This baseline survey form is for assessing key justice issues, actors and context within high-level community stakeholder meetings. Originally used in Sierra Leone for a Community Justice Needs Assessment for the scale-up of justice services there, it can be referenced as a good example of conducting interviews for a baseline survey and community justice needs assessment anywhere when meeting with high level stakeholders within the community.
This research brief is part of a series that reviews the nature of the work undertaken by community paralegals, and the extent to which that work is recognized or funded by government. In New Zealand, paralegals are formally recognized in the 2011 New Zealand Legal Services Act + 2006 Lawyers and Conveyancers Act.
The first briefs published for this series focus on the types of community paralegals who have been formally recognized either in law or policy. We acknowledge that this is just a small part of a much larger picture. Beyond the government-recognized paralegals discussed in these briefs, a broader, dynamic ecosystem of community paralegals operates effectively without state recognition in many countries. We aim to one day expand our research to offer a more comprehensive analysis of this larger universe. For now, however, our research briefs are limited to offering summary information and illustrative examples of the community paralegals who have been formally recognized by law or policy.
Each of these briefs is a living document– if you have an update, addition, or a correction, please contact us at community@namati.org.
This research brief is part of a broader resource guide on community paralegal recognition and financing that includes additional community paralegal research briefs, a list of supplemental laws and resources for each country, and other supporting materials on the subject.
This research brief is part of a series that reviews the nature of the work undertaken by community paralegals, and the extent to which that work is recognized or funded by government. In Indonesia, paralegals are formally recognized in the 2011 Law on Legal Assistance and Regulation 182 (2018). However, a 2018 Supreme Court decision diluted this recognition when it declared invalid substantive provisions of the 2018 regulation specifying the paralegals’ functions.
The first briefs published for this series focus on the types of community paralegals who have been formally recognized either in law or policy. We acknowledge that this is just a small part of a much larger picture. Beyond the government-recognized paralegals discussed in these briefs, a broader, dynamic ecosystem of community paralegals operates effectively without state recognition in many countries. We aim to one day expand our research to offer a more comprehensive analysis of this larger universe. For now, however, our research briefs are limited to offering summary information and illustrative examples of the community paralegals who have been formally recognized by law or policy.
Each of these briefs is a living document– if you have an update, addition, or a correction, please contact us at community@namati.org.
This research brief is part of a broader resource guide on community paralegal recognition and financing that includes additional community paralegal research briefs, a list of supplemental laws and resources for each country, and other supporting materials on the subject.
This research brief is part of a series that reviews the nature of the work undertaken by community paralegals, and the extent to which that work is recognized or funded by government. In 2012, the Sierra Leonean government adopted a legal aid law that recognizes the role paralegals play in delivering justice services and calls for a paralegal in every chiefdom in the country.
The first briefs published for this series focus on the types of community paralegals who have been formally recognized either in law or policy. We acknowledge that this is just a small part of a much larger picture. Beyond the government-recognized paralegals discussed in these briefs, a broader, dynamic ecosystem of community paralegals operates effectively without state recognition in many countries. We aim to one day expand our research to offer a more comprehensive analysis of this larger universe. For now, however, our research briefs are limited to offering summary information and illustrative examples of the community paralegals who have been formally recognized by law or policy.
Each of these briefs is a living document– if you have an update, addition, or a correction, please contact us at community@namati.org.
This research brief is part of a broader resource guide on community paralegal recognition and financing that includes additional community paralegal research briefs, a list of supplemental laws and resources for each country, and other supporting materials on the subject.
This research brief is part of a series that reviews the nature of the work undertaken by community paralegals, and the extent to which that work is recognized or funded by government. Malawi’s Legal Aid Act recognizes “Legal Aid Assistants,” who are not qualified as legal practitioners, but are authorized to work full-time as a service provider with the Legal Aid Bureau or any clinical law studies program.
The first briefs published for this series focus on the types of community paralegals who have been formally recognized either in law or policy. We acknowledge that this is just a small part of a much larger picture. Beyond the government-recognized paralegals discussed in these briefs, a broader, dynamic ecosystem of community paralegals operates effectively without state recognition in many countries. We aim to one day expand our research to offer a more comprehensive analysis of this larger universe. For now, however, our research briefs are limited to offering summary information and illustrative examples of the community paralegals who have been formally recognized by law or policy.
Each of these briefs is a living document– if you have an update, addition, or a correction, please contact us at community@namati.org.
