Is there a place for

legal advice bureaux

and law clinics?*
_ _ _ _ A Chaskalson SC, advocate, Johannesburg _ _ __

The legal aid system Citizens advice bureaux

The part th at ca n be played by l ega l advic e bure:llI x In Engl:lnd, apart from ~en-ices provided tilro ugil
and law clini cs in making th e co urt S and th e lega l the l eg:il profession thefe :lre approximately nine
system m o re accessible to th e puhlic, needs to be hundrecl citizens :Idvice bureaux who provide as·
evaiuated in the context orthe legal aid syS telll as it sist:IIKe inleg:il disputes and whose operation s are
exists in SOlllh Africa. fund ed in tile main bY 10cII authorities. Although
The last published report of th e So uth Afric:1n SO llle oftilese citi/ells advict' bureau x h;lve la\V\'ers
Legal Aid Boa rd is for the year ended 31 March o n their st:tli. or scheilles fo r 1:1"·yers to consu-It Ci t
1985 . It showed t~at the board spent R3,9 milli o n the hure:lll x in the evenings 011 :\ volunt:ll:' l);l.<; i .~ ,
on legal services during that year. Co ntrast this mos t o f the work is in Llct done hy perso ns without
with the legal aid system in England whose popu - le g: i1 qualilicllions and about 90% of them are
lati o n is approximately twi ce that o f South Africa vo lulHe ers. In the 1985/ 1986 ve;l r citi zens advice
and where the expenditure o n lega l aid se rvices in bureaux dealt with approxim ;I'lely 6,3 million en -
1986 was approximately £400 million (which is quiries and in only abo ut 10% of Ihese cases were
eqUivalent to just under R1 500 million) Although c l ients referred [0 1:I\v\ers_ There are a number of
the legal aid board's budget ha s in cre ase d since reasons fo r this \vhie-h' :lfe o f equal application 10
1985 and the expenditure on lega l service s in 1986 So ulh Africa.
was probably closer to R5 million than R3,9 mil- First , much of the ad\'ice given is in social security
Reproduced by Sabinet Gateway under licence granted by the Publisher ( dated 2011)

lion, it is still woefully inadequate . law :11 1(1 : lspeCl~ o f prover(\- l:t\y in reiationt o which
];I\\;·ers do nOl h:lve:1 gre:1[ de:ti of expe rience. Lay
:Ichise rs handl in g hunclrecls of cases a ),e:u in these
spt'ci: i1i zed fiel cls soo n :lcCju ire a greater expertise
• Papel delivered ~l the Twelfth Soulh Mri c:l11 L l\v in Illanaging suc h problems than la\\:-ers in ordi-
Conferellce J987 , Joh:llll1e ~ hurg. Adv Anilur Cll:I.~ bl · nal·Y pr:ll'tice woulcl h;lve . W'e h:l\'e <I simple exaJ1l-
son SC BC OIllIll LU3 (c um laude) ( Wits) , is vice· pi e 01- th is p ro ces~ in Sou th Africi. Over the \'ears
chairman of lhe General Council of lhe Bar of Soulh the 81; lck Sash Ius huil t up consider:lhle experti se
Africa and n;llional director of the Legal Resources in de:tiing with prohlems relatin g to influx control,
Centre _ citi l.enship o f bl:tck persons and other rel:lted

Adv Arrhur
Chaskalsol1
( centre), wilh Mr
Roger Cleaver and
Mr Mo nty Knoll,
chairman and P:lS(
chairman of
De Reb/ls
editorial committee.

