International Lawyers Project

ILP anticipates being involved in many projects around the world as the charity grows focussing on legal infrastructure and capacity building, legal training and access to law. To date ILP has been consulted on a number of projects by organisations looking for pro bono legal help.

LATEST:
ILP successfully launched its first training programme in Tanzania in May 2008.

Welcomed by Ministers both in Tanzania and the UK, the International Lawyers Project's interactive training programme was so well received that the Ministry of Justice, the Tanganyika Law Society and the recently formed School of Law want to establish an ongoing partnership with ILP in Tanzania.

45 Tanzanian lawyers spent a week in intensive roleplay and interactive exercises designed by leading City solicitors to enhance their understanding of ADR and Advocacy. Eight lawyers from Clifford Chance, Herbert Smith, Clyde and Co and SJ Berwin set up a mock courtroom at the offices of the British Council in front of the Minister of Justice, Augustino Ramadhani, who gave the key note address.
David Mayhew one of the lawyers from Herbert Smith on the project said "As with all skills-based, learning-by-doing programmes, the training was rewarding for all concerned. For most of the lawyers this was their first experience of this type of training and they were enthusiastic for more."

Project Manager Sarah Poland said "Clearly we have a successful product and one that there is a great demand for - taking this programme forward now requires serious funding which we will be looking into."

City firms currently involved with in the training (Clifford Chance, Herbert Smith, SJ Berwin, Clyde & Co, Freshfields, Lovells, DLA Piper, Eversheds, A & O and Nabarro) are keen to see the programme develop both in Tanzania and across Africa. Further trips are planned this autumn, again in Dar es Salaam, where modules in Money Laundering, Finance and Taking Security, Commercial Contracts, Managing a Law Practice, PPP, E Commerce and Insolvency will be taught.

Lawyers interested in finding out more should contact ILP Project Manager Sarah Poland on spoland@internationallawyersproject.org.

Projects for which ILP has assisted other organisations to identify lawyers:

THE BRITISH COUNCIL asked ILP to identify a lawyer to speak at a seminar in Beijing organised by the Criminal Legislation Department of the National Peoples Congress of China and the UN Development Programme. The broad aim of the programme was to improve protection for the rights of suspects in pre-trial procedures, through learning about the systems in the UK. Mr William Coker QC spoke on the exposition of the seminal PACE Act. (June 2007).
BRITISH COUNCIL’S project with the Criminal Law Department of the legislative Affairs Commission of the National People’s Congress to advise on sentencing and appeals procedures in China. (Feb 2006).
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
ILP was asked to provide legal assistance to the Darfur peace talks in 2006. More recently they were asked to help find lawyers for three positions where expertise in the rule of law was required for Government and for The Council of European Union.
In March 2006, ILP arranged a small reception for ten Iraqi lawyers as part of the Iraqi jurists UK Study Tour organised by the International Bar Association with funding from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Projects on which ILP is currently working include:

PAKISTAN
An Advocacy training programme is being designed to take place later this year in three cities, Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi.
INDIA
ILP has been invited to help organise a training programme for law students in Delhi, Bombay and Hyderabad to take place in 2008.
TANZANIA
In April 2007 ILP, in conjunction with Global Challenge, conducted a needs assessment of the legal sector in Tanzania. Rajat Jindal a former litigation partner with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer spent 2 weeks in Tanzania meeting a wide range of lawyers in Arusha and Dar Es Salaam. Meetings were held with law students, practitioners, magistrates, judges, Government officials and users of legal services.
The purpose of the project was to:
• understand the legal education system and the structure of the profession in Tanzania;
• to collect views on the present legal sector reform programme; and
• to invite views on the areas in which ILP and Global Challenge could assist by providing further resources or training.
Following the visit a report has been prepared and a number of potential projects identified. The project won the support of the Attorney General’s International Pro Bono Committee. Plans are now underway to co ordinate the work highlighted in this report by ILP.
ROMANIA
At the end of 2006 ILP were approached by Robinhood Ministries to provide legal assistance to people who are destitute in the Romanian city of Isai. There are many people living in Romania without basic identification documents, as a consequence of which they cannot access essential necessities such as legal employment, social welfare, fair treatment by the police and courts. Viral Kataria, currently a non-practising Barrister and a Masters student in International Human Rights Law, went to Romania in March 2007 to evaluate the ground situation and met with lawyers, charity workers and the residents themselves.
ILP is currently in discussions with lawyers in England and Romania as to how this project can be furthered.
OXFAM
In March ILP were approached by Oxfam GB with a request to identify a senior lawyer to assist them. Tim Soutar, a retired Clifford Chance partner, spent 3-4 months with Joss Saunders, the director of legal services at Oxfam. A major part of his time was taken up in helping the Trading and Supporter Marketing teams review and negotiate a variety of contractual arrangements relating, for example, to the supply of media services and of personnel and facilities to assist with fund-raising activities. In addition, Tim worked with Joss on a project he was conducting to improve and expand the provision of legal services within Oxfam.
Joss Saunders said: ‘ The services of a senior lawyer with a breadth of experience in commercial contracts was very valuable to Oxfam, helping us to analyse key risks in individual transactions, and to develop our contract negotiation and management processes. We’re grateful to Tim for the work he undertook’.
THE INTERNATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION’S Global Challenge project to provide legal training for the world’s 50 least developed countries to facilitate their internal investment and economic growth.

Projects ILP has assisted with:

EUROPE

Acevo is the professional body for the third sector’s chief executives. Two years ago they started an international programme to share their expertise with leaders from around the World. ILP has been asked for advice on the legal status of a new programme they are setting up, from a pan-European perspective. Lawyers from Simmons and Simmons are taking on this work for the charity pro bono for ILP and Acevo.

Ben Rattenbury from Acevo said ‘ ILP has been immensely helpful to our fledgling network Euclid. Because this is the first network of its kind, working with individuals as members, we faced a number of challenges to find the most appropriate constitution and legal form, as well as understandable political sensitivity around which country the organisation would be registered in. we received excellent help from Simmons and Simmons who were able to provide the exactly the rare and valuable expertise we required.

BLACK LAWYERS’ ASSOCIATION (September-October 2005). In conjunction with ISLP, ILP assisted in the programme for affordable training and mentoring in commercial law for South African lawyers by arranging for Dan Mace (formerly of Lovells) and Charles Randell (of Slaughter and May) to participate in the programme in Johannesburg and Durban respectively. The long-term goal of the Black Lawyers Association is to promote the successful participation of South African lawyers in the economic and professional life of their society.

DEPARTMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT’S project to enhance access to law in Mozambique. ILP helped to arrange a 1 day seminar hosted by Ashursts London Office.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION IN ROMANIA (June 2005). In conjunction with ISLP, ILP assisted Romanian parliamentarians and government representatives in Bucharest by arranging for Mark Stephens (of Stephens Finer) to discuss the implications of freedom of information issues and to help them to analyse their freedom of information laws which are under review.

MENTORING STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION IN AFRICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (February 2005).

The first project in which ILP was involved (under the aegis of and in conjunction with Solicitors Pro Bono Group) was to provide a mentor for each of the four senior staff members from respectively the Law Association of Zambia, the Law Society of Botswana, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States Bar Association and the Law Society of Trinidad and Tobago while they were on a two month fellowship to the UK, hosted by the International Department of the Law Society. Nigel Boardman (Slaughter and May), Michael Mathews (formerly Clifford Chance LLP and a past President of the Law Society), Peter Scragg (formerly Goodger Auden) and Isla Smith (formerly Norton Rose) were the volunteer mentors.