Some Key Achievement of NLASO

National Office Established

NLASO has worked steadily to activate the national office to take up its full statutory charges. With the financial and technical assistance of various development agencies, the organization has started its endeavors by shifting its office from the ministry to New Baily Road, Dhaka with modern logistics and staff.

 

Activate District Legal Aid Committee

NLASO is well aware that performance of legal aid committees at district level is a huge task and till date this has been a challenge. Since outreach is paramount to reach the poor litigants, Thus, to provide better and timely services to poor litigants, NLASO has taken several steps i.e set up new legal aid office at the court premises with modern offices in 41districts; developed reporting and documentation mechanisms such as forms and registers; improved coordination among DLAC, Upazila and Union legal aid committees etc. for improved legal aid services at district level etc.

 

Improved Information Management

Accurate and timely flow of information is essential for effective program management. Before 2010, reporting on district legal aid intervention was irregular and subsequently NLASO did not have such capacity to monitor the activity of District Legal Aid Committees which was resulting in poor information management systems.. In collaboration with Bangladesh Legal Reform Project (BLRP)/CIDA, now the organization works to develop a database and strategic plan.

 

Assign full time district legal Aid Office Staff

In the past, there was no full time staff to coordinate NLASO's activities at district level. In December 2010, a full time legal aid office staff has been appointed in every District Court. Afterwards, all staffs have received comprehensive training with practical learning materials and now working in their respective offices at district level.

 

Set up new District Legal Aid Offices

NLASO is aware of the importance of a clearly marked and well-publicized legal aid office to make legal aid accessible locally. In 2009 only two Districts had separate staffed Legal Aid Office. Now 41 Districts have their own offices and the number of new offices is growing steadily, despite the serious challenges posed by the shortage of office space in most District Court compounds.

 

Publication and Dissemination of Legal Aid Awareness Materials

NLASO has designed and printed thousands of copies of posters, pamphlets and leaflets advertising the availability of government legal aid and has been disseminated across the country.

Production of Radio/TV advertisement

The organization is also planning for broader publicity campaigns through production of advertisement on legal aid to be broadcasted on radio, television, cable network, cinema hall with the support of Promoting Access to Justice and Human Rights in Bangladesh (A2J) Project/UNDP.

 

Installation of Billboard

Dissemination of legal aid messages is the key to familiarize the legal aid intervention at grass roots. Thus, the organization has designed and installed 573 billboards at Barisal, Comilla, Mymensingh, Naogaon and Pabna.

 

Introduction of Hotline Services

With the help of A2J Project, the organization is going to introduce a hotline service to receive calls, provide referral services and information which will be transformed into a computerized data base so that the types of services, legal aid information sought by citizens and a speedy grievance redresses mechanism would be initiated and the provision of legal aid services can be evaluated.

 

Increased services for the poor

The legal needs of poor women are an important focus of the government legal aid intervention. The model pilot district legal aid programs have shown that with accessible offices, trained legal staff and local outreach and awareness can provide much more legal aid service to poor litigants. As of December 2010, 11266 poor litigants received government legal aid services which have significantly increased since the previous years.

 

Legal Aid Law and Policy Reform

Historically the NLASO has had only limited capacity for systematic legal aid policy reform. However, since 2009 NLASO has started work on a wide range of policy initiatives to re-examine the law and policy framework for legal aid and to introduce reforms.

Activate Upazila and Union Legal Aid Committees

LASA 2000 makes provisions for Upazila and Union Committees, but these committees haven't been activated in the past. In March 2011, through a gazette notification, the government has formally activated the Upazila and Union Committees whilst NLASO is currently working to develop their mandates and functions. Simultaneously, interactive meetings with the members of Upazila and Union Legal Aid Committees have been organized at pilot districts where the public representatives have shown their keen interest to make the common people aware about government legal aid services.

Revision of Legal Aid Fees and Expenses

Legal aid fees for the panel lawyers have long been identified as a significant barrier in accessing legal aid. Experienced and veteran lawyers were reluctant to conduct legal aid cases due to poor payment systems. In order to remove such barriers, existing fees of lawyers have been increased to a great extent by amending ‘Legal Aid Services Regulation, 2001’. A competitive payment schedule for legal aid cases covering all civil and criminal matters has been approved by the Finance Ministry and a gazette notification has been circulated recently.

 

Explore Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Mechanism

The MoLJPA is actively exploring options to increase the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms to reduce case backlog and delay in the court system. Thus, the organization has started to explore how legal aid clients can be more benefited from ADR and introduce ADR as a mechanism to resolve disputes. Although LASA was amended in 2006 to include ADR as a legal aid service, these amendments did not cover most cases where ADR would be most useful, and were never put into full effect.