IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RIGHT TO LEGAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS REGARDING WAR CRIMES IN UKRAINE

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33244/2617-4154-4(17)-2024-234-244

Keywords:

legal aid, criminal proceedings, war crimes, sponsors, victim, lawyer, international standards

Abstract

The article explores the right to legal aid, which is a key element of the right to a fair trial in criminal cases related to war crimes. The importance of this right for suspects and victims is emphasized, because its implementation affects the observance of justice in the conditions of military conflicts. The purpose of the study is to analyze the legal mechanisms for ensuring the right to legal assistance for suspects and victims, to study their practical implementation and to determine ways to improve this assistance in the context of war crimes.

To achieve the goal, the methods of legal analysis, comparative research, and the analysis of law enforcement practice were used.

The existing legal mechanisms for ensuring the right to legal assistance for both categories of participants in criminal proceedings are analyzed. The peculiarities of legal norms and their law enforcement practices, which regulate access to legal aid for victims of war crimes, as well as for persons suspected/accused of committing them, are disclosed. Approaches to ensuring rights and guarantees for each of these categories are compared, and the effectiveness of their actual implementation is also studied. The work determined that the existing legal mechanisms are not always effective. Difficulties related to access to justice and ensuring impartiality are especially highlighted. Victims' rights to qualified legal assistance are often not properly implemented and suspects face problems in protecting their rights.

The importance of specialization in legal, judicial and law enforcement institutions for the investigation of war crimes emphasizes the need to improve the quality of legal aid. The specific proposals of the authors are: 1) To introduce specialized training for lawyers and judges in the field of international humanitarian law; 2) Ensure access to independent legal aid for all victims of war crimes; 3) Develop effective witness protection mechanisms;
4) Conduct information campaigns to raise citizens' awareness of their rights.

Published

2025-01-09

How to Cite

OMELCHUK, L. V., & HULIIEVA, Z. N. (2025). IMPLEMENTATION OF THE RIGHT TO LEGAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS REGARDING WAR CRIMES IN UKRAINE. Irpin Legal Chronicles, (4(17), 234–244. https://doi.org/10.33244/2617-4154-4(17)-2024-234-244

Issue

Section

Сriminal procedure and criminalistics; forensic examination; operational-search activity