Publication:
Who Needs Legal Aid Services? Addressing Demand in Jordan

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Files in English
English PDF (699.47 KB)
532 downloads
English Text (21.81 KB)
55 downloads
Published
2012-03
ISSN
Date
2012-08-13
Editor(s)
Abstract
With the launch of two World Bank-funded programs, Jordan is stepping where few countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have gone before the development of comprehensive legal aid services based more closely on demand. For many poor persons, regular avenues of dispute resolution may prove inaccessible due to the costs involved, the complicated nature of procedures, the inability to procure legal information and representation, and a general lack of knowledge about rights and the means to enforce them. Legal aid services information, counseling and representation in court can help poor persons overcome these obstacles. They are not only important as services themselves, but are gateway services they may ultimately lead to access to other services, such as social welfare benefits or basic services.
Link to Data Set
Citation
Prettitore, Paul. 2012. Who Needs Legal Aid Services? Addressing Demand in Jordan. MENA Knowledge and Learning Quick Notes Series; No. 62. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/10845 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Report Series
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Publication
    Building Legal Aid Services from the Ground Up : Learning from Pilot Initiatives in Jordan
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2014-01) Prettitore, Paul Scott
    Like most governments, the Government of Jordan (GoJ) struggles with the provision of legal aid services, information, counseling and representation by a lawyer - to the poor. Jordanians have the legal right to state-sponsored services only for serious criminal cases, while the Jordan Bar Association tries to provide services for lesser crimes and civil cases. Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have joined the pool of service providers. Yet legal aid remains much underutilized despite high demand, especially for family law (personal status) cases. These include divorce, alimony, child support and inheritance. The Jordanian CSO the Justice Center for Legal Aid (JCLA) provides legal aid via centers throughout Jordan, providing information and awareness to over 6,500 beneficiaries, counseling to 2,000 and legal representation to over 1,200 over the last several years.
  • Publication
    Examining the Effectiveness of Legal Empowerment as a Pathway Out of Poverty : A Case Study of BRAC
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2014-01) Kolisetty, Akhila
    This paper examines the current status of justice and dispute-resolution mechanisms in Bangladesh, ranging from the formal justice system to the traditional shalish (a form of dispute resolution), and focuses on the costs and benefits of utilizing nongovernmental organization (NGO)-led legal services programs as an alternative form of justice delivery and dispute resolution for the poor, with a focus on women and girls. In particular, this paper takes a closer look at a the Human Rights and Legal Aid Services (HRLS) program of BRAC, a leading NGO that works to empower the poorest and most vulnerable in Bangladesh and eleven other countries across the world. HRLS provides a combination of Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC)-led shalish, human rights community based education, community mobilization through a corps of community-based outreach workers (known as shebikas), and recourse to the courts via a network of panel lawyers if needed. This paper will examine the successes of this model in rural Bangladesh as well as the challenges it faces in making an impact on solving the justice problems of the poor and contributing to gender equity. Ultimately, it aims to present a case study that illustrates the strengths and challenges of a legal empowerment model that is quickly gaining traction around the world.
  • Publication
    Justice Sector Services and the Poor in Jordan : Determining Needs and Priorities
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2013-05) Prettitore, Paul
    Understanding the demands and priorities of poor persons is important to effectively target services in the justice sector. To help enhance data, in 2012 the Department of Statistics implemented a survey of 10,000 households focusing on the justice sector the first of its kind in Jordan. The survey was administered throughout the country, covering both rural and urban areas. Its primary objective was to identify the most common types of legal disputes and the characteristics of the households and individuals involved. The survey demonstrates that the most frequent types of cases reported vary by the expenditure levels of respondents. The key areas for reform to impact poverty include: improving the quality of services in personal status cases, especially access to alimony, child support and inheritance; simplifying the process of deferring court fees for poor persons; and strengthening special services developed to address personal status issues, including the newly-established alimony fund.
  • Publication
    Poverty and Legal Problems in Jordan
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-09) Prettitore, Paul
    Jordanian citizens are no exception - a household survey conducted in Jordan in 2011 found that roughly 20 percent of families had a member experience a legal problem in the previous five years. Legal problems, left unaddressed, can cause an economic or social shock that pushes vulnerable persons into poverty. From an equity standpoint, the poor and near-poor need equal access to services that subsequently enhance opportunities to exercise their rights. Taking the equity argument a step beyond equal access to existing services, governments should develop special services that target the specific needs of the poor in resolving legal problems. Defining the relationship between legal problems and poverty is not a simple task. The first step is identifying the types of legal problems that are most likely to affect the poor and the near poor, and comparing this with wealthier citizens. The second step is to identify within this group the types of cases that are most likely to have some kind of poverty impact on the poor and near-poor. Greater knowledge of this relationship will help policymakers develop the appropriate tools to address these problems.
