Law students to provide free primary legal aid to vulnerable people across Moldova following OSCE training event

The OSCE Mission to Moldova organized a training event for 21 law students between 7 and 9 June 2017 to equip them with the knowledge and skills to deliver primary legal aid to vulnerable people across Moldova. Law students from Moldova’s north and south participated in the event, held at Vadul-lui-Vodă, a town by the Dniester/Nistru River.

Through exercises and lectures, the law students learnt how to conduct interviews with beneficiaries – people who otherwise may not have access to legal assistance – to effectively identify the legal issues they face and to refer them to the competent authorities. The students also tackled a number of administrative aspects related to the legal aid system in Moldova. In learning to provide primary legal aid, the students drew on the Guide on Delivery of State Guaranteed Legal Aid by Future Lawyers, published as part of the Mission’s project in 2015 and aimed specifically at law students. 

“After this event I feel much better prepared to offer primary legal aid, and look forward to applying my knowledge and helping those most in need of legal assistance,” said Ion Drangoi, a student from Cahul in the south of Moldova. 

This event is a part of the Mission’s project to ensure the provision of state guaranteed legal aid in Moldova. Previously, law students participating in the project provided primary legal aid within territorial offices of the National Legal Aid Council. This year, the same student legal aid model will be implemented within law faculties and local NGOs, with a view to making the model more sustainable and further diversifying those equipped to deliver primary legal aid. The project is implemented jointly by the Mission and the NGO Institute for Penal Reform, based in Chisinau.