This module is a resource for lecturers  

 

Exercises

 

This section contains suggestions for in-class and pre-class educational exercises, while a post-class assignment for assessing student understanding of the Module is suggested in a separate section. Several exercises draw on materials presented in the Case Studies section, to provide students with opportunities for applied learning.

Exercise 1: Pre-class case study

This exercise refers to the pre-class case study included in the " Case Studies" Section of this Module. The related questions are:

Assuming that the law in your country reflects the relevant provisions of the United Nations Principles and Guidelines on Access to Legal Aid in Criminal Justice Systems (UNPG) -

(1) Would the police have to inform you about a right to a lawyer? Would you be entitled to a lawyer at the police station?

(2) Would you be entitled to legal aid to pay for a lawyer at the police station?

(3) Would you be entitled to be represented by a lawyer at court?

(4) Would you be entitled to legal aid to pay for a lawyer at court?

Lecturer guidelines

In addition to the pre-class reading (see Recommended class structure below), the lecturer should give the pre-class case study to the students, and ask them to prepare answers to the questions, based on their pre-class reading, and be ready to answer the questions and discuss the issues raised in class. The Teaching Guide that accompanies this university module series provides practical advice for lecturers in teaching the modules, including tips to ensure that the material is engaging for students from a broad variety of disciplines.

 

Exercise 2: Group exercise

Group 1 - Consider and seek agreement within the group on (a) the particular obstacles that women may face in accessing legal aid (both in your country, and generally), and (b) appropriate mechanisms for minimizing those obstacles.

Group 2 - Consider and seek agreement on (a) the particular needs of children who are suspects or accused in criminal proceedings (both in your country, and generally), and (b) appropriate mechanisms for meeting those needs.

Lecturer guidelines

Divide the class into two groups (or, depending on the size of the class, multiples of two, so that each group consists of four or five students), and designate them as Group 1, 2, etc. Each group, having discussed the respective issues (see (a) and (b) above), and reached agreement, is to write up their conclusions on posters, and display them on the class walls.

Having completed their tasks, all students should be asked to read all the posters. This is followed by class discussion, facilitated by the lecturer, considering how the findings of the groups relate to United Nations and other international standards, and the extent to which they are recognized in the law and practice of the home country.

 

Exercise 3: In-class Case Study

This exercise refers to the in-class case study of "Sami" included in the " Case Studies" Section of this Module. The related questions are:

(1) Are there any specific laws in your country covering children in Sami's situation? If so, what are they? How do they compare with international normative standards?

(2) When Sami is taken to the police station, is she entitled to a lawyer in your country? Would she have to be told about this by the police? If she would be entitled to a lawyer, how would the lawyer be paid? In practice, in your country, is it likely that Sami would have a lawyer at the police station?

(3) If you were Sami's lawyer, what do you think you would, or could, do on her behalf whilst she is at the police station?

(4) If Sami is prosecuted for theft, would she be entitled to a lawyer for the court proceedings? What should the lawyer do for her in the court proceedings?

Lecturer guidelines

The lecturer should hand out, or display, a copy of the case study of "Sami". The lecturer should then give the students the opportunity to read this case study and to think about it and/or discuss it briefly with the student next to them. Taking each question in turn, the lecturer should ask students whether anyone can answer the question based on their experience or reading and/or suggest how the issue covered by the question should be dealt with. Based on their own preparation, the lecturer should, as necessary, indicate what the answers are, and encourage discussion of the issues raised by the questions.

 

Additional Optional Group exercises

 

Exercise relevant to Topic 1

Divide the class into two or more groups (depending on class size) and assign tasks to groups (each group undertakes one task):

Task 1 - Identify your jurisdiction in terms of the major procedural traditions (adversarial/inquisitorial/other) (and, where relevant, considering both national and federal systems). Identify the major features of criminal procedure in your jurisdiction (the course of the criminal justice process, the difference between early and later stages of the process, the roles and responsibilities of different criminal justice actors, the role of victims of crime in the process).

Task 2 - Identify specific case types which may require specialised responses in your jurisdiction (e.g., terrorism cases, religious cases, cases involving child suspects or accused, cases involving suspects or accused with a learning difficulty or a mental disorder), and consider how the criminal justice process works differently for those exceptional case types.

Groups feedback their findings to the whole class and, with guidance from the lecturer, discuss: (a) how suspects and accused, and victims, are dealt with in your jurisdiction, particularly with regard to access to legal aid and access to lawyers; and (b) in broad terms, how that compares with international normative standards such as those set out in the UNPG.

Exercise relevant to Topic 5

Divide the class into three groups (or, depending on the size of the class, multiples of three, so that each group consists of four or five students), and designate them as Group 1, 2 and 3, etc. Each group is asked to read the UNODC Model Law (2017) Commentaries to Chapter 4 The Legal Aid Authority, which describes three models for the administration of legal aid: the government agency model, the legal aid body model, and the public defender model.

Each group is asked to develop an argument for adopting a particular model (e.g., Group 1 argues for the government agency model, Group 2 argues for the legal aid body model, and Group 3 argues for the public defender model).

A representative from each group then presents the argument developed by their group to the whole class, followed by questions and discussion.

Exercise relevant to Topic 7

Students are asked to watch the SUPRALAT video presentation on the role of the lawyer at the police station in England and Wales, and to take notes on the most important aspects of the presentation.

Students are also asked to watch a role-play of a lawyer/client consultation conducted prior to a police interrogation, as produced by SUPRALAT.

Both SUPRALAT videos can be found in the " Additional Teaching Tools - Video Material" part of this Module.

Students are then asked to discuss:

(a) Whether, and the extent to which, the lawyer in the video role-play of the lawyer/client consultation followed the approach set out in the video presentation on the role of the defence lawyer.

(b) In what ways, if any, the lawyer in the video role-play of the lawyer/client presentation could have improved their approach.

(c) How such a lawyer/client consultation may work in their own jurisdiction.

(d) What the benefits are of a lawyer/client consultation conducted prior to police interrogation.

 
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