DOCSLIB.ORG

Final Report.Pdf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Final Report.Pdf 102 123992/2019/NM 103 123992/2019/NM 104 123992/2019/NM 105 123992/2019/NM 106 123992/2019/NM 107 123992/2019/NM 108 123992/2019/NM 109 123992/2019/NM 110 123992/2019/NM 111 123992/2019/NM 112 123992/2019/NM 113 123992/2019/NM 114 123992/2019/NM 115 123992/2019/NM 116 123992/2019/NM 117 123992/2019/NM 118 123992/2019/NM 119 123992/2019/NM 120 123992/2019/NM 121 123992/2019/NM 122 123992/2019/NM 123 123992/2019/NM 124 123992/2019/NM 125 123992/2019/NM 126 123992/2019/NM 127 123992/2019/NM 128 123992/2019/NM 129 123992/2019/NM 130 123992/2019/NM 131 123992/2019/NM 132 123993/2019/NM PART-I INTRODUCTION 1 133 123993/2019/NM 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of Research John Rawls said “first principle of justice is that each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of liberties for all”1. Law gives birth to the doctrine of equality and thereby justice is secured. If any legal system has to ensure equality among the citizens then it is necessary that every citizen is in a position to get his/her rights enforced. If this is not achieved then no matter how well written the laws of a country are they will be discriminatory in nature. Therefore, the concept of legal aid emerged in order to protect the rights of the people who are deprived, disadvantaged and underprivileged. The origin of legal aid can be traced to the lawyer’s movement in Europe in late 19th century to provide pro bono help for the needy.2 In India, the origin of legal aid can be traced in the mass struggle movement for freedom in modern India when Mahatma Gandhi urged the lawyers to represent the Indians pro bono in courts; as they faced major discrimination and problems due to lack of legal knowledge. Since then, various lawyers and jurists have been advocating the concept of legal aid in India. Justice P.N. Bhagwati and Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer deserve a special mention as being two of the major proponents of legal aid in India. In the year 1976, 42nd amendment Act was introduced which brought Article 39A under the Directive Principles of State Policy. Article 39A under the Indian Constitution provides for the concept of legal aid in India. In 1987, Legal Services Authority Act was introduced which gives the structure and functions of the legal aid functionaries. Although the concept of free legal aid is a laid 1 John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (Universal Law Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd., Delhi, 2000). 2 Sir Henry Brooke “The History of Legal Aid 1945-2010” available at: https://www.fabians. org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Bach-Commission-Appendix-6-F-1.pdf (Last visited on December 20, 2018). 2 134 123993/2019/NM down principle, the reality is quite different. It is very crucial to review a policy after a uniform tenure to make it fitting for the altered circumstances and wants. For this, research in the area of policy making becomes an essential and a vital step. Therefore, University School of Law and Legal Studies (USLLS), Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (herein after referred as implementing agency) undertook an action-based research on “Analysis of functioning of Legal Aid Cells in various law schools/ university departments/ private universities.” (herein after referred as “Research Project”) under the ‘Scheme for Action Research and Studies on Judicial Reforms’ of the Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India [herein after referred as “Department of Justice” (DoJ)]. The research study analysed the functioning of the legal aid cells by looking into the impact of digitization on the framework and probing into the feasibility of a mandatory certification process of law schools. The Research Project aimed at finding out the ground realities and limitations of these legal aid clinics by visiting a few selected States3 and whether these clinics are actually successful in imparting justice to those who fit the eligibility criteria for receiving free legal aid services. In this study, the methodology (the steps taken as to how to go about the research) of the project undertaken, the findings (as to the analysis of the answers to the questionnaires), the ground realities and analysis are deliberated in detail. 