Participants and mentors at the trial advocacy training
Malawi Legal Aid Bureau conducted a six (6) days training themed “Trial Advocacy Training” aimed at sharpening the skills of lawyers in the institution with funding from Chilungamo (Justice and Accountability) Programme.
The training had two cohorts with a duration of 3 days each. The first cohort sat from 12th to14th of November 2019 while the second cohort sat from 18th to 20th November, 2019. Speaking to one of the Senior Legal Aid Advocates (SLAAs) for the Bureau, Peter Masiye, on the day of commencement, he expressed hope for betterment in the profession.
“The kickoff is very promising that I will get better and will not be the same person at the end of these three days. And it is a great opportunity to learn from people who have a lot of years of practice and getting a chance to learn from a judge from the supreme court is a big plus for me.” he said.
Masiye also hailed the Bureau’s management and Chilungamo Programme for the opportunity. One SLAA from Northern region office, Hazel Miseleni says the training has been very sharpening and has improved her understanding in other things. “The training has been an eye opener to me personally and getting the opportunity to learn from the Judge himself has hyped my morale. I now know how I can appeal a case when not satisfied with a ruling from magistrate court or high court in the Supreme court unlike before when I did not know how to go about an appeal nonetheless how to conduct myself in the Supreme Court of Appeal.”
Among other topics being tackled at the training is communication between lawyers and concerned parties in cases. It was said that many lawyers do not do well with updates to clients on progress of cases which lead to a lot of problems in the field. Along the discussions it was strongly suggested that it would be great as an institution to have practitioners with integrity of communicating with their clients. As well as documenting each and every relevant communication.
The lawyers are also being encouraged to keep a good relationship with lawyers from other institutions as the trainers say this helps in learning new things in the practice. In addition, they say it helps to know where you can refer your clients in cases where you do not handle or are not an expert.
The training had three mentors on board, Senior Counsel James Masumbu, Justice Mzikamanda (Justice of Appeal) and Counsel Khumbo Soko. Lawyers who attended the training hailed from Lilongwe, Blantyre, Mzuzu and Zomba regional offices and they were awarded certificates of attendance at the end of each three training days of advocacy training.
- 9 views