Legal Aid Clinic assisted over 1800 persons with civil, criminal matters

…says divorce matters most prominent

A total of 1860 persons were assisted with various civil and criminal matters last year by the Guyana Legal Aid Clinic (GLAC). The majority of them, 796, were those seeking to terminate their marriages. This was revealed in statistics published by the GLAC for January to December 2020.
Most of the persons who visited these offices requested help with civil matters. They were either given advice and legal representation or advice alone. At the GLAC’s office in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supennam), 310 persons were interviewed – 159 males and 151 females. Of the number of persons interviewed, 272 received advice and representation, while the remaining 38 received advice only.
For this region, 35 persons were interviewed for divorce matters and all of them received advice and representation. Another 56 persons were interviewed concerning estate matters; 55 of them received advice and representation. As it relates to cases concerning deed polls and affidavits, 39 persons were interviewed and every one of them received advice and representation.
For property dispute matters, of the 30 persons interviewed, only 16 received advice and representation. The other matters for which persons were interviewed include custody and access, maintenance, personal injury/death claims, domestic violence, landlord and tenant, late registration of birth/deaths, adoption, power of attorney, property dispute, and employment.
A total of 41 persons were interviewed for criminal matters at the office in Region Two. Thirty-six of them received advice and representation. The others were only advised. These criminal matters included: murder/ manslaughter, robbery, theft, narcotics, assault, threatening language, rape/carnal knowledge, disorderly behaviour, and firearm.
Over at the GLAC’s office in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), a whopping 1373 persons, including 993 females and 380 males were interviewed. A total of 650 of them were interviewed for divorce matters for which 487 received advice and representation. The remaining 163 were given advice only.
Another 141 persons were interviewed for miscellaneous matters, 100 for custody and access, 89 for property dispute, 56 for division of property, 53 for injunctions, 51 for maintenance, 41 for domestic violence, 32 for landlord and tenant, and 30 for employment.
Persons in Region Four were also given help with civil matters relating to adoption, custody and access, domestic violence, damage to property, power of attorney among others. A total of 41 persons were interviewed for criminal matters; 36 of them received advice and representation. The remainder were only given advice. The criminal matters for which these persons sought assistance were the same as those in Region Two.
Meanwhile, at the Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) office, 26 males and 11 females were interviewed. Most of them, 34, were interviewed in relation to divorce matters, but only seven of them received advice and representation in court. The others were given advice. One person each visited the office concerning matters for custody and access, property disputes, and damage to property.
At the Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) office, 160 persons including 85 females and 55 males were interviewed. Seventy-seven of them were interviewed for divorce matters; 32 were given advice and representation and the remaining were given advice only.
Other civil matters which engaged the attention of this office are custody and access for which 10 persons were interviewed, property dispute for which seven persons were interviewed, and prescriptive title which saw five individuals being interviewed.
Persons were also interviewed concerning the following matters: adoption, contract, damage to property, division of property, estate, landlord, and tenant, among others. Sixteen persons were interviewed at the Region Six office for criminal matters. Nine of them were interviewed for murder/manslaughter. Only three, however, were given advice and representation.
In cases where persons did not qualify for legal aid, they were referred to the private bar.
GLAC has been providing legal aid to persons who cannot afford to employ the services of a member of the private bar. Since opening in March 1994, 27 years ago, it has assisted 46,663 people, the majority being women, to vindicate and protect their rights.
GLAC has four offices: King and Charlotte Streets, Georgetown, Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica); Anna Regina, Essequibo, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam); Fort Wellington, West Coast Berbice, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice); and Vryman’s Erven, New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).
With a team of nine lawyers, GLAC is largely funded by the Government, donor agencies, and socially-conscious entities and individuals.