CGJ Student Staff Projects Fall 2018

To provide Regent Law students with practical experience in the legal protection of human rights, students volunteer with the Center each semester for a minimum of 5 hours/week.

This semester, the Center for Global Justice Student Staff will be assisting nine different human rights organizations with nine projects. Here is a brief summary of our work this semester:

1. Shared Hope
   Shared Hope International’s Protected Innocence Challenge provides graded report cards with analysis and recommendations for each state and D.C. based on it's compliance with federal legislation concerning child sex trafficking victims. We have the opportunity to review component 5.6 for each state and D.C. concerning whether a ‘caregiver’ barrier restricts child welfare from providing services to these victims. ‘Caregiver’ barrier is a term that was coined by Shared Hope to describe when child services is not legally permitted to provide services to child sex trafficking victims because jurisdiction of child services is statutorily limited to situations where abuse/neglect comes directly from a ‘caregiver.'
   
   
2. IJM Uganda
   We are researching the legal and psychological aspects of different issues stemming from gender-based violence (GBV). Our goal is to identify (1) whether there is an intersection between sexual violence against children and intimate partner violence (does experiencing violence as a child lead to perpetrating or experiencing violence as an adult?); (2) best practices for suspect identification and child testimony in court; (3) how geographic location may impact the issue of GBV crimes; as well as (4) how the Ugandan Domestic Violence Act is being operated today.
   
   
3. IJM
   We are researching the status of enforced disappearances both under domestic law and treaties in a certain nation (which must remain confidential). Enforced disappearances, or ED, occur when there is an arrest/abduction by the State where the State conceals the fate/whereabouts of the missing person, thereby putting them outside the protection of the law. We hope to use precedent from other countries in order to find potential grounds for an independent, criminal cause of action for enforced disappearances against certain governments.
   
   
4. The Market Project
   We are researching the laws of India and Myanmar regarding business registration, human resources, employee protections, privacy issues, etc.
   
   
5. Justice Ventures International
   We are drafting a legal memo regarding securing property rights in the Indian state of West Bengal. The memo will be used to create a legal toolkit to assist attorneys that provide legal support to human trafficking victims
   
   
6. ADF International
   ADF Asia: This semester our team is working to draft a legal memo regarding the abortion laws in various Asian countries. Our goal is to identify countries with abortion laws that may be favorable for ADF to target in their efforts to limit abortion worldwide.
   ADF Europe: For the last few semesters the Center has worked closely with ADF to monitor cases before the European Court of Human Rights. Our goal is to identify cases that ADF may have an interest in intervening on.

7. Christian Legal Fellowship
   We are drafting a legal memo on relevant international law treaties that pertain to the sanctity of life, particularly the legalization of euthanasia for patients who are neither dying nor near end of life nor terminally ill. This memo will assist CLF in preparation of ongoing litigation surrounding the expansion of euthanasia in Canada.
   
   
8. Advocates International Bulgaria
   We are drafting a legal memo regarding lobbying in Europe. The memo will be used to create model legislation on lobbying to help stop corruption and promote the rule of law in Eastern Europe.
   
   
9. Directorate of Public Prosecutions, Uganda
   We are working with the Uganda DPP to combat human trafficking. Currently, Uganda is a “tier 2” nation under the U.S. Dept. of State’s Annual Trafficking in Persons