  • Publication
    Gender and Justice in Jordan : Women, Demand, and Access
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2013-09) Prettitore, Paul Scott
    Two key dimensions on access to justice sector services in Jordan are poverty and gender. The gender dimension to accessing formal justice sector services, namely court and lawyer services is anchored in the reality that women and men in Jordan demonstrate different needs and priorities for services, and face different obstacles in accessing them. Jordan demonstrates different needs and priorities for services, and face different obstacles in accessing them. Understanding these differences has been considerably enhanced by disaggregation of data from the statistical survey on the volume of demand for legal aid (LAS) by gender. This data is complimented by analysis of the caseload of the Justice Center for Legal Aid (JCLA), which is arguably Jordan's largest legal aid provider and whose beneficiaries are predominately women. Justice sector officials and policy-makers now have better empirical data to inform reforms aimed at improving service delivery. This data can also be used to target services to better support broader objectives of increased economic participation and agency for women, and shed light on how the justice sector can impact inclusion and equality. Enhancing public information and developing self-help (pro se) representation mechanisms may help in increasing access to services and make services more financially sustainable. Such initiatives may prove particularly useful in personal status cases, where the convergence of justice and gender dimensions appears the most comprehensive, and perhaps where greater impact on women's development can be obtained.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Publication
    FY 2025 China Country Opinion Survey Report
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-08-04) World Bank
    The Country Opinion Survey in China assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in better understanding how stakeholders in China perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic feedback from national and local governments, multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the private sector, and civil society in China on 1) their views regarding the general environment in China; 2) their overall attitudes toward the WBG in China; 3) overall impressions of the WBG’s effectiveness and results, knowledge work and activities, and communication and information sharing in China; and 4) their perceptions of the WBG’s future role in China.
  • Publication
    Evaluation Insight Note
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-11-12) World Bank
    This Evaluation Insight Note (EIN) aims to contribute to the World Bank’s goal of encouraging the use of data, digital technology, and innovation towards transforming agri-food systems in client countries. The EIN was guided by the overall question: “How are World Bank agriculture and irrigation projects using technologies and what insights can be drawn from them” In answering this question, the EIN draws from a portfolio identification and review of 158 active and 113 closed projects (FY16-23) World Bank agriculture and irrigation projects to describe the extent and utilization of agricultural technologies. It supplemented the findings from the review with insights drawn from four project evaluations (Project Performance Assessment Reports) prepared by IEG in Bangladesh, Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire, and Vietnam, which were selected because of their likely lessons on agriculture technology. The portfolio and systematic review provided the basis for seven main insights on coverage and nature of technologies used in World Bank agriculture projects, demand-based technological solutions, technology diffusion, collaboration, and investment in enabling environment factors, among others. (1) The World Bank Agriculture and Irrigation portfolio shows limited coverage of advanced technologies. (2) The technologies that are prevalent in projects are mainly focused on increasing agricultural productivity with limited focus on technologies for facilitating market linkages. (3) Among the technologies promoted in Bank agriculture and irrigation projects, some technologies, and applications such GIS, early warning systems and MIS are more concentrated than others. (4) Combining demand-based technological solutions with training and technical assistance supported uptake of those solutions. (5) Technology diffusion worked well when there was strong collaboration between key research and extension agencies, each with well-defined roles and responsibilities in the projects. (6) When technology dissemination efforts are combined with investments in enabling environment factors such as infrastructure (i.e., roads, markets), they facilitated technology adoption. (7) Building sustainable institutional models – key for technology uptake and use – continue to be challenging in Bank supported projects.
  • Publication
    The World Bank Group in Georgia, 2014-23
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-07-30) World Bank
    This Country Program Evaluation assesses the performance and effectiveness of the World Bank Group’s support to Georgia in achieving the country’s development objectives. In the decade leading up to the evaluation period, Georgia pursued economic reforms to attract critical investments for becoming a regional trade and transport hub. Ambitious economic reforms went hand in hand with efforts to improve human development and strengthening social protection systems. Growing geopolitical tensions and internal political polarization have challenged Georgia’s reform progress in recent years. The Bank Group’s strategy adapted well to Georgia’s development needs and was well coordinated with other development partners. It successfully employed a range of instruments to help increase competitiveness, growth, and job creation, and effectively contributed to improved infrastructure and increased trade by using programmatic and innovative approaches. The Bank Group’s regular investments in analytical work and the switch to results-based programmatic support helped improve the efficiency and effectiveness of education and health care systems. The IEG offers the following lessons based on the evidence and analysis in the Country Program Evaluation: (i) Prioritizing Bank Group support around the move towards deeper regional integration was an effective anchor for key economic reforms for economic convergence. (ii) Pursuing a selective and adaptive approach in a country with high implementation capacity and institutions, strong coordination among development partners, and access to a wide range of external resources can allow the Bank Group to exercise significant influence in areas of comparative advantage and global expertise. (iii) A stronger focus on outcome-based programmatic approaches helped to build local capacity and crowd-in partner financing.
  • Publication
    Digital Africa
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13) Begazo, Tania; Dutz, Mark Andrew; Blimpo, Moussa
    All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.
  • Publication
    The World Bank Group in Tanzania, Fiscal Years 2012–22
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-07-22) World Bank
    This evaluation assesses the relevance and effectiveness of the World Bank Group's support to Tanzania between Fiscal Years 2012 and 2022. Over the past decade, Tanzania has experienced resilient growth, with an average annual per capita GDP increase of 2.2%. However, poverty remains widespread and slow to decline, underscoring the need for more inclusive growth. The report examines the Bank Group's strategic and operational approaches during this period, which were aligned with Tanzania's development priorities and focused on industrialization, human development, and public sector reforms. The evaluation includes thematic chapters on the Bank Group's support for private sector-led growth and spatial transformation, as well as lessons to inform future support to the country.