1.2 Research Objectives The research project was undertaken to find out the status of legal aid in the States of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and their 3 Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh. 3 135 123993/2019/NM respective law schools (selected) with an objective to find out the ways to improve it. With the detailed study of the mechanisms used in the legal aid clinics, the research aimed to find out the ground realities, the existing bottlenecks in the system and to suggest an efficacious framework for their development. The role of the advocates, the High Courts of the concerned States and the educational institutions in imparting justice through free legal aid services were probed as a part of this research project. The study also explored the possibilities of introducing a mandatory certification process for law schools and how digitisation can play an imperative role in increasing their effectiveness. The primary objectives of the Research Project in a concise manner are set out below: 1. To analyse the functioning of Legal Aid Cells with respect to framework of improvement of access to justice: Whether the formation of these cells have resulted in any visible and concrete changes as to the access of justice to those eligible and in need for it; and whether the present framework is efficacious enough to make its way forward in the whole of the country. 2. To look into the impact of digitisation on this framework mechanism: Whether digitisation is a contributing factor in bringing out improvement in bridging the gap between the justice accessibility and the downtrodden by helping the sufferers economically. 3. To look into the feasibility of a mandatory certification process for law schools by regulatory authority that can aid in better access to justice: Whether the mandatory certification process in the law schools by the regulatory authority of legal aid will be helpful in reaching its optimum efficiency by imparting the access to justice in an efficient manner. Upon the success of achieving the above objectives, it was found that the mechanism of the legal aid cells in all the States concerned can become more effective once the awareness programmes regarding the existence of this 4 136 123993/2019/NM system are increased to a wider number of people who are eligible for receiving these services along with satisfying the monetary needs of these clinics. It was also visualized that although the advocates associated with the legal aid primarily supported the inclusion of digital modes of communication with their clients, the litigating parties on the other hand, who were mostly illiterate in terms of technology, did not have an idea as to whether digitisation will actually prove to be beneficial for them or not. An attempt was also made in finding to submit the Standard of Procedure (SoP) so that the law schools, their students, lawyers as well as the litigating parties could comprise a larger area of research study to diversify the project responses. 1.3 Research Methodology The methodology of this Research Project is partly doctrinal and partly empirical. The doctrinal research was carried out by studying various reports by the State Legal Services Authority (SLSA), National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), various Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and different Law Schools who have published their annual reports on the functioning of their legal aid cells. The empirical research, on the other hand, involved visits to various law schools, and the functional legal aid cells in the 4 States selected, along with the interaction with various advocates associated with the panel of legal aid by visiting them in the Legal Aid Office in the respective district courts. The litigating parties who are presently seeking or had in the past, availed the free legal aid services for any purpose, were also questioned for the successful completion of this research project. Based on empirical data collected, a comparative analysis of functioning of legal aid clinics in various law schools (National Law Schools, Central, State and private universities), situated in four North Indian States and having 5 137 123993/2019/NM functional legal aid cells was made. The four States covered under this Research Project were: 1. Delhi 2. Uttar Pradesh 3. Punjab 4. Himachal Pradesh The intention was to represent the whole of North India, keeping in mind the feasibility of the region. As Jammu and Kashmir was not feasible, Himachal Pradesh was chosen to represent a hilly area. Delhi, the capital city of the nation is a legal hub and thus, represents the heart of the country, which makes it the perfect city for the present research. As Uttar Pradesh is the largest State of India in terms of population, and had also been the parent State of Uttarakhand, it was chosen for the study. Finally, Punjab being one of the prosperous states was considered apt for this project. Moreover, since all the three States i.e. Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh are the closest to the capital city Delhi, it made it ideal to shortlist them for this Research Study. For the carrying out of this research, various activities were undertaken by the implementing agency, which are herein divided into various stages: Stage 1: Constitution of the Project Implementation Committee and approval by the competent authority GGSIPU.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Future of Public Interest Law
