Financial Provision of free legal aid system in Ukraine
Vitaliy Baev, Deputy Director Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision, Ministry of Justice of Ukraine
Key Operational Parameters of the Free Legal Aid System in Ukraine System start-up – 00:00 1 January 2013
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27 regional centres for free secondary legal aid provision across the country;
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Almost 4000 lawyers selected on the competitive basis to provide free secondary legal aid, around 2000 operate intensively within the system ;
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More than 500 lawyers who are on duty at any moment of real time over the whole territory of Ukraine and are ready to arrive within one hour to a detained person;
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Around 200 staff employees of centres for free secondary legal aid provision, a half of them are on duty working ‘day after 3 days-off’ shift;
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Functioning «24/7»;
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More than 76000 assignments for free secondary legal aid provision in the year 2013;
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Waivers of counsel of persons suspected in a crime and detained by the authorized bodies is less than 7% in the year 2013
Key Financial Parameters of the Free Legal Aid System in Ukraine • Financial provision of the FLA system in recent years: – Year 2012: about 1 mln. Euro (incl. 0,7 mln. Euro of investments) – Year 2013: about 5 mln. Euro (incl. 0,55 mln. Euro of investments) – Year 2014: about 10 mln. Euro (incl. 0,5 mln. Euro of investments)
• Expenses for free legal aid system are 65 euro per client in 2013 • Total expenses of functioning of free legal aid system are about 16 400 Euro per day in 2013 • Average fee to a defense lawyer (if he/she spend 50% of working hours to free legal aid system) is about 350 Euro per month in 2013 (average monthly salary in Ukraine in 2013 – 350 Euro)
Money flow in the system before 2013 prosecutors
investigator s
judges
Regional Lawyers collegiums
State Budget/allocations for fees only
Ministry of Justice
engagements
Lawyers
Regional branches of the Ministry of Justice
Money flow in the system after 2013 prosecutors investigator s
Inquires for engagement
Investigatin g judges judges
Lawyers engaged to free legal aid system
State Budget/allocations for fees, investments and administration
Coordination Centre for Free Legal Aid Provision, Ministry of Justice
Regional Centres for secondary free legal aid provision
Budget breakdown (executed in the year 2013) – Direct expenses for contract payments to defense lawyers: 2,95 mln. Euro of executed payments + 1,0 mln. Euro of Debt – Administrative expenses for free legal aid centres: 1,5 mln. Euro – Investments : 0,55 mln. Euro – Renovation of facilities and equipment for FLA centres: 0,08 mln. Euro – Electronic complex information management system: 0,47 mln. Euro
Main functions of regional Centres for Free Secondary Legal Aid Provision •
Work out messages on detentions and inquires for engagement of defense lawyers from prosecutors, investigators, investigating judges, judges on 24-hours basis
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Search and define defense lawyers for free legal aid provision, issue official orders to provide free legal aid and keep the function of back-office for defense lawyers while its performance
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Track regional police web-sites and main media, and receive calls from relatives on facts of noninforming or delayed informing on detention by detention authorities and issue official requests to police and prosecutor’s offices if such facts found
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Accept lawyers’ timesheets and payment acts, make all necessary documentary arrangements for the State Treasure offices in order to transfer service fees to defense lawyers
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Organize regular competitions among lawyers for access to free legal aid contracts
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Organize trainings to enhance professional performance for defense lawyers on ongoing basis
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Perform public awareness campaign among target groups and key stakeholders
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(New) Monitor quality of free legal aid provided by defense lawyers
Payment scheme for free legal aid services in cases of detentions • Payment scheme is established by the Government’s decision and applied for free legal aid services in all detentions across the country. • Tariff is 2,5% of official minimal wage per hour (appr. 1,9 Euro) spent for services in fact (incl. time to get the client). Maximum - 72 working hours. Lawyer and regional Centre for Free Secondary Legal Aid Provision sign the timesheet. • Reimbursement of travel expenses (by public transport during day hours / by car at night hours under fuel usage limits of Ministry of Transportation) This payment scheme was applicable for all cases of free legal aid provision before 2013.
Payment scheme for free legal aid services in criminal proceedings • Payment scheme is established by the Government’s decision and applied for free legal aid services in all engagements of lawyers into criminal proceedings across the country.
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Fee calculation: 20 hrs * 2,5% of min.wage * Index 1 * Index 2 * Index Index 3 1: correction related to stage of the proceeding (court of 1st instance, appellation, cassation)
• Index 2: correction related to complexity of the proceeding (grade of a crime hardness, number of episodes, number of client’s accessories in the crime, applied arrest as the preventive measure) • Index 3: correction related to specific circumstances (client under age of 18, client with disabilities or psychological disease, client doesn’t speak the language of justice) This payment scheme was designed for new system of free legal aid and has started since 2013.
Challenges for financial provision of free legal aid in Ukraine • Insufficient regulation for financial provision of lawyers’ certain expenses in criminal proceedings: – Absence of reimbursement of transportation expenses by car at day hours to longstanding points or to areas with insufficient public transportation – Absence of reimbursement of health protection tools for free legal aid provision to clients with strong health problems – Absence of reimbursement for lawyers’ business trips (accommodation and per diems) outside of region
• Insufficient regulation and financial provision for expertise performed by request of defense lawyer in criminal proceedings • Lack of funding for investments for enlargement of free legal aid system on civil and administrative cases as provisioned by legislation
Next steps • Implementation of quality standards of free legal aid provision, regular monitoring and quality assurance • Amending payment schemes to include reimbursement of accessing expenses • Engagement the Bar association and other stakeholders for lobbying for funding • Stimulating competition among lawyers involved to the free legal aid system, networking lawyers • Awareness-raising campaign, regular monitoring, administrative audit check
Thank you for Attention! Vitaliy Baev Deputy Director Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision, Ministry of Justice of Ukraine vitaliy.baev@legalaid.gov.ua govconsult.ua@gmail,com 73, Artema Str., Kyiv 04053 Ukraine www.legalaid.gov.ua