Tetyana S. (not her real name), a young widow with a small daughter, is the fortunate owner of an apartment who recently avoided eviction following the death of her husband, thanks to free legal aid made possible by a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) project partner in Khmelnytskyi.

Tetyana’s husband owned a three-quarters’ interest in the flat, but had not secured necessary legal documentation guaranteeing ownership before tragically passing away in a car accident. After his death, Tetyana contact the Podillya Legal League, a Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine-based non-governmental organization (NGO). The NGO’s lawyers provided her with free legal aid, which helped her to file a lawsuit. Professional lawyers provided the woman with pro bono services, and she ultimately won her case in appellate court.

This Podillya Legal League case in protecting property rights is one of many examples of the provision of free legal aid in Ukraine. On March 14-16, 2012, the Podillya Legal League and representatives more than 100 legal organizations across Ukraine met in Khmelnytskyi to share best practices for providing low-income citizens with access to justice and to plan upcoming joint activities. The discussions among NGO, student legal clinic and private law firm representatives took place during the Sixth Quarterly Meeting of the USAID Access to Justice and Legal Empowerment Project (LEP) in Ukraine, Pravova Krayina.

The participants are among those forming a network that provides free legal aid. More than 100 legal advocacy organizations comprise the network, and actively work in the areas of health care law, labor relations, and property rights protection. During the Khmelnytskyi meeting they agreed that their joint activities should be strengthened to create an independent and vital nationwide network for providing free legal services.

Don Saunders, the Vice President of the Washington, DC-based National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA) – the oldest and largest non-profit association of legal service providers in the U.S. – attended the meeting as a special guest. “Working together, we are one of the largest and strongest law firms in the U.S,” said Mr. Saunders. “It took 65 years of great struggle before we were able to secure funding from national government of the U.S, and another 15 years to get adequate funding to have a legal aid program for every state and county.” NLADA celebrated its 100-year anniversary in 2011.

Saunders said he was greatly impressed by the Ukrainian coalition’s facilitation of access to justice for citizens. “These coalitions should be fostered by any means so they can become effective legal advocates and defend civil rights,” said Sanders in his address to the meeting participants.

Iryna Ivanchuk, representing Ukraine’s Ministry of Justice at the meeting, emphasized the USAID project’s contributions in the development of coalitions [including three distinct legal coalitions working in health care, labor relations and property rights law] and the project’s effectiveness in expanding their activities, the professional growth of their members, and the valuable gains in experience.

The meeting of USAID LEP partners evoked great interest among local government officials who actively participated in the event. The coalitions’ members visited the Khmelnytskyi City Hall, where they learned about cooperation between local governmental and the NGO. They also had an opportunity to see the Podillya Legal League office, which was offered to the League rent-free after Khmelnytskiy authorities saw the value in what the organization was doing.

As part of the project, USAID is helping to develop a specialized nation-wide legal network of more than 100 legal NGOs and student legal clinics, which are supported by27 private law firms from across Ukraine. More than 500 people have received free legal aid since fall 2010 under the three coalitions.