International Scientific Forum of the Association of Legal Clinics of Ukraine: The Role of Legal Clinics in Human Rights Protection

The Association of Legal Clinics of Ukraine (ALCU) invites representatives of legal clinics to participate in the International Scientific Forum “Legal Aid and Public Legal Education: The Mission of Legal Clinics in the Human Rights Protection System in the Context of European Integration.” The Forum will take place on 11–12 June 2026 and will be hosted by the Mykola Udod Legal Clinic of Vasyl’ Stus Donetsk National University in Vinnytsia, Ukraine.

The Forum aims to identify new directions for legal clinics in the fields of human rights protection, public legal education, and legal education. Participants will discuss the work of legal clinics in wartime, effective mechanisms for supporting vulnerable groups, and the development of clinical legal scholarship as an analytical foundation for the modernization of legal education.

The programme combines several areas of work. Traditionally, participants will discuss the activities of ALCU, the development of the legal clinic network, international partnerships, and the experience of legal clinics during 2025–2026. In addition, the Forum will feature a full academic component, including thematic panels, expert discussions, and debates on approaches to public legal education, human rights protection, and the advancement of clinical legal scholarship.

Thematic areas of the Forum:

• Human rights protection through the public legal education activities of legal clinics in the context of European integration;
• The social and legal dimensions of human rights protection during wartime: inclusivity and support for vulnerable groups;
• The role of legal clinics in shaping human rights protection models in higher education and advancing clinical legal scholarship.

Conference papers submitted by participants will be included in an electronic proceedings volume.

The Forum will be held in a hybrid format. The in-person component will take place in Vinnytsia and will bring together 20 representatives of legal clinics. All interested participants will also be able to join online via Zoom.

To participate, please complete the registration form by 29 May 2026:

https://forms.gle/PgJh6KoEoVwrYmpL6

Invitations for in-person participation will be sent no later than 2 June 2026.

Further details are available in the information letter.

The International Scientific Forum is organised within the framework of the RWI’s Human Rights Infrastructure for Ukraine (HRIU) Programme (2025–2027) funded by the Swedish government through the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), with ALCU as the implementing partner.