Training Course on Legal Drafting Skills in Hebron University

The Legal Clinic of Hebron University (HU) organized a training course on the skills of legal drafting, funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The training runs for five intensive days from 29 January to 2 February 2012. It includes 25 trainees from the fourth-year law students of HU. The training was opened by Dr. Samir Abu Zneid, President of HU, who stressed the significance of legal clinic as the place for providing pro-bono legal services for Palestinians and to build the capacity of students on practical legal skills in order to be integrated in the market prior to graduation.

 
Dr. Mutaz Qafisheh, Professor of International Law and Legal Clinic Supervisor, also took part in the opening, noting that this course is part of a series of activities of the legal clinic, and will be followed by more, such as conferences, seminars, public lectures, law journal, which aims to raise the legal awareness and contribute to the strengthening the rule of law in Palestine and abroad. He added that this course would contribute to the teaching of law in practical and interactive methods, enhance students' lawyering skills, including on legislative drafting, writing of contracts, techniques of pleadings, providing legal opinions, writing of complaints and documentation of human rights violations. Mr. Rashad Tawam, Legal Clinic Coordinator, talked about the methodology of this training course and its relevance to the curricula of the Department of Law at Hebron University and its strategic plans.

The training will last for five days, thirty working hours, upon which students will acquire a diploma of participation. The training started by a session conducted by Dr. Qafisheh, which dealt with the issue of legislative policy and its translation into a law based on his previous experience as Legal Advisor to the Palestinian Legislative Council and as a Human Rights Officer at the United Nations in Geneva and Beirut. He presented four practical exercises relative to the drafting of a number of legislation such as nationality law, law of public assembly, by-laws of student unions in Palestinian universities and honor killings within the applicable criminal law. The second session was covered by Mr. Fayez Bakirat of the Institute of Law at Birzeit University, focusing on legislative drafting techniques. The following eight sessions of the training would bring together, as trainers, senior judges, lawyers, legal advisors and experts from local and international organizations.

 

Funded by UNDP, the Legal Clinic of Hebron University was opened in September 2011. It trains law students to provide pro-bono legal services and to build their capacity to practice law, learn lawyering skills by dealing with actual cases, before graduation. It is the hub for practical legal research, journal publication, rights activism, legal conferences and community awareness on the rule of law at Hebron University.