We were honoured to host a delegation of judges and academics from the Ministry of Justice in Turkey this week.
The delegation had identified FRU's model as being of interest in terms of expanding access to justice in Turkey.
The delegation heard from members of our staff team about their motivation for and experience of working with FRU. They were particularly interested to hear the experience of Linklaters LLP secondee Eloise Lloyd about the benefits of a FRU secondment as part of a training contract, and legal officers Daniel Hallstrom and James Miller on how FRU volunteering can assist pupillage applications.
FRU Chief Executive David Abbott said:
"FRU was invited by the British embassy in Turkey to host the delegation following interest in our work in the pro bono field. The discussion was wide ranging and included routes to qualification for British lawyers, the advantages of tribunals over traditional courts in enabling input from specialist decision makers, the impact of remote hearings on justice, the scope of the UK criminal injuries scheme, attitudes to pro bono in the legal profession and how FRU and other NGOs promote access to justice.
We were pleased that news of our work had reached Turkey and were keen to share knowledge about how similar challenges are addressed in our two countries. We would like to thank Gray's Inn for making conference facilities available to host the visit."
Mr. Tahir Hırslı – Director General for Strategy Development presents David Abbott with a gift to mark the visit of the delegation from the Turkish Ministry of Justice.
The delegation and FRU staff members Emma Wilkinson and David Abbott outside the FRU office in Gray's Inn Square.
