On 17 December 2024, in the Split regional office of the Ombudswoman, Deputy Ombudswoman Dijana Kesonja and Advisor Mirela Buturović held consultations with free legal aid providers from the Šibenik-Knin, Split-Dalmatia, and Dubrovnik-Neretva counties.
In addition to representatives of civil society organizations providing free legal aid, the consultations were attended by representatives of the administrative departments of the Šibenik-Knin and Dubrovnik-Neretva counties, as well as the legal clinic of the Faculty of Law at the University of Split.
Deputy Kesonja emphasized the importance of an effective free legal aid system for the protection and realization of human rights, regardless of citizens’ financial status. Financial barriers that prevent certain groups from accessing justice significantly threaten the fundamental rule of law principle—access to justice and equality before the law and public authorities.
To ensure the system is effective and accessible to users, the Deputy stressed the need for cooperation among all stakeholders—county administrative departments, civil society organizations, legal clinics, and lawyers. Key to this is identifying challenges and exchanging experiences and suggestions for system improvement, which was the main purpose of these consultations.
During the discussion, participants shared their experiences in providing free legal aid to citizens and pointed out shortcomings in the existing system, offering suggestions for improvement. Existing issues include an insufficient number of legal aid providers—both in county departments and civil society organizations—their uneven territorial distribution, inadequate funding and delayed payments, limits on the number of legal actions lawyers can take based on approvals (which is often insufficient for more complex court cases), and a general lack of public awareness—particularly among vulnerable populations—about their rights within the free legal aid system.
To improve the current system, the need was highlighted for developing criteria for providing primary free legal aid, standardizing procedures among county departments, and continuously educating officials on relevant legal areas most commonly raised by citizens. There was also discussion of raising the financial threshold for eligibility for secondary free legal aid and updating the list of participating lawyers.
Although budgetary resources for free legal aid were increased in 2023—a positive development for the system’s functioning—the need for further increases in funding was raised. This includes accounting for real costs and actions undertaken by legal aid providers, as well as ensuring timely disbursement of approved funds for primary legal aid services. It was also noted that citizens, particularly the socially vulnerable, must be better informed about the free legal aid system and their rights under it.