How human rights activists and paralegals implement comprehensive legal aid in small communities

Publication date: December 26, 2023

Oksana Riabchun, Communications Manager at the LDN

Paralegals transmit requests from community residents, and lawyers respond to them, communicating and synchronizing through instant communication tools. The «community residents – paralegal – lawyer» model is an innovative approach that allows residents of remote communities to seek legal assistance while supporting them in doing so. What are the prospects for this model, how does it actually work? The following will discuss the experience gained from experts from the Legal Development Network (hereinafter – LDN, Network) and paralegals.

Collaboration Model: paralegal and lawyer 

«We focus on helping rural communities without lawyers or the possibility of free consultation. Often the headman cannot help, and if there is a legal consultant, he directs you to the center of the community or district, where you still need to get to. There is a basic barrier – both logistical, financial, and psychological. That’s why we decided to use this cooperation model when a paralegal and a lawyer work in tandem to provide effective assistance,» says Vitalii Okhrimenko, LDN Strategic Development Director.

The cooperation model with paralegals is being implemented by the LDN together with the partner organization, the Ukrainian Paralegal Association, which unites paralegals from communities. The interaction mechanism between a lawyer and a paralegal was first tested in the spring of 2023. Representatives of the Ukrainian Paralegal Association received support within the framework of one of the Network’s initiatives to study legal services and tools for the participation of community residents during martial law. During the needs assessment, it turned out that there were requests for legal aid among community residents, and they began to redirect them to lawyers. During the pilot of this model, they processed over 20 requests from community residents, including vulnerable categories of the population, veterans, families of military personnel, and the elderly. In the autumn, six qualified lawyers specializing in various areas of law were involved in the work, and the number of paralegals increased from two to ten.

Communication between a lawyer and a paralegal occurs in a shared chat and by phone. First, the paralegal describes the client’s problem, then the lawyers promptly provide a detailed consultation in the same chat. If necessary, lawyers are ready to answer clarifying questions from clients and provide additional information. After that, the paralegal explains the algorithm of actions to the community residents using the information received. In total, from April to November 2023, lawyers, together with paralegals, processed 43 requests from community residents.

«This is a pilot project where we support members and partner organizations. It is also an experiment for lawyers themselves, as they work directly, not with clients, but through an intermediary – a paralegal who conveys the information received to citizens,» says Daria Kovalchuk, LDN Legal Services Manager.

Lawyers: Guarantors of professional legal advice

This model of work has already shown some results in practice. During three months of cooperation between the Network’s lawyers and paralegals, they felt convenience and support in working with paralegals, who are assistants and explain the complexities of legal procedures to community residents. However, further improvement of the interaction model is necessary in terms of obtaining feedback on the solution of the client’s legal problem, processing requests, and streamlining the process of providing answers.

«Three months is not enough for a smooth running, we have just started. I would like more feedback – whether the issue has been resolved, whether we have provided the information qualitatively, whether we need to write an algorithm of actions in the situation,» notes lawyer Liudmyla Vlasenko from NGO «Legal Unity» (Bila Tserkva). «It would be good to get such information from paralegals who directly communicate with the requester and live nearby».

Lawyers admit that the help of a paralegal significantly simplifies the preparation of answers to people’s requests.

«People who apply are not familiar often with the law and need a lot of explanations, and this function is taken over by the paralegal, he acts as an assistant,» believes lawyer Valentyna Tkach from NGO «Committee of Voters of Ukraine» (Vyzhnytsia, Chernivtsi oblast). «As for the work model, I would like more orderliness of the process. For example, it is possible to provide for rotation in the chat since requests come unevenly so that you can distribute the appeal among lawyers».

Paralegals: Assistants and intermediaries between the community and professionals

The coordination between paralegals and lawyers is overseen by Maryna Tsarapaieva, a representative of the Ukrainian Paralegal Association from the Semenivska community in the Zhytomyr oblast. According to her, if a community member understands the situation and has relevant experience, they usually turn to a professional lawyer. However, people often lack a proper understanding of how to solve their problems, their rights, or what the legislation entails, especially concerning vulnerable population groups. In such situations, paralegals become motivators for seeking help.

With support from professional lawyers, a paralegal has greater confidence and authority within the community, feeling that their capabilities to provide genuine and effective help are enhanced. Consequently, the «word-of-mouth» effect takes place, and people tend to seek help more regularly.

