There are 12 legal aid centres in Amsterdam that employ students from the University of Amsterdam. It is estimated that around 150 students help people with all kinds of legal questions every year. As a result, they gain valuable practical experience. We support these law centres in various ways, including by providing extra-curricular training, offering supportive research, organising board meetings and offering various facilities.

Goals

The purpose of this support is twofold.

• We aim to provide students with a learning experience driven by how the law works in practice. In addition to skills, students learn about their professional identity and their role as legal professionals.
• On the other hand, we want to improve the quality of services provided by legal aid centres and further professionalise them, thus helping people with a need for help even better.

Activities

• Thanks to the Teaching Innovation Grant from the Teaching and Learning Centre (TLC), we have started building a knowledge platform, where law schools can gain knowledge and exchange best-practices with each other. This will encourage and facilitate community service learning. We expect to launch the platform in October and make it available to all legal aid centres in Amsterdam.
• We have also developed a curriculum for law students that includes training focused on practical skills. This is in line with the theoretical skills students acquire in education at the UvA. The trainings are specifically focused on legal aid centre work, such as consultation hours. Consider, for example, interview techniques. Trainings are held monthly during the academic year.
• The law centres affiliated to the Amsterdam Law Hub have signed a guideline with quality criteria, committing themselves to professional standards. This reiterates the importance of well-executed community service learning.

Impact numbers

• Thanks to support from the TLC, in collaboration with Nationale Ombudsman, we have set up a knowledge platform within 'Raadbaak' with four different modules. Law students will soon have access to this.
• 12 law centres have signed the 'Richtlijn Kwaliteitscriteria', which includes a commitment to provide good, professional quality services.
• In 2023, five training sessions have been organised so far from the law school curriculum. About 70 students participated in these trainings.
• Two law firms have been given the opportunity to work with the practice management platform Toonbank.
• Four board meetings between the 12 legal aid centres were held in 2023, including space for sharing best-practices.
• Over €10,000 in grants were awarded to the legal aid centres for the purpose of further quality improvement and professionalisation.