On May 28, 2021 applicants for higher education in the specialty “Law” of National University “Odessa Maritime Academy” took part in the pilot project “Judicial Volunteer”, which is implemented within the framework of the EU “Pravo-Justice” program. The project is implemented by the Odessa Regional Office of the Free Secondary Legal Aid. In the premises of the Malinovsky District Court of Odessa, a communication meeting was held in the format of a “round table” with the participation of partners of the “Service of Volunteers in Courts” project, which is implemented with the support of the EU “Pravo-Justice” project.
The event discussed the issues of cooperation and communication between the bodies of the justice system and society, the creation of an atmosphere of a “human-friendly” court, comfortable conditions for staying of court visitors in the courtroom and reducing psychological stress, which will contribute to increasing citizens’ confidence in the justice system by introducing a volunteer service in the courts.
The event was attended by the Chairperson of the Court Leonid Lichman, Chief of Staff of the Court Valentina Savenko, Director of the Regional Center Svetlana Klishina, Chief International Expert on Judicial Reform Issues EU Pravo-Justice Project Anna Adamskaya-Gallant, Expert of the EU Pravo-Justice Project Li Polina and Evgeny Bondarenko.
The following project partners representing educational institutions also participated in the meeting: Natalya Savinova, Director of Educational and Scientific Institute of Maritime Law and Management, and Evgeny Khizhnyak, Dean of the Faculty of Advocacy at National University “Odessa Law Academy” jointly with students who expressed a desire to volunteer in court.
The meeting was held within the framework of the Memorandum of Cooperation signed in 2020 between the Regional Center providing free secondary legal aid, the Faculty of Advocacy of National University “Odessa Law Academy” and the Malinovsky District Court.
According to the agreements, the Malinovskiy District Court of the Odessa Region acts as a model court in the implementation of the “Volunteer Service in Courts” project. Training on safety measures and aspects of work will be conducted by mentors of the court for candidates for volunteer status for their further activities.
The regional center of free secondary legal aid in the Odessa region acts as a coordinator in the course of communication between the court, student volunteers of the court and its visitors and mentors. Thanks to the work of volunteers, more and more visitors will become aware of the free legal aid system: if necessary, they will be referred to legal aid centers for legal advice and clarifications.
At the end of the event, the representatives of the “Pravo-Justice project” handed over a “volunteer package” to the Malinovsky District Court: T-shirts and information materials for future activities.
