Lithuanian Ministry Calls For National Public Defenders

Read the Justice Ministry's press release.

Vilnius, January 9, 2004—The Lithuanian Justice Ministry yesterday endorsed the creation of a countrywide network of public defender offices, following the success of two model offices established with the help of the Open Society Justice Initiative. The recommendation opens the way for the most comprehensive reform of legal aid for poor persons charged with crimes in post-Communist Europe.

The Ministry’s announcement (see translated press release) followed a positive assessment by an ad hoc commission, of two pilot public defender offices in Vilnius, the capital, and Siauliai, a provincial city. The commission said the offices, founded in 2000 and 2002 in close consultation with the Justice Initiative, had improved access to justice in their areas. It recommended they be used as models for a countrywide public defender network. The Ministry is now taking steps to act on these recommendations.

Public defender offices employ full-time legal aid lawyers, who work together to ensure quality and efficient defense of individuals requiring legal assistance according to Lithuanian law. The present legal aid system, whereby lawyers are appointed from private practice on an ad hoc basis—often by investigating police or prosecutors—has long been considered inefficient and ineffective by the Lithuanian government.

A letter to the commission from Vilnius County Court commends the efficiency and dedication of legal-aid lawyers from the Vilnius pilot office. The letter also extols the selection procedure at the office, which is competitive and merit-based.

The commission’s positive assessment opens the way to more far-reaching reforms of Lithuania’s legal aid system. A government resolution of November 2003 outlined a new system of legal aid delivery, adapting the pilot offices. But implementation depended on the commission’s positive recommendation. The next steps will be to amend legislation, establish a special Co-ordination Council to oversee the new public defender offices, and establish the network itself.

The Open Society Justice Initiative, an operational program of the Open Society Institute, promotes rights-based law reform and strengthens legal capacity worldwide. Justice Initiative projects seek to shape law reform policy and achieve concrete results through hands-on technical assistance; litigation and legal advice; knowledge dissemination and network building; and counsel to donor institutions. The Justice Initiative works in the following thematic areas: national criminal justice reform; international justice; freedom of information and expression; anticorruption; equality and citizenship. Its offices are in New York, Budapest, and Abuja. www.justiceinitiative.org.

For more on the Lithuanian Public Defender Offices visit: http://www.justiceinitiative.org/activities/ncjr/atj/lithuania/

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