OKTOI3ER 1987
 OFFICE AUTOMATION
A MANAGERIAL
APPROACH
When the highs and lows of winning or losing in a case recede-the bottom line is
that you are running a business.
The specialist team at Interact have now introduced the complete legal office auto-
mation system for any size firm-'from one PC to a complete network of terminals in-
cluding laser printers which can be shared.
Document Handling, Text Production and now office
mail are all addressed by Interact's consultants
and backed by a countrywide network of sales
and support.
Interacts' Office Plan, a managerial
approach to increased
prod uctivity.
Reproduced by Sabinet Gateway under licence granted by the Publisher ( dated 2011)

OFFICE OF ICE
PLAN PLAN

a m. m oer 0 1 111<" OhIO Gruup

Interact
Interact, Ohio House, c/o Commerce Crescent and Danfleld Rd., Eastgate Ext. 13. Tel: 804-2926 (4 lines). PO. Box 651445, Benmore 201C
 DE REBUS

mailers, The work of the Black Sash is done almost with urhall problems though they are not exactly
entirely by lay advisers without legal qualifications the S:lllle;lS those experienced in rural areas where
who work on a voluntary basis, On occasions they there is, as \'et, no infrastructure of advice offices,
have to turn to lawyers for assistance but the The proble/m of urban dwellers in the main are
overwhelming volume of their work is done within concerned with social welfare legislation such as
their own offices and I would think that well over unemployment insurance; pensions and work·
90% of the problems which they encounter are men's compensation; housing and rent; employ
solved by them without reference to lavvyers, Be ment; consumer explOitation; management of
cause of the expertise which they have acquired, debts; relationship with the bureaucracy; family
there are few, if any, lawyers who would be able to disputes; claims for personal injuries ;lfising out of
do rhe work which passes through their offices as accidents, assaults etc; and criminal charges,
well and as efficiently as the Black Sash workers Criminal prosecutions, matrimonial disputes and
do, damages claims cannot ordinarily be resolved by
Secondly, and this is of particular importance in advice offices, What they can lIsefully do is to
South Africa, many of t he problems which come 10 explain the functioning 'of the legal system to
advice bureaux are concerned with the inability of persons who come to them for advice on such
illiterate or ignorant clients to find their way matters, refer them to the mainrenace court where
through complicated regulations, to assert them th:lt would be appropriate, or explain bail proce·
selves against bureaucrats, or to take the decisions dures and otiJer matters which may be relevant to
which are necessary to solve the problems that the dispute. For the resolution of the dispute itself,
they encounter. They need help, but the sort of however, the persons concerned will almost al-
help that they need is not necessarily that of ways need the assistance of lawyers, Although tile
trained lawyers, For instance, one does not need legal aid system provides support for matrimonial
the assistance of a lawyer to make a claim for disputes :llld damages claims, it has not been able
unemployment insurance or to negotiate with a to provide any meaningful SUP[)ort for the defence
landlord over repairs that need to be effected to a of criminal cases, This is the greatest weakness in
dwelling, But there are many persons who need the legal aid system, and tens of thousands of
assistance to handle matters such as these and that people are convicted each year in our courts and
assistance can be given adequately by a literate and sentenced to imprisonment without having had
competent person with the necessary experience, the benefit of legal representation. In the great
Also poor people are often overawed by lawyers majority or these cases the accused are black, the
and afraid to seek advice from them, They will judiCial officer and prosecutor are white and the
more readily turn to community advice offices for court proceedings are conducted in a language
help, particularly where such offices are located which is not properly understood by the accused
close to the place where they live, Links between persons and has to be interpreted to them, It is not
Reproduced by Sabinet Gateway under licence granted by the Publisher ( dated 2011)