This research brief is part of a broader resource guide on community paralegal recognition and financing that includes additional community paralegal research briefs, a list of supplemental laws and resources for each country, and other supporting materials on the subject.
This research brief is part of a series that reviews the nature of the work undertaken by community paralegals, and the extent to which that work is recognized or funded by government. In China, “personnel” of legal aid institutions or “persons of other social organizations in accordance with the demand” may conduct legal aid. However, regulations do not provide further guidance on the role, minimum qualifications, or practices of non-lawyer legal aid providers.
The first briefs published for this series focus on the types of community paralegals who have been formally recognized either in law or policy. We acknowledge that this is just a small part of a much larger picture. Beyond the government-recognized paralegals discussed in these briefs, a broader, dynamic ecosystem of community paralegals operates effectively without state recognition in many countries. We aim to one day expand our research to offer a more comprehensive analysis of this larger universe. For now, however, our research briefs are limited to offering summary information and illustrative examples of the community paralegals who have been formally recognized by law or policy.
Each of these briefs is a living document– if you have an update, addition, or a correction, please contact us at community@namati.org.
This research brief is part of a broader resource guide on community paralegal recognition and financing that includes additional community paralegal research briefs, a list of supplemental laws and resources for each country, and other supporting materials on the subject.
This research brief is part of a series that reviews the nature of the work undertaken by community paralegals, and the extent to which that work is recognized or funded by government. In Nigeria, Paralegals are provided some formal recognition under Nigeria’s Legal Aid Act of 2011. Paralegals operate mostly in civil matters.
The first briefs published for this series focus on the types of community paralegals who have been formally recognized either in law or policy. We acknowledge that this is just a small part of a much larger picture. Beyond the government-recognized paralegals discussed in these briefs, a broader, dynamic ecosystem of community paralegals operates effectively without state recognition in many countries. We aim to one day expand our research to offer a more comprehensive analysis of this larger universe. For now, however, our research briefs are limited to offering summary information and illustrative examples of the community paralegals who have been formally recognized by law or policy.
Each of these briefs is a living document– if you have an update, addition, or a correction, please contact us at community@namati.org.
This research brief is part of a broader resource guide on community paralegal recognition and financing that includes additional community paralegal research briefs, a list of supplemental laws and resources for each country, and other supporting materials on the subject.
This resource was designed to serve grassroots women, trainers, and facilitators involved in community justice activities across Africa. It was written by grassroots women, trainers, and facilitators who are members of the Huairou Commission and its Women’s Land Link Africa (WLLA) initiative. Later in the Guide, they’ll share how grassroots women across Africa have achieved justice, especially related to land rights, and how they’ve equipped volunteers who continue to work for justice in their communities. They describe how they work together, talk through issues, and get work done. They share sample activities, case studies, and references to helpful additional resources.
The Grassroots Women’s Community Justice Guide has six broad aims and three specific purposes.
Six broad aims of Our Justice, Our Leadership
• Introduce women with land issues to opportunities for community justice
• Share the experience and wisdom of grassroots women and organizations
• Help women gain ownership of land and property and work on land and
property rights
• Build capacity to mobilize women and communities for justice work
• Support cooperation among organizations focusing on statutory and legal
rights and communities focusing on customary and traditional practices
• Support sustainable initiatives
Three specific purposes of Our Justice, Our Leadership
• Describe what a Community Justice Process involves
• Describe what Community Justice Workers are trained to do
• Provide resources to help grassroots women organize their own Community Justice Process and mobilize their own Community Justice Workers
The Community Justice Guide provides information about (a) planning, implementing, strengthening, and sustaining a Community Justice Process and (b) recruiting, selecting, training, and mobilizing Community Justice Workers. The process and the people are inseparable, but for the purposes of this Guide, we want to distinguish the two kinds of activities — the two paths, the community organizing path and the leadership development path.
This blog post explains how Namati and the Kenya Land Alliance piloted a participatory community mapping process with two communities in Tana River, Kenya. Namati and KLA used handheld GPS devices to record boundary and feature locations and then used that data in QGIS software to create maps that were validated by the communities.
A chapter from the Guide that explains the Community Vision activity, designed to build community unity and motivation to complete the community land protection process.
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This resource is one chapter from Namati’s Community Land Protection Facilitators Guide, which can be accessed here. To view all the individual chapters and supporting resources, refer to the interactive online version of the Community Land Protection Facilitators Guide here.