Legal Aid Clinic

‘A true lawyer is one who places truth and service in the first place and the emoluments of the profession in the next place only’, said Mahatma Gandhi.

The Right to Legal Aid is guaranteed to every citizen by virtue of Article 21 and Article 39-A of the Indian Constitution. This provision thus assures every citizen with quality legal aid and thus it is the provision of assistance to people, who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. They act as a method of practical teaching of law and it is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, right to counsel, and right to a fair trial.

Bharata Mata School of Legal Studies believes that being a law school it is our responsibility to facilitate legal aid and provide legal assistance to those who cannot afford it and thus in collaboration with the Kerala Legal Services Authority and District Legal Services Committee, Ernakulam, BSOLS provides practical and parallel justice education to student lawyers. The legal aid clinic of BSOLS functions from Monday to Friday till 4.00p.m during the time which it encourages people from the local community who needs legal assistance and who cannot afford to appoint a lawyer of their own. Their issues will be heard by the faculty coordinators who have well experience in the field of advocacy and gives them necessary instructions with regard to their issue as to what step should be taken or if the situation demand they will be directed to meet the advocate from KELSA in the legal aid session which is to happen in 3rd Saturdays of every month in the institution itself.

There will be a sitting of the Legal Aid Clinic on 3rd Saturdays of every month at 2.00 p.m. where an advocate from KELSA joins the session and gives necessary advice to the clients who have come for help in the previous month. The clients will be given necessary advice as to whether they should go forward with their legal issue or is to better to go for a settlement.

The highlight of this programme is that the students who are members of the legal aid clinic get to know the real issues of the common people and the role played by an advocate in their lives. Moreover, after the session the advocate makes a general discussion with the students regarding the cases which came upon that day thereby the students getting a chance to understand and analyze various provisions of various laws. To make the session more interesting, before the meeting starts with the clients there will be various programmes held by the students such as debate, judgment analysis, etc. and it will be strictly under the guidance of the coordinators such. These programmes make the students up to date with the changing laws. Legal aid Clinic of BSOLS thus helps the common people of the society in their legal issues and along with it plays an important role in the overall development of the budding lawyers of this institution.