Free legal aid

Free legal aid is provided to users of free legal aid in procedures in which their rights and legally based interests are exercised and protected.

Procedures in which free legal aid is provided

• administrative procedure;

• administrative dispute;

• civil proceedings;

• executive procedure;

• criminal procedure in accordance with the laws on criminal procedure in the context of realization of property claims before the court of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Then, in accordance with the provisions of the Law on the provision of free legal aid, beneficiaries of free legal aid also exercise their rights in proceedings under extraordinary legal remedies, proceedings before the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Court of Human Rights, as well as in proceedings before other international bodies for the protection of human rights, unless otherwise stipulated by an international treaty.

Forms of free legal aid

All persons have the right to general information about rights and obligations and assistance in filling out the application forms for exercising the right to free legal aid, regardless of whether they meet the conditions prescribed in Article 15 of the Law on the Provision of Free Legal Aid.

Forms of help:

• legal advice;

• legal assistance in drafting all types of submissions;

• representation before administrative bodies and administrative organizations and institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

• representation before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

• drawing up appeals;

• legal assistance in peaceful dispute resolution procedures (mediation);

• compilation of submissions submitted to international bodies for the protection of human rights.

Beneficiaries of free legal aid

• a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina and another natural person residing on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

• a natural person who is on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina under international protection in accordance with international standards, especially asylum seekers, refugees, persons under subsidiary or temporary protection, persons in the process of expulsion, stateless persons, victims of human trafficking, in accordance with the obligations that Bosnia and Herzegovina has under international conventions;

• a person whose rights are protected by the provisions of the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, the Convention on the Recovery of Maintenance Claims Abroad, the Convention on Civil and Judicial Procedure and the Convention on Facilitating Access to Courts.

Conditions for obtaining free legal aid

The right to free legal aid based on status is exercised by:

• a person receiving social assistance;

• a child in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child;

• a person deprived of legal capacity and a mentally ill person;

• a pension recipient who is lower than the average salary earned at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

• a person who is unemployed and has no other regular income and income;

• a victim of domestic violence or gender-based violence;

• an asylum seeker, a person under subsidiary or temporary protection, a person in the process of expulsion, a stateless person and a victim of human trafficking.

A person with poor financial status is also entitled to free legal aid when this is determined by the competent body for providing free legal aid.