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Download the file - United Nations Rule of Law

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ity <strong>of</strong> ADR decisions. If it is too easy to challengean ADR ruling in court, <strong>the</strong>n parties do not have asufficient incentive to take ADR seriously (Shavell1995). On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r hand, <strong>the</strong> harder it is to contestADR decisions, <strong>the</strong> greater <strong>the</strong> concern thatimportant individual rights and entitlements arebeing decided outside <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> judicial system bynon-state actors.While all <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se problems are serious and legitimateconcerns, a number <strong>of</strong> countries have hadconsiderable success crafting ADR programmesthat reduce <strong>the</strong> burden on <strong>the</strong> judicial systemand increase access at a relatively low cost. InBangladesh, for example, local mediation councilsresolve 60 -70 percent <strong>of</strong> local disputes (US-AID 2002). In Argentina, <strong>the</strong> Ministry <strong>of</strong> Justiceand USAID supported <strong>the</strong> creation <strong>of</strong> legal servicecentres in Buenos Aires to provide mediationservices, and <strong>the</strong>se centres appear to have beeneffective (USAID 2002). Again, while <strong>the</strong> design<strong>of</strong> appropriate ADR programmes is challengingand context-dependent, most available evidenceindicates that developing cost-effective ADR programmesis an important though imperfect means<strong>of</strong> providing an alternative to using an overcrowdedcourt system.Bundling with O<strong>the</strong>r ServicesLegal aid programmes are most effective when<strong>the</strong>y are bundled with o<strong>the</strong>r social services ra<strong>the</strong>rthan <strong>of</strong>fered as stand-alone programmes. Forexample, <strong>the</strong> South African Legal Aid Board,which experimented with a variety <strong>of</strong> models forproviding civil legal aid, found that <strong>the</strong> most effectivemodel is a ‘justice centre’ model — a ‘onestop legal shop’ that provides comprehensivelegal services through a combination <strong>of</strong> lawyers,advocates, paralegals, and administrative staff(MacQuoid-Mason 2000). Similarly, many LatinAmerican countries have had success with ‘Casasde Justicia’ (Houses <strong>of</strong> Justice) that provide assistancewith both legal and non-legal aspects<strong>of</strong> common problems, such as child support andcustody issues, property disputes, domestic violence,and administrative matters (USAID 2002).This model may be more effective than state subsidisation<strong>of</strong> private lawyers and advocates whoprovide legal services to <strong>the</strong> poor.Arelated point is that international donorshave had more success funding local NGOsthat provide a variety <strong>of</strong> services, including legalservices, than in funding NGOs that provideexclusively legal services. More encompassingorganisations tend to be more effective in reaching<strong>the</strong> target population, and <strong>the</strong>y also tend to bemore sustainable in <strong>the</strong> long term (ADB 2001a).Thus, adding legal services capacity to existingcommunity-based organisations is a more promisingstrategy than supporting or establishing neworganisations that focus exclusively on providinglegal aid. One possible ‘bundling’ strategy thatholds particular promise is <strong>the</strong> integration <strong>of</strong> legalaid services with micr<strong>of</strong>inance institutions (MFIs).MFIs have regular access to poor communities anda group-based service delivery model well-suited tolegal aid services, especially when collective actionis necessary. Reformers have already begun to experimentwith incorporating health and educationservices within existing MFIs, and early indicationssuggest this integration has been effective (Dunford2002). Adding legal aid services seems like areasonable next stepMany <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> generic and actual examples citedin this paper reflect how legal implementationcan build on or integrate with o<strong>the</strong>r developmentactivities and fields. In fact, legal empowerment<strong>of</strong>ten is most effective when this takes place.The integration with community organising andgroup formation represents this phenomenon.Ano<strong>the</strong>r example is <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> media, which27

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