    University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review Volume 33 Issue 4 The Ben J. Altheimer Symposium: Reframing Public Service Law: Innovative Article 2 Approaches to Integrating Public Service Into the Legal Profession 2011 The Future of Public Interest Law Scott L. Cummings Follow this and additional works at: https://lawrepository.ualr.edu/lawreview Part of the Legal Profession Commons, and the Public Law and Legal Theory Commons Recommended Citation Scott L. Cummings, The Future of Public Interest Law, 33 U. ARK. LITTLE ROCK L. REV. 355 (2011). Available at: https://lawrepository.ualr.edu/lawreview/vol33/iss4/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Bowen Law Repository: Scholarship & Archives. It has been accepted for inclusion in University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review by an authorized editor of Bowen Law Repository: Scholarship & Archives. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE FUTURE OF PUBLIC INTEREST LAW Scott L. Cummings* INTRODUCTION The public interest law movement is at the end of its first genera- tion-part of a broader changing of the guard in the legal profession.' Al- though its roots date back to the turn of the twentieth century, public interest law's institutionalization began in earnest in the 1960s and 1970s with the establishment of the federal legal services program2 and the launch of the Ford Foundation's public interest law initiative. Both of these projects transformed the field, creating new opportunities for the wave of entering law students aligned with the
    [Show full text]
  • Conservative Lawyers and the Contest Over the Meaning of Public
    CONSERVATIVE LAWYERS AND THE CONTEST OVER THE MEANING OF "PUBLIC INTEREST LAW" Ann Southworth This Article examines how conservative and libertarianlawyers created a field of legal advocacy organizations in the image of public interest organizations of the political left and how they adapted the model and rhetoric of public interest law practice to serve different political ends. As conservatives developed a cadre of competent and committed advocates and deployed nonprofit legal advocacy organizationson behalf of their own visions of the public interest, they modified the conventions of this unconventional form of politics. INTRO DU CTION ............................................................................................................ 1224 I. THE CREATION OF AN INFRASTRUCTURE FOR CONSERVATIVE LEGAL A DVO CACY .......................................................................................................... 1231 A. The Emergence of a New Organizational Form: (Liberal) Public Interest Law Firms ...................................................................................................... 1234 B. Conservative PILFs Since 1970: A Sketch of the Field ................................. 1241 C. Institutional Entrepreneurship and the Founding of Conservative and Libertarian PILFs .................................................................................... 1245 D. The New Conservative Public Interest Law Groups and the Contest to Define "Public Interest Law" ...................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Who Public Interest Lawyers Are.Pdf
    DRAFT–Chen & Cummings, Chapter 1: Defining Public Interest Lawyering–August 9, 2012 ©Alan K. Chen, Scott L. Cummings, Aspen Publishers--Do Not Cite or Reproduce Without Authors’ Written Permission. PART I WHO PUBLIC INTEREST LAWYERS ARE Chapter 1: Defining Public Interest Lawyering Chapter 2: American Public Interest Lawyering: From Past to Present Chapter 3: Political Ideology and Public Interest Lawyering CHAPTER 1 DEFINING PUBLIC INTEREST LAWYERING “After decades of pro bono practice, no one yet has a sharp or clean definition of public interest law.” Patricia M. Wald (former judge, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit), Whose Public Interest Is it Anyway?: Advice for Altruistic Young Lawyers, 47 ME. L. REV. 3, 5 (1995). I. Introduction This book is about the practice, pitfalls, and possibilities of public interest lawyering. In it, we examine who does it and why, the challenges they face, and the successes they have achieved. To do so requires that we define the subject of analysis. This, it turns out, is no easy task. Indeed, what exactly it means to be a “public interest lawyer” or engage in “public interest lawyering” is a question that has generated debate and disagreement since the very beginning of the public interest law movement nearly a half-century ago. The discussion has focused on whether it is possible to adequately define lawyering in the “public interest,” and if so, precisely what that definition is. Many attempts at definition have been made, and an equal number have foundered, leaving some scholars to jettison the concept altogether as hopelessly indeterminate.
    [Show full text]
  • June 28-30, 2017 – Singapore
    3rd International Conference On Public Policy (ICPP3) June 28-30, 2017 – Singapore Panel: Session 2 T03P08 - Democracy Institutions and Public Policy Performance Topic: Policy and Politics sponsored by Policy & Politics Journal Panel Chair: Prof. Hai Phu Do - [email protected] Title of the paper THE ROLE OF PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION IN SHAPING UP THE PUBLIC POLICY REGIME IN INDIA: OVER-REACHING OR JUSTIFIED AND THE WAY AHEAD Author(s) Manvendra Singh Jadon, National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam, India, [email protected] Sourabh Roy, National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam, India, [email protected] Date of presentation Thursday, June 29th 13:30 to 15:30 (Block B 5 - 4) INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION « INJUSTICE ANYWHERE IS THREAT TO JUSTICE. » – MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. Rule of law is the internal part of any democratic society wherein the rights of the citizen are taken care by an independent and impartial judiciary. Therefore, in any democratic society, a citizen’s access to justice is the hallmark of protection against any encroachment on the spirit of the democratic system. But in recent times the adjudicatory system has fallen prey to dilatory and expansive process which has taken a heavy toll on poor section of society, to their right to easy excess to justice. Lately, after the implementation of the economic reforms of “Liberalization, Privatisation and Globalisation” policy by the government, there has been a tremendous increase in governmental power and responsibility as the idea of welfare state is becoming more prominent which entails a host of executive inferences in various walks of human life and leaves no corner of individual life untouched.
    [Show full text]
  • The Emerging Legal Architecture for Social Justice
    Texas A&M University School of Law Texas A&M Law Scholarship Faculty Scholarship 7-2020 The Emerging Legal Architecture for Social Justice Luz E. Herrera Texas A&M University School of Law, [email protected] Louise G. Trubek Wisconsin Law School Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.tamu.edu/facscholar Part of the Law and Race Commons, Legal Education Commons, Legal Profession Commons, and the Public Law and Legal Theory Commons Recommended Citation Luz E. Herrera & Louise G. Trubek, The Emerging Legal Architecture for Social Justice, 44 N.Y.U. Rev. L. & Soc. Change 355 (2020). Available at: https://scholarship.law.tamu.edu/facscholar/1427 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Texas A&M Law Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Scholarship by an authorized administrator of Texas A&M Law Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE EMERGING LEGAL ARCHITECTURE FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE 5/26/20 8:32 PM THE EMERGING LEGAL ARCHITECTURE FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE LUZ HERRERA∞ AND LOUISE G. TRUBEK∞ ABSTRACT Lawyers advocating for social change are now front and center in newspa- pers and social media. This Article discusses how a new breed of progressive lawyers envision social justice law practice today. These lawyers, who we refer to as ‘critical lawyers,’ are diverse in background, gender, ethnicity and race. They see law as a complex, contradictory tool rather than a necessary and suffi- cient route to justice. Their practices differ from the traditional nonprofit public interest firms of the earlier generation that assumed that making law and law- yers accessible would lead to justice.
    [Show full text]
  • LR-Friend of the Court & the 2010 Constitution
    Friend of The Court & The 2010 Constitution: The Kenyan Experience and Comparative State Practice on Amicus Curiae Edited by: Christopher Kerkering Christopher Mbazira Contents Table of Contents ............................................................................ iii Foreword: Chief Justice ................................................................... xi Preface: Yash Ghai ........................................................................... xiii Contributor Bios and Organizational Profiles .................................. xxi Introduction ................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: Friend of the Court Perspective from the Bench: Emerging Jurisprudence on the Role of the Friend of the Court in Kenya. By Hon. Justice (Prof) James Otieno Odek .............................. 9 1. Introduction .......................................................................... 9 1.1 Distinction Between Amicus Curiae and an Interested Party .............................................................................. 11 2. Admission of an Amicus Curiae and Interested Party in Proceedings ........................................................................... 13 2.1 Legal Provisions ............................................................. 13 2.2 Supreme Court Rules .................................................... 14 2.3 Mutunga Rules .............................................................. 15 3. Admission of an Amicus Curiae .............................................
    [Show full text]