Legal aid services in the context of vulnerability: the case of land rights in Uganda

Abstract

There were concerns about the vulnerable person accessing legal aid in Uganda and the enjoyment of their land rights. To fill the identified knowledge gaps, this study examined legal aid services in the context of vulnerability: the case of land rights in Uganda. The study was guided by the following objectives: (1) to critically analyse the international legal and institutional framework for legal aid in the context of vulnerability; (2) to examine the domestic legal and institutional framework for legal aid for vulnerable persons in Uganda; and (3) to assess the provision of legal aid for vulnerable groups in selected jurisdictions. The study adopted the doctrinal research methodology analysing the law as is including an analysis of case law which clarified the grey areas of the law. The research also relied on a review of scholarly writings to illuminate the existing laws which helped to identify the gaps within which this study was located. The study found that the international legal and institutional framework for legal aid in the context of vulnerability was generally progressive as it implicitly or explicitly contained provisions of legal aid to vulnerable persons. For Uganda, it was established that the current legal framework on legal aid is scattered in many laws without principal legislation regulating legal aid in the country. The Legal Aid Bill 2022, which at the time of writing, was still under consideration by Parliament, gives some hope as the solution for the absence of the primary legislation regulating legal aid in Uganda. In most of the selected jurisdictions, their legal framework among others stipulates an elaborate structure for legal aid provision and supervision, the eligibility criteria and somewhat clear mechanisms for monitoring legal aid providers to evaluate their competencies. The study concludes and makes several recommendations including but not limited to: having a separate body to manage legal aid, adequate funding, prioritizing and or expediting the enactment of the Legal Aid bill, waiver of some fees on probono cases, improved enforcement of existing provisions in the current framework, improved coordination, capacity building interventions among others.