursday 26th June 2014
 Introduction
 Legal aid is the provision of free legal services.
 In Uganda legal aid is directed at free legal
representation for accused persons in capital cases.
 Article 28(3) (e) of the Constitution makes provision
for legal representation at the expense of the State in
the case of any offence that carries a sentence of
death or imprisonment for life.
 INTRODUCTION
 In the recent past, legal aid services have been
strongly associated with non-state actors.
 This has been justifiable as the non-state legal aid
service providers have been at the forefront of the
delivery of services and growth of this sector.
 State actors though not as recognisable have been
providing services inline with our national and
international commitments.
International and Regional Commitments.

 Our legal aid service provision has been grounded in our

international and regional commitments
 Article 14 (3) (d) of the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights provides for the right to legal
assistance without payment if a person does not have
sufficient means to pay for it.
 Article 17 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
states that children deprived of their liberty have the right
to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance
before court or other competent, independent and impartial
authority, and to a prompt decision on any such action.
 International and Regional
Commitments
 Article 2(c) of the Convention on the Elimination of All form of
Discrimination Against Women states that the duty to establish
legal protection of the rights of women on an equal basis with men
and ensure through competent tribunals and other public institutions
the effective protection of women against any act of discrimination.
 Article 7 (1) (c) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’
Rights provides for the right to defence, including the right to be
defended by counsel of one’s choice.
 Article 17(2) (c) (iii) of the African Charter on the rights and
Welfare of the Child provides that every child accused in infringing
the penal law shall be afforded legal and other appropriate assistance
in the preparation and presentation of his defence.
 International and Regional
Commitments
 Article 8(a) of the Protocol to the African Charter
on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of
Women in Africa states that States Parties take
appropriate measures to ensure effective access by
women to judicial and legal services, including legal
aid.
 Article 18(f) of the African Youth Charter stipulates
the right of every young person (accused and
convicted) to a lawyer.
 State funded legal aid
services
 In view of Article 28(3) (e) the State has established
systems for the provision of legal aid services.
 These are provided under various legislation
including:
o The Poor Persons Defence Act, 2000
o Advocates (Amendment) Act 27 of 2002
o Advocates (Student Practice) Regulations, 2004
 State funded legal aid
services
Various schemes have been put in place to provide legal aid
services by the State:
o Judiciary State Briefs Scheme
• This operationalizes the provisions of the Constitution;
• The Judiciary receives funds in its budget for State Briefs ;
• These are disbursed as part of the general sessions
disbursements to Advocates.
• Registrars invite Advocates to take on cases. They are then
paid as determined by the Judge based on the complexity
of the case and duration of the proceedings.
 State funded legal aid
 Judiciary
services
State Brief Scheme:
o The system has overtime ensured that accused
person, who would otherwise not have been able to
afford a lawyer are represented and provided with
a fair trial.
Challenges
- Most senior and experienced lawyers avoid taking
on State Briefs as they consider them time
consuming and not lucrative. Therefore many of the
lawyers appointed may not have the skills
commensurate with the seriousness of the offence.
 State funded legal aid

services
Challenges (cont’d)
o Lawyers are often appointed at short notice,
shortly before the trial commences and therefore
do not sufficient time with their clients to prepare
their case.
o The fees are low and there are no incentives built
into the scheme to encourage the take up of such
cases.
o The State briefs scheme only covers the trial
proceedings and does not extend to advice or
representation at the appeal level.
o The State Brief scheme excludes those charged
 State funded legal aid
services
 Justice Centres Uganda:
 This is a pilot project of the Justice Law and Order
Sector to provide a one-stop facility for the provision of
various legal aid services. The Justice Centres are
staffed by lawyers, paralegals and persons trained in
psycho-social services.
 They use 3 approaches:
o Delivery of legal aid through clinics;
o Community outreach model;
o Human rights advocacy.
 State funded legal aid
services
• The Centres provide legal advice, representation,
alternative dispute resolution, counselling, referrals,
legal awareness creation and advocacy.
• The Justice centres have diversified the state provided
services and have provided a holistic (criminal, civil and
support services) approach to legal aid service provision.

Challenges:
• The Centres are still in the pilot phase and each centre
covers a very wide area and is therefore overstretched.
 State funded legal aid
services
 The Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC):

 The UHRC provides legal advice, mediation, investigation and

adjudication of human rights violations.
 The UHRC has offices throughout the country that conduct
investigations and mediate matters to facilitate amicable settlement
of a wide range of matters.
 The Tribunal adjudicates on matters involving violation of rights and
its decisions are enforceable in the same manner as Court decisions.
 The Commission does however still face challenges in the
enforcement of its decisions, particularly payments of compensation
and its mandate is limited to human rights violations
 State funded legal aid
services
 Uganda Law Council- Pro-bono scheme

 The Advocates Act provides for the pro bono legal aid scheme
under which free legal services or payment in lieu of services is
provided by Advocates.
 The Scheme is overseen by the Law Council.
 It enables the indigent to benefit from the skills of senior and
professional advocates and widens the available pool of legal
professionals to provide legal aid services.
 The Scheme does suffer from some challenges including lack of
clarity on who pays fees and the mandatory nature of the scheme
which has been challenged by Advocates.
 State funded legal aid
services
 Other structures that provide legal assistance and advice
o Probation and Social Welfare services.
o Child and Family Protection Unit of the Uganda
Police Force
o Administrator General
o Local Council Courts
o Judiciary e-Justice Platform – web based platform for
legal aid service provision, self help mechanism,
faster processing of complaints and information
source for non-state actors
 Challenges
 State funded legal aid services are in place and have
been operational for a while.
 Its scope is however limited.
 The different schemes operate independent of each
other and independently of the non-state actors.
 There is no overarching mechanism to oversee all the
different models.
 As a result there is duplication of services.
 Opportunities
 Various options have been tested and found to be
viable.
 Structures are in existence to regulate or provide legal
aid services (Law Council, Justice Centers Uganda).
 Non-state partners are in place across the country and
have been working closely with Government.
 Resources are already available and being provided to
the regulatory and service provision entities.
 Opportunities
 The demand and appreciation of the service is high
and will go a long way in enhancing access to justice
and improving on the social and economic well being
of the people.

 Development partners are supportive and keen to see

the growth of legal aid in Uganda.
 Proposals from the Justice Law and
Order Sector
 For better coordination of the State provided legal aid
services, there is the need to adopt a comprehensive
legal aid scheme that addresses all aspects of legal aid
– advice, representation and related support services
as well as encompassing both criminal and civil
justice.

 There is need to strengthen the regulator and

empower them to oversee all facets of legal aid
service provision.
 Proposals from the Justice Law and Order
Sector
 There is need to establish and resource a national
legal aid service provider as a one-stop centre for the
provision of comprehensive legal aid services in all
spheres of law.

 There is need to create a more systematic link

between the non-state and state providers to capitalise
on the available resources, create synergies and avoid
duplication.
 Conclusion
 The Justice Law and Order Sector proposals have
been captured in the draft National Legal Aid Policy,
which it is anticipated will provide the framework for
a strong and holistic and comprehensive legal aid
scheme to strengthen the provision of free legal
service to those who need it the most.

 Thedraft policy has been finalised and is before

Cabinet.