advice offices and communities once established surprising, therefore, tilat the criminal justice sys-
can be built upon and, if an advice office demon- tem is viewed with considerable suspicion within
strates its ability to provide the type of assistance the bJack community, This is an issue which the
that is required, it will soon gain the confidence of legal aid system needs to grapple with, If the
the local community and this in turn will encour- resources of the legal aid board and the profession
age people 10 turn to it for help, were directed in the first instance to the provision
Advice offices also have an educative role within of defences in criminal cases greater use could be
the community, They become a focus for the made of law clinics and advice offices to meet the
spread of information in regard 10 the functioning gap which will emerge,
of the legal system and the rights which ordinary 1n recent years a large number of advice offices
people enjoy under it. They can readily identify have sprung up in black townships around the
problems which are encountered particularly by COLIntry, They are in the main staffed by volunteer
people living within their locality and, where workers though some have been able to raise funds
appropriate, work with the legal profession to find from commerce and industry 10 provide for the
solutions to the more complex of these problems, employment of full-time advisers. The Legal Re-
either through obtaining legal advice or where sources Centre has worked with some of these
necessary through litigation, Once this has been offices and irs experience may be useful to evalua[-
done, the information that has been acquired can ing the role that advice bureaux can play in the
be transmitted back to the community served by legal aid system,
the advice office and the benefit of the'knowledge
gained from the advice or the litigation can be
made available to other persons in the advice
office's community,
The Legal Resources
Centre
Problems facing poor The Legal Resources Centre started to work with
advice offices in the Witwatersrand area towards
communities the end of 1981. Initially it was thought that the
centre wou Id act primarily as a resource and back-
what are the mam problems faCing poor communi- up for the advice offices bur it soon became
ties in South Africa? The majority of these commu- apparent that it also had a role to play in the
nities are black and some of the problems relate to training of the advice office workers, The first
racial legislation which governs their lives and to training courses were given in 1982, The main
their relationship with the bureaucracy, 1 will deal issues 10 which attention was directed were office

OKTOBER 1987 517

 :ldminisrLlIion, inrer\'icwing rechniCjues and basic unelllploymelH insur:lnce and workmen's compen·
concel)ts ol'l:lw :.Inci procedure relev:lJ1t to lhe lype s:ltion ci:lims :I, \Veil :15 negori:ltiol1S concerned
oj prohlel1ls which \-vere being hrought to the \\'i[h COn'iUIlH:'r disputes
ad\'ice (liliccs Semin:Jrs \,'ere given during week·
encis, owr a period of st'yen weeks , as most of the Meeting a clearly
ad\'ice ot'tice workers "'ere unable to attend
courses given ciuring rhe wl'ek, This programme identified need
has heen repeateci on a number of occasions since The demand for rhe services of the advice offices
then, There is also a continuing progr:lmme in sll()\\'s [he exrent of rhe need thar exists, They do
which :Idvice office workers meet ;Ipproxinl ;uely no[ charge for rheir services and this eliminates the
once a month with representatives of the Legal danger of' exploitarion or overreaching, It also
Resource s Centre [0 discuss problems which arise keeps [Ilem within Ihe provisions of the Attorneys
in rheir offices To bcilitare the transfer of know Act. There <Ire, of course, risks in the uncontrolled
ledge :lI1d to enable advice offices to do some of growrh of advice offices , Untrained persons may
the training themselves the Legal Resources Cen· Illake l1list:1kes :1nd persons who have good claims
tre de\'eloped an Adl'ic(' o.ffiCf' training manila!. or \':ilid defenccs to claims may be misled by
Over three hundred copies of this manual have incorrect advice, The ovelwhelming majority of
now been cI istribulecl to ad\'ice offices :md com· the persons who go to advice offices would not ,
munity groups throughout the counrry, In rhe however, find their way into lawyers' offices , They
Wirwatersrand region the Legal Resources (enrre cannor afford ro pay for legal services and do not
has established a reLitionship wirh over rwenry think or lawyers as persons to whom they can turn
comll1unitv advice offices, Three arrorneys devote for assistance, WirllOut rhe advice offices Ihey
all their dille to providing backup services for woulel he on their own and dependent to a large
these offices, The attorneys are available ro discuss extenr on tile artilucie raken lip by their adversar·
marters wirh advice office workers over the rele· ies, There is no reason to belie\'e that those who
phone and visit the :ldvice offices regularly, Similar ger had advice wou Id do any better if t hey acted
back up support and training could be provided by :lIone, for eVery insrance in which bad advice is
attorneys employed by the legal aid board, gin'n, rhere ;l1:e a gre;]t many more in which
v;ilual)le assisrance is provided,
In 1~86 an investigation initiated by the Lord
The attorneys discuss matters ll'ith adi'ice (11:lllce Ilor's deparl ment was carried ou t in Eng·
office ll'orkers ol'er the telephone and visit 1:lno inlo Ihe fUl1ctioning or the legal aid system,
t/le adl'ice ojfices regular~)' One of the conclusions reached by Ihe team of
in\estigators was that greater use should be made
Of citizens advice bureaux and it was recommend·
During lhe 19H)/19H6 \'e:lr the aclvice oftices ser· ed thaI the first conuct in legal aid cases (other
\'iceci h\' lile Joh:lJ1nesburg office of the Legal Ihan criminal cases) should be made by such
Reproduced by Sabinet Gateway under licence granted by the Publisher ( dated 2011)

