Achievements, Challenges, New Ideas
Š Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision, 2015 www.legalaid.gov.ua andriy.vyshnevsky@legalaid.gov.ua
Legal Basis Constitution of Ukraine (Art. 59); European Convention on Human Rights (Art. 6, par. 3 с); PACE Resolution dated 05.10.2005 № 1466 (2005) “Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Ukraine” (Art. 13.13); Concept of Legal Aid System Formation in Ukraine, approved by Presidential Decree dated 09.06.2006 № 509; Law of Ukraine dated 02.06.2011 № 3460-VI “On Legal Aid”; Law of Ukraine dated 05.07.2012 № 5076-VI “On the Bar and Lawyer’s Practice” (Art. 25); Criminal Procedural Code of Ukraine dated 13.04.2012 № 4651-VI (Art. 49, 52, 53); Law of Ukraine dated 14.10.2014 № 1697-VII “On Prosecution“.
Political Background
“The institutional development of legal aid system in criminal, civil and administrative procedures, strengthening of legal awareness of the population shall be provided." [Coalition Agreement of Parliamentary Factions of 7th Convocation – Petro Poroshenko’s Block, All-Ukrainian Union "Bat’kivschyna", “Narodnyi Front“, Oleh Liashko’s Radical Party and Union "Samopomich", art.7.5, section "Judicial Reform"]
Further development of legal aid system is considered an integral part of judicial reform in the Strategy of Reforming of Judiciary and Judicial Proceedings, and Other Related Legal Institutions preliminary approved by the Board on Judicial Reform on November 18, 2014, and presented by the Administration of the President of Ukraine for international donors on December 3, 2014 "Mutual efforts shall be aimed at further improvement of legal aid quality and support of the implementation of the new Law of Ukraine" On Prosecution“ and the Law of Ukraine" On Legal Aid" [CoE Action Plan for Ukraine for 2015-2017 years, approved on January 21, 2015 by the CoE’s Committee of Ministers] Assessment of measures required to build peace in Eastern Ukraine including legal aid provision for population, including internally displaced persons. [Project of Assessment Report on Ways of Restoration and Building Peace in Eastern Ukraine, which is being prepared by the EU, the UN and the World Bank under the supervision and with the participation of the Government of Ukraine]
Development of Legal Aid System: 4 Steps
1
Establishment of new institution (2012)
Access to legal aid in criminal proceedings provision (2013)
2
Quality of legal aid in criminal proceedings provision (2014)
3 4
Access to legal aid in civil and administrative proceedings – representation of citizen’s interests provision …
Budget of Legal Aid System in 2012 – 2015 (MLN UAH)
300
4 years
х 37 times
269.6
250
mln UAH
200
150
100
78.8 50
49.1 7.3
0 2012
2013
2014 Year
2015 (budget)
Legal Aid System Budget in 2012 – 2015 (by types of expenditures, MLN UAH)
66.7; 16%
49.4; 12% 207.2; 51%
81.5; 20%
Lawyers' remuneration
Salary
Other current costs
Capital expenditures
Quality Management in Legal Aid System Lawyers Selection Contests
Selected lawyers contracted by centres for SLAP
Quality Standards
Monitoring and estimation
Compliance with the Standards
Positive results
Financial motivation
Analysis of practices
Failure to comply with the standards
Analysis of practices
Identification of training needs
Cascade Trainings
Contracts termination Exclusion from the Register of Lawyers Providing Legal Aid
Guidelines
Quality Standards of Legal Aid in Criminal Proceedings Standards – a set of basic characteristics of the model of the state guaranteed protection
stipulated by international regulations, laws of Ukraine, within which, and considering the agreed legal position of the defence a defender is independent in selection of strategy and tactics of defence in criminal proceedings for active and reasonable protection of rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of the client by all means not prohibited by law.
The purpose of development and implementation: timely, quality and sufficient provision of legal aid criminal proceedings; ensuring efficient use of state budget funds allocated for legal aid lawyers’ remuneration; methodological support and professional development of lawyers providing legal aid in criminal proceedings One of the sources for standards – the practice of the ECHR
Legal Aid Quality Monitoring – Quality Managers : 1.
Questioning of lawyers
2.
Selective verifications of questionnaires with actual data
3.
Observations in court
4.