«We’re learning to collaborate — not just redirecting to lawyers but providing detailed support. Mere redirection of queries doesn’t guarantee a positive outcome. People have many additional questions while obtaining information, and they share more information about the situation with the advisor. For some public advisors, the work process has become faster,» notes Maryna Tsarapaieva. «A lot depends on the individuals themselves, how much they engage in such activities. I think it’s essential to explain to the paralegals themselves the importance of the quality of work; then people will feel support and be satisfied with the results of their inquiries».

The coordinator documents all inquiries in a logbook, and tracks interim results, allowing for systematic monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of communication later.

«We gather the stories of inquiries, describing them for dissemination, especially in social media groups, so that more people can learn about the possibilities of such consultations, «explains Maryna Tsarapaieva. «We’d like more interaction between advisors and lawyers, maybe in video chat format. Often clients have additional questions or provide additional circumstances, which could be effectively discussed with lawyers in such video chats».

Ways to develop the model: establishing standards, monitoring, and training 

As an additional tool in the model, the paralegal coordinator, Maryna Tsarapaieva, highlighted the meetings between lawyers and community members. The Head of the NGO «Podil Center for Human Rights» Mykhailo Bardyn, initiated discussions with members of the Storozhynets community. Paralegal Nataliia Horvasiuk announced and organized the meeting in collaboration with the Storozhynets City Council. This is an example where a paralegal and lawyer addressed issues that concern many people, examining existing problems for a large part of the community.

«The image and professional experience of the paralegal in the community are of immense importance,» notes Mykhailo Bardyn, Head of the Podil Center for Human Rights. «Positive outcomes in residents’ issues contributed to trust in the paralegal-lawyer relationship. There’s a feeling as if we’re members of the same organization. In discussions, we addressed an issue that concerned numerous people, and from that arose the idea of explaining the rights and responsibilities of the municipal authorities and co-owners of housing associations. As a result, they reached a common decision. The paralegal understands the community’s situation and can discuss it with an expert, and together they seek legal solutions to reduce social tension, as in the case of protests by housing association co-owners. Each community has its culture and mentality; with our experience and knowledge, we can help the community develop more harmoniously».

Mykhailo Bardyn believes that systematic training for paralegals would contribute to improving their legal knowledge and skills. His conviction is supported by inquiries received from paralegals in the Vinnytsia oblast. People turn to local activists for assistance, particularly in issuing humanitarian aid, regarding volunteer status and changes in payments for IDPs. Clarifications enable paralegals to familiarize themselves better with topics, feel more confident, and provide prompt responses. Such an approach would facilitate a more efficient use of lawyers’ time and expertise, where paralegals could focus on specific situations.

According to the Head of the Ukrainian Paralegal Association, Hanna Ilashchuk, this model of «community residents – paralegal – lawyer» currently appears to be an effective tool for legal aid in communities. There was a significant need for referrals to professional lawyers, but the inability to control the quality of assistance received by people was a concern.

Through this model, they can systematically monitor the entire process of providing legal aid and influence its quality. Within the organization, they have already discussed possibilities for improving the approach, including the technical aspect of communication through chats.

«We currently have over 200 public advisors. As of today, public advisors from 17 communities work on this principle,» explains Hanna Ilashchuk. «We intend to expand the participation of paralegals, thus refining the collaboration model itself. This way, we can better assess the effectiveness of work in real conditions and make necessary adjustments».

The developers of the approach indicate that for the further development of the «community residents – paralegal – lawyer» model, it is important to undertake the following steps:

• develop quality standards for paralegals to ensure a consistent level of accessibility to legal aid in all communities;
• implement a monitoring system to oversee adherence to standards and make necessary adjustments;
• it is essential to refine the workflow of lawyers and paralegals in chats;
• initiate a training system for paralegals to enhance their knowledge and professional skills continuously.

All of these actions will contribute to the further advancement of the collaboration model, ensuring greater effectiveness and accessibility of legal aid in communities.

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Publications on consultations provided through collaboration between paralegals and lawyers

• The parents of the fallen defenders of Ukraine will receive legal payments
• Just one appeal to the paralegal and no bureaucracy
• Humanity and professional support: paralegal helps a resettled woman in the process of establishing a disability
• Art helps compatriots: the artist received volunteer status and avoided double taxation
• A three-year litigation ended within days: the couple will be able to privatize the land plot
• Activists of the Association of Co-Owners of Apartment Buildings were taught how to communicate with local authorities

The publication was created with the support of the international charity platform GlobalGiving and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. The publication’s content is solely the responsibility of the Legal Development Network.

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