Being the institution of rendering money-free legal aid, the law clinic also acts as a hands-on learning program, where a student involving in professional legal activity, obtains professional competence as well as a great professional experience.

Annually in the law clinic more than 70 students are trained under the supervision of 15 lecturers who have academic degrees and ranks. In addition, some of the lecturers have working experience in this very sphere (attorneys).
The law clinic’s activity is legally regulated by acts of the SFU, the Statute on the law clinic and Ethic students and teachers’ conduct code.

The goals of the law clinic:

• Rendering money-free legal aid for those people who cannot afford to get it for money owing to life circumstances; providing their access to justice;
• Combination of theoretical and practical training of students;
• Fostering lawyers with a high standard of legal consciousness and culture, possessing practical work skills;
• Distribution of innovative forms and methods of lawyers training;
• Legal education of the public.

The training of students in the law clinic starts from the second year students’ attendance a special optional educational program in interdisciplinary theoretical-practical studies, named “Lawyer’s professional skills” (Moot clinic).

The basic directions of law clinic activity:

– Reception and consulting citizens in public reception offices.

The law clinic has three public reception offices where once a week students give legal oral or written advice to the public, help clients draw up claims (primary allegations, complaints, counter-pleas, pretentions, etc.) under the supervision of a professor in charge of a student.

Work in the public reception office is aimed not only at rendering legal aid for the needy, but also allows a student to acquire additional knowledge in civil, housing, family, labor legislation, develop working with a client skills as well as to learn analyzing clients’ problems and consulting them, drawing up documents etc.

– Protection and representation of citizens’ rights and interests in civil and criminal cases in general jurisdiction courts and arbitrage, in state authorities and local bodies, establishments and other organizations.
Only senior students who are deemed to be more knowledgeable and trained may do this wok. This activity allows students to familiarize with the work of courts, other bodies and organizations, obtain complex skills on judicial protection of infringed rights. 

– Rendering legal aid for the convicted (advice on correspondence, work with them in reformatories) by writing letters of advice to a convict, serving sentences in institutions of confinement, as well as by visiting correctional institutions based on the territory of Krasnoyarsk region.

Work with convicts helps students to study criminal law, criminal procedure and prison law more effectively and to obtain specific practical skills.
– Unique social psychologically-legal project “A step towards”.

In 2002 the teachers and students of the law clinic launched a project on establishment of rehabilitation institutions for inmates of Kansk and Abakan reformatories for juveniles.
The target of a project is to form positive, effective social competence, reduce risk of recidivistic conduct after release. The main idea of the project is both to help juveniles cope with difficulties when in reformatories and when back to normal, law-abiding life by means of permanent, complex and diversely organized work.

Various forms of activity within reformatories are conducting socially psychological, culturally cognitive, sporting-health-improving activities with convicted juveniles. More than that, individual and group work with the inmates, preparing for release (on parole or due to the lapse of sentence term) is a common practice.

Groups of 5-10 students regularly visit reformatories in Kansk and Abakan to render individual legal and socially psychological advice to inmates. Such interviews are aimed at assisting juveniles to solve legal and socially psychological problems, obtain and renew their positive social knowledge and skills facilitating their further adaptation to normal life after release. In addition, intensive courses aimed at inmates’ acquisition of practical skills are available.
Staff of the penitentiary system, are also subject to development in terms of training by the experts engaged in innovative methods application to convicted juveniles.

The project implementation does not only allow to balance and soften atmosphere within reformatories, significantly improve moral psychological climate among inmates but stimulates decrease in recidivism.
–Protection of citizens’ rights from illegal acts of law-enforcement officers (“Struggle against police tortures”)

In 2003 the law clinic subdivision aimed at protecting citizens’ interests suffered from police officers violent conduct was established as the result of collaboration with Krasoyarsk region public committee on protection of human rights. Its establishment was urged by the increasing amount of complaints made by citizens suffered from unlawful law-enforcement officers’ activity. The basic direction of the subdivision activity is public investigation of such unlawful violence.

A.S. Barabash- professor of the criminal procedure chair, Doctor of legal science is the head of the subdivision.

Public investigation, which is also conducted by the students involves information gathering confirming the legal ground for a complaint (that is questioning witnesses, claims of documents from medical and other organizations, any additional information). In case violation is confirmed, the law clinic informs the authorized representative to decide whether a guilty person could be held criminally liable and then exercises the public control of the investigation, including an appeal of groundless decisions

Gathered information is used for civil protection of torture victim’s interests by means of filing suits for damages and injured feelings, including precedents of European Court of Human Rights, and if necessary – by the means of submitting complaints to that court. Monitoring of such complaints is conducted pending the decision of the European Court of Human Rights.
Students’ work in this very subdivision of the clinic does not only facilitate deep interdisciplinary professional knowledge and skills acquisition, but forms their law awareness in the sphere of human rights protection.

The results achieved in 2010:

• About 1390 people applied to the clinic were rendered free legal aid.
• 19 qualified lawyers were trained for professional legal activity.
• 10 citizens’ interests were represented in courts.
• 28 victims’ rights suffered from police officers tortures were protected.
• More than 40 socially useful events were conducted for convicted juveniles and reformatory staff of Krasnoyarsk region.

I.A. Shevchenko

Head of the Law Clinic
Law Institute
SFU