Questioning of clients
System of Regular Cascade Training Programmes and Guidelines for Legal Aid System Lawyers Series 1 - "Criminal Proceedings"
Trainings for Lawyers-Trainers
Regional Trainings
Guidelines
І ІІ
2 circle
Actions of the lawyer during the proceedings in the court of the first instance (1-3 February and 1-2 March, 2014)
March-April, 2014 Number of trainings: 50 Number of participants: 1248
III
3 circle
Actions of the defender on security of the criminal proceedings, decisions appealing, actions or inactions of the investigator, the prosecutor and the investigating judge, review of court decisions (May 17-19 and June 21-22, 2014)
June-July, 2014 Number of trainings: 36 Number of participants: 1106
IV V VI
Actions of the defender in criminal proceedings on the basis of agreements, on the application of specific measures of criminal and legal influence, on access to adequate health care (13-15 September and 27-28 September 2014)
October, 2014 Number of trainings: 38 Number of participants: 1052
VII VIII IX X
1 circle
September-December, 2013 Number of trainings: 73 Number of participants: 1685
4 circle
The new Criminal Procedure Code: the study and application in the light of European standards (6-8 June, 2013) The methodology of training: planning and training on the use of the new Criminal Procedure Code (5-6 July, 2013) The methodology of preparation of practical tasks of methodological recommendations for lawyers providing legal aid (8-9 August, 2013) Psychology of interrogation (10-11 October, 2013)
50+ permanent trainers / moderators
Regular Lawyers Selection Contests
Contests
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
IV-V.2012
X-XI.2012
II-III.2013
IX-X.2013
III-IV.2014
X-XI.2014
II-IV.2015
Number of applications
1190
1770
490
711
353
463
522
Number of selected lawyers
950
1594
434
603
308
323
372
-
3
3,5
3,6
3,6
3,7
3,7
Dates
The average passing score (maximum – 5)
4401 lawyers in Register
Selected Legal Aid System Indicators
Indicator/ Year
2013
2014
2015*
Annual costs for lawyers’ services (UAH)
22 854 058
52 046 992
10 451 700
Debts for lawyers’ services by the end of period (UAH)
15 494 700
7 069 500
3 125 200
Number of orders for legal aid provision issued for lawyers by centres for SLAP
76 878
68 796
15 656
Number of lawyers contracted by centres for SLAP
2 008
2 096
1 688
Average remuneration per 1 order for legal aid provision (UAH)
499
859
-
Average number of orders per 1 lawyer in Ukraine
38
34
-
19 098
28 204
-
Average legal aid lawyer remuneration in Ukraine (UAH) * Data on 25.03.2015
Number of Orders for Legal Aid Provision Issued for Lawyers by Centres for Secondary Legal Aid Provision in 2013 and 2014* 45000
40000
Total number of orders issued*: 2013 – 70654; 2014 – 67372.
38560 38322
35000
30000
25000
20655 20000
17594
15000
9386
10000
8645
5000
2053
0 defence of persons detained in criminal order
defence in criminal proceedings
2013
2014
* Data on Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol’ excluded With above-mentioned data inclusion the number of issued orders is: in 2013 - 76878, in 2014 - 68796.
2811
Indicators of Effectiveness of Legal Aid System’s Lawyers Legal Defence in 2014
140
verdicts of non-guilty
3499 760
cases when weight of accusation or criminal offence qualification was decreased
1140 270
verdicts with softer punishment than specified by the law
closed criminal proceedings
cases when arrest preventive measure was softened as a result of lawyer’s appeal
Efficiency of Legal Aid System’s Lawyers Defence
Verdicts of non-guilty in legal aid system lawyer’s cases/ total number of verdicts of wyers contracted by centres for SLAP/total number of lawyers (2014)
7% (2029)
43% (140) 93% (≈30 000)
75% (365)
Efficiency of legal aid lawyers is 10 times higher than lawyers out of the system
Challenges (I): Equity vs Political Influence
Legal defence of detained Maidan activists Legal defence of persons suspected in separatist / terrorist-related crimes commitment
Legal defence of military men of the 51st Separate Mechanised Brigade of Ukrainian Army; Vitaliy Komar, Commander of the “Prykarpattia� 5th Battalion of Territorial Defence , and other servicemen
Challenges (II): Virtue vs Corruption
Risks on interaction level LAWYER – INVESTIGATOR («pocket lawyers»)
?
Risks on interaction level LAWYER – LEGAL AID CENTRE (disproportionate distribution of cases)
Challenges (III): Independence vs Assimilation
Risk of “raider seizure”, takeover and assimilation of independent, progressive legal aid system by reactionary forces in Ukrainian National Bar Association to freeze the lawyer’s status quo as the key link in chain of judicial system’s corruption mechanism
Legal Aid System Impact in Broader Context of Criminal Justice
Next Steps 1.
Establishment of 100 new local centres for secondary legal aid provision
2.
Re-design of legal aid system as follows: .1st level (front office) – 100 local centres; .2nd level (back office) – 27 regional centres; .3rd (coordination office) – Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision
3.
IT development to optimise legal aid system administrative costs, increase its transparency and corruption prevention
4.
Independent Expert Assessment of Legal Aid System on compliance with Council of Europe standards and European Court of Human Rights practice (PACE Resolution dated 05.10.2005 № 1466 (2005) “Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Ukraine” )
5.
Drafting and adoption of amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Legal Aid” to broaden access to legal aid, increase its quality and comply with Council of Europe standards and European Court of Human Rights practice