Newsroom
ODIHR trains Kazakh lawyers for jury trials
ALMATY 26 March 2007
ALMATY, 26 March 2007 - The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) started today a training course for Kazakh lawyers on effective representation of clients in jury trials.
Twenty-five defence lawyers from different regions of Kazakhstan are attending the four-day course, conducted with the financial support of the European Commission.
Kazakhstan introduced trials by mixed courts of professional judges and jurors for serious offences in January this year.
"Criminal defence lawyers are crucial in upholding fair trial standards," said Ambassador Ivar Vikki, the Head of the OSCE Centre in Almaty. "Guarantees of due process will remain a dead letter in the law if lawyers don't breathe life into it. I do hope that lawyers will take up this challenge."
The training is carried out in co-operation with the Union of Advocates, a nationwide association of defence lawyers in Kazakhstan. The ODIHR received a large number of applications from lawyers nationwide indicating a great demand in Kazakhstan. Seminar experts - experienced lawyers from Russia and Kazakhstan - will assist in developing and improving the participants' skills in trial advocacy.
The training will also include a two-day mock trial during which participants will have to argue their case in front of a court composed of two professional judges and nine jurors in accordance with Kazakhstan's new law.
"Assisting in the implementation of the new legislation, the ODIHR is carrying out a jury trial monitoring project in Kazakhstan this year," said Berry Kralj, who heads ODIHR's Rule of Law programme. "This seminar is an excellent opportunity for trial lawyers practicing in front of juries to sharpen their advocacy skills."
Twenty-five defence lawyers from different regions of Kazakhstan are attending the four-day course, conducted with the financial support of the European Commission.
Kazakhstan introduced trials by mixed courts of professional judges and jurors for serious offences in January this year.
"Criminal defence lawyers are crucial in upholding fair trial standards," said Ambassador Ivar Vikki, the Head of the OSCE Centre in Almaty. "Guarantees of due process will remain a dead letter in the law if lawyers don't breathe life into it. I do hope that lawyers will take up this challenge."
The training is carried out in co-operation with the Union of Advocates, a nationwide association of defence lawyers in Kazakhstan. The ODIHR received a large number of applications from lawyers nationwide indicating a great demand in Kazakhstan. Seminar experts - experienced lawyers from Russia and Kazakhstan - will assist in developing and improving the participants' skills in trial advocacy.
The training will also include a two-day mock trial during which participants will have to argue their case in front of a court composed of two professional judges and nine jurors in accordance with Kazakhstan's new law.
"Assisting in the implementation of the new legislation, the ODIHR is carrying out a jury trial monitoring project in Kazakhstan this year," said Berry Kralj, who heads ODIHR's Rule of Law programme. "This seminar is an excellent opportunity for trial lawyers practicing in front of juries to sharpen their advocacy skills."