Resource:; Cen[J'(:' COl1CIUCleci o\'er eight t Ilousand :Igencies and not by solicitors, Whilst rhere may be
illrl'I'\ie\,-s, Of tile IWl'sons intel'viewed JUSt over good reasons for 110t establishing such a principle
OIlC' rlwus;lllCI \\ere referred\\) the legal Resources ;15 a rigid rule , comillunity advice offices clearly
(entre tor :ICli,on Iw it, bur aclvice offices \vere able h:l\'e an important role ro play in ~he developmenr
to de:i1 wi>lh [he ()[Iwr lll:lIters Ihemselves Tile or an extensive legal :Iid network,
1~86/!987 s(;l[istics are llUt \'et :\v;lil:lole, but the In South Africa communilJl advice offices provi·
advice office else 10Jcl 11:ls incre;lsed and the ding free advice fill a void in the legal aid system,
percenLlge of elSes referred to the Legal Resources The advice offices are meeting a clearly identified
Cenlre il:ls reducecl to between 5% and 10% , This need, The legal profession ought not to be concer·
shows [he increasing conridence and expertise ned by the fact thar advice offices are increasing in
"'hil'h h;15 hCl'n de\ 'eloped Within the advice of. number. On the contrary, I believe that it should
ficL·s themselves , The type of issues taken up by encourage and suppOrt rhis development and
the advice urfices included influx control and through its attitude ro them give recognition to the
migr:lnt l:ti)our prohlems . rent issues , housing and valuable role that advice offices play in making la~
lll:lillten:lIlCc services for p :lrticular communities , more accessible to the pubJic. 0

I
SKEINKI,NGS EN E'RFLATIN.GS
DIE BYBELGENOOTSKAP VAN SUID·AFRIKA ver' £'<-,\,(B~, Skenkings aan die Bybelgenoolskap van Sl1id·Afrika

~1f~
I
laal, pl1bliseer en versprei die Woord , Die Bybel, is vanaf 1 Maar! 1984 kraglens Art 18A van belas·
genoolskap is 'n l1nieke organisasie in Sl1id ,Afrika bare inkomSle aftrekbaar (Wei No 121, 1984):
mel as doelslelling die beskikbaarstelling van die • In die geval van 'n individu maak die loegewing
Bybel rn aile lale leen 'n pryswal almal kan bekoslig ,
~~S,p , voorsiening vir 'n maksimum skenking van
R500,OO per jaar of 2% van sy belasbare inkoms·
'n Skenking of erflaling aan die BYBELGENOOT· Vir meer inligTing skryf 88n: Ie, wal ook al die groolsle is,
SKAP VAN SUIDAFRIKA bring sin en hoop in die
lewens van mense dwarsdeur die wereld, DIE HOOFSEKRETARIS • In die geval van 'n maalskappy is die loelaalbare
aflrekking 5% van belasbilre inkomsle,
6YBElGENOOTSKAP VAN
Erflatings aan die BYBELGENOOTSKAP VAN SUID·AFRIKA
SUID·AFFlIKA word len volle van boedelbelasling POSBUS 6216, ROGGEBAAI HELP DIE BYBELGENOOTSKAP
vrygeslel KAAPSTAD 8012 OM ANDER TE HELP!
I

518 OKTOBER 1987