Vision
Enhancing Knowledge, Skills and Values for a new generation of Law students at Qatar University, College of Law.
Mission
Establishing a program of clinical and experiential legal education that is designed to enrich the educational process through practical knowledge of the law and improved skills in analyzing, applying and interpreting the law. In such program, the students play the role of a lawyer who aims at providing effective, adequate, accessible, affordable and sustainable legal aid to the community especially the vulnerable populations.
History of the Law Clinic in Qatar University
Clinical Legal Education Program has started at Qatar University College of Law in the spring semester of 2012 as a part of the "Special Topics" offered by our College in the current developments of the law. The Law Clinic covered domestic violence in collaboration with the American Bar Association. Students were asked to conduct a Street Law initiative raising awareness about the risks of domestic violence. Students also drafted a model law on the issue.
In the fall of 2012 and for the years 2013-14 our Law Clinic addressed rights of domestic workers in compliance with the international standards embodied in ILO Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers. The Clinic focused on the practical skills of legislative drafting and client interview especially in the area of human rights. During this period the Law Clinic worked closely with The Protection Project at The Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.
The Law Clinic also signed an MOU with the Qatar Foundation to Combat Human Trafficking to train our students on providing legal services to victims of trafficking in accordance with the Law of Qatar No 15 (2011) regarding Combating Human Trafficking.
Our College of Law proudly organized the Second Regional Conference on Clinical Legal Education in Countries of the Middle East on March 16-17 (2013). We also organized the Gulf Cooperation Council Meetings on Law Clinics with the law clinics of Kuwait University and Sultan Qaboos University on June 5-6 (2013) and January 18-22 (2014) in cooperation with The Protection Project at SAIS.
Our Activities
- Providing legal aid to the vulnerable groups in the Qatari society through legal representation.
- Carrying out legal projects in legislative drafting and legal reform
- Raising awareness about legal rights through a street law program
- Reporting on human rights violations through fact finding missions and monitoring mechanisms
- Incorporating experiential legal studies in educational curricula in the different branches of law
- Establishing partnerships and engaging national, regional and international stakeholders
- Releasing a series of publications to support the work of the law clinic and contribute to experiential legal