The United Nations Principles and Guidelines on Access to Legal Aid in Criminal Justice Systems: A Comprehensive Approach to Legal Aid

The United Nations Principles and Guidelines on Access to Legal Aid in Criminal Justice Systems were adopted on 20 December, 2012. The article embraces that the approval of the Principles and Guidelines is a landmark in the area of access to justice because it is the first international instrument that entirely focuses on legal aid. In this context, the aim of the present article is to demonstrate that the scope of State obligations towards ensuring a legal aid system under the Principles and Guidelines extends beyond previous international human rights standards. The authors, therefore, discuss the elements of a legal aid system as put forward by the instrument. Finally, the article recommends that even if the Principles and Guidelines refer to access to legal aid in criminal proceedings, it is desirable to apply similar standards to civil proceedings, as free legal assistance is indispensable for effective access to the courts and a fair hearing, and eventually to establish the rule of law