Peace and Justice
Child Law Clinic
Project synopsis
A research initiative which provides student-led research services to lawyers litigating children’s issues. It centres on children’s access to justice.
This study involves a comprehensive legal needs analysis of children and young people in Ireland in order to inform the development of a national model of child-friendly legal service provision. This analysis included consultation with children and young people through a focus group and an online survey.
Engaged Research Partners
- Support lawyers litigating children’s issues
- European Commission
- Children and young people
Engagement method or activity
- Needs analysis
- Consultation.
- Focus group.
- Online survey.
- Training modules were developed by an inter-disciplinary team of key experts and groups of children and young people from ten European countries.
Project outputs and outcomes
The outputs are as follows:
- The Child Law Clinic was commissioned by the European Commission to draft a policy brief distilling the main findings of the Commission’s study on children’s involvement in criminal, civil and administrative judicial proceedings in the 28 Member States of the EU. Using the international and European children’s rights standards as a framework, the brief assesses the extent to which children are guaranteed effective access to and adequate treatment in, criminal, civil and administrative judicial proceedings across Europe.
- Training for professionals.
The outcomes are as follows:
- The Clinic has piloted the training among professionals across the country, including social workers, probation officers, legal professionals, and staff working in residential care and detention settings.
Longer term anticipated areas for Impact
- Policy and/ or Product Development
- Capacity Building
- Social Internationalisation
Higher Education Institution:
University College Cork
Academic Contact:
Professor Ursula Kilkelly (UCC)
https://www.ucc.ie/en/childlawclinic/
