What does this involve?

The ability to pursue justice and navigate the legal system should not be dependent on your financial, ethnic or educational background. Simply put, everyone has the right to an accessible solution for their justice problem.

In reality, it is clear that modern legal systems are ill-equipped to meet this need. From national scandals like the Toeslag Affaire; to international crises seen during the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia; legal systems and the citizens they serve need our help. As legal innovation specialists, we have witnessed the power of research, education and entrepreneurship in addressing systemic challenges.

Our methodology combines all three elements under our Access to Justice theme;, increasing opportunities for cross-pollination and scaling of our projects at the same time as delivering the practical justice solutions citizens need.  

Translating the theme into projects

As with all of our work, we focus specifically on addressing the justice gaps arising from climate change. These justice gaps can be felt on a local scale by Dutch citizens, or can be overarching and experienced universally.

The Amsterdam Law Hub has worked extensively on this theme since its inception. Together with researchers, legal institutions and societal partners, we have designed and delivered innovative projects which directly contribute to improved Access to Justice.

Ongoing and completed projects

In recent years, we have already achieved a lot in improving access to justice. Below is a selection of these projects:

• Establishment of Vrouwenrechtswinkel Amsterdam. This legal advice centre now has three physical locations in Amsterdam where women can go for free legal advice.
• The 'Toeslagenaffaire' (Dutch Allowance Scandal) made us realise how important a balance is in the legal relationship between citizens and the government. However, finding just solutions often proves difficult for judges and government lawyers. That is why, in cooperation with ACLPA, UvA and HvA, we have developed the two-day master class 'Responsieve Overheidsjurist' (The Responsive Government Lawyer).
• One in five Amsterdam residents struggle with debt, but many seek help from informal places such as community centres. To support these informal helpers, we are setting up a legal back office under the name: 'Schuldenbrug'.

Partners

We work closely on this theme with the Amsterdam Centre on the Legal Professions and Access to Justice (ACLPA), C-Lab, Gemeente Amsterdam, the Raad voor Rechtsbijstand, the Ministry of Justice and Security and with Stichting Allemansrecht.