legal clinics in poland summary of the academic year 2006/2007 activity
TRANSCRIPT
Legal Clinics in Poland
Summary of the academic year 2006/2007
activity
Legal clinics in Poland
Białystok – University of Białystok
Białystok – Białystok School of Public Administration
Gdańsk – Gdańsk University
Katowice – Silesian University
Kraków – Jagiellonian University
Kraków - Collegium Medicum Jagiellonian University
Lublin – Catholic University of Lublin
Lublin – Maria Curie-Skłodowska University
Łódź – University of Łodź
Olsztyn – Academic Association of the Law and European Education Propagators „Wspólna Europa”
Olsztyn - The University of Warmia and Mazury
Opole – Opole University
Poznań - Adam Mickiewicz University
Rzeszów – Rzeszów University
Słubice - Collegium Polonicum
Szczecin – University of Szczecin
Toruń – Nicolaus Copernicus University
Warszawa - Academia Iuris Foundation
Warszawa - Warsaw University
Warszawa - Lazarski School of Commerce and Law
Warszawa - Leon Koźmiński Academy of Entrepreneurship and Management
Warszawa - Management and Law Academy (WSZiP)
Warszawa - Stefan Kardinal Wyszyński in Warsaw *
Wrocław - Wrocław University
* Legal clinic opened in 2006
Białystok
Warszawa
Lublin
RzeszówKraków
Katowice
Opole
Wrocław
Łódź
Poznań
Toruń
Gdańsk
Szczecin
Słubice
Olsztyn
Białystok
Warszawa
Lublin
RzeszówKraków
Katowice
Opole
Wrocław
Łódź
Poznań
Toruń
Gdańsk
Szczecin
Słubice
Olsztyn
Clinics accredited by the Legal Clinics Foundation
1. Student Legal Clinic in Białystok (University of Białystok)2. Student University Legal Clinic in Gdańsk3. Student Legal Clinic in Katowice4. University Legal Clinic in Kraków5. University Legal Clinic in Lublin (Catholic University)6. University Student Legal Clinic in Lublin (Curie-Skłodowska University)7. Student Legal Information Point „Klinika Prawa” in Łódź8. Student Social – Legal Advice Office „Bona Fides” in Opole9. Student University Legal Clinic in Poznań10. University Legal Clinic in Rzeszowie11. Scientific Group Student Legal Clinic in Słubice12. „Legal Education Center” – Student Legal Clinic in Szczecin13. University Legal Clinic in Toruń14. Academia Iuris Foundation in Warsaw15. Legal Clinic, Student Center of Legal Aid in Warsaw (Warsaw University)16. Student Legal Clinic in Warsaw (L. Koźmiński Academy)17. Student Legal Clinic in Warsaw (Lazarski School of Commerce and Law)18. Student Legal Advice Office in Warsaw (Management and Law Academy-WSZiP)19. University Legal Clinic in Wrocław
Academic year in numbers
9399 cases were submitted to legal clinics between October 2006 and June 2007;
2327 (25%) were civil law cases; 1302 students and 197 teachers worked in the clinics; 1 teacher supervised the work of 6 students; 7 cases were solved by one student.
Comparing to the previous years …
65967421
98339399
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
2003
/200
4
2004
/200
5
2005
/200
6
2006
/200
7
1302
913
1279
1049
197179147109
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
2003
/200
4
2004
/200
5
2005
/200
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2006
/200
7
Number of cases in years 2003-2007
Number of students and i teachers in years 2003-2007
students
teachers
Number of cases accepted by the clinics
Total: 9399(9833 in academic year 2005/2006)
* Clinic opened in 2006
1958
1012880
791
586454
390 334 329 328 325 293 258 249 205 201 184 127 121 101 98 80 57 38
Number of students in the clinics
Total: 1302(1279 in academic year 2005/2006)
* Clinic opened in 2006
222
117
9185
7464 61 56 55 51 48 43 40 38 38
32 32 32 30 3021 17 16
9
Number of clinical teachers
Total: 197(179 in academic year 2005/2006)
* Clinic opened in 2006
27
19
15
1110 10 10
8 8 8 87 7 7
6 65 5
4 4 43 3
2
Types of cases
15
416
14293150106
398421591
817992
1180
2327
2012
Civil
law
Crimin
al la
w
Family
law
Labor a
nd Unem
ploym
ent l
aw
Inher
itance
law
Housing la
w
Admin
istra
tive
law
Refugee
and fo
reig
ner la
w
Finan
cial
law
Social
aid
Health
car
e
Viole
nce ag
ainst
wom
en
Disabl
edNG
Ooth
er
Total: 9399
Time of handling the case
Short explanation
(1-2 meetings, up to 2 weeks)
49%
1 year and more
1%
Between 2 months
and 1 year9%
Several meetings (2 weeks
- 2 months)41%
Sources of information about legal clinic
Other25%
Friends30%Family
12%
Information brochures
8%
Internet13%
Radio1%
TV2%
News-papers
9%
Have the clients used professional legal advice before?
Present status of the legal clinics in Poland
There are very few NGO based legal clinics in Poland. Almost all of the legal clinics in Poland are recognized by the Universities as a
part of the legal curriculum at our law schools (as one of the mandatory classes that are offered to the students).
Legal Clinics are present at every state law school and at almost all private law schools.
Some of the legal clinics gained a status of a chair or laboratory (in cities like: Krakow, Warsaw, Bialystok, Lodz)
All of the legal clinics that are based at the Universities get all the office costs covered as well as the professor’s salaries paid by the Universities.
Legal Clinics Foundation and a group of legal aid NGO’s with a support of the Ombudsman drafted a new law on access to legal aid. The Ministry of Justice included legal clinics activity as a part of the national network of institutions that will provide so called pre-trial legal advice and basic legal information to poor people.
Cooperation of the Polish Ombudsman with the Legal Clinics network
1. The Ombudsman cooperates with the legal clinics since the very first legal clinics have been established in 1997 and 1998.
2. The cooperation is based on a general agreement signed by the Ombudsman and the Legal Clinics Foundation as well as bilateral agreements signed by 14 different law schools and their legal clinics.
3. The cooperation with the Ombudsman is based on the following activities: the Ombudsman agreed to take the most difficult cases from legal clinics in
order to help the citizens and protect their rights when only it is out of the legal clinics competences,
the Ombudsman agreed to admit for traineeship in his office only students from the legal clinics,
the Ombudsman agreed to issue and sponsor brochures on legal matters that are prepared by the legal clinics (till now over 50 brochures have been published),
the legal clinics submit reports on their activity and describe cases they deal with and based on those the Ombudsman prepares his yearly reports to the Parliament on human rights protection in Poland.
Legal Clinics Foundation activity
The Foundation has the status of the public benefit organization;
Won a distinctive prize in the Best Pro Publico Bono Civil Initiative contest;
Organizes annual Pro Bono Lawyer Contest;
Helps to build similar organizations in Ukraine, Russia, China and provides
trainings to other legal clinics in Central and Eastern Europe; Published first in Poland and in region textbook „The Legal Clinics. The Idea,
Organization, Methodology”, available also in English; next textbooks are
under preparation;
Each year organizes two National Legal Clinics Conferences as well as
workshops, train the trainers courses on psychological skills and clinical
teaching methodology;
Represents legal clinics toward state institutions and takes part in drafting
legislation on access to justice;
Granted legal clinics with material and financial means of the total value of
appr. 200 000 USD.
Thank you for your attention!
Polish Legal ClinicsFoundation
www.fupp.org.pl
Address:
Szpitalna 5 app. 5, 00-031 Warsaw, Poland
ph.: (+48 22) 828 91 28 ext.143, fax: (+48 22) 828 91 29
Banc account:
Bank PEKAO S.A. II o/Warszawa no.: 87 1240 1024 1111 0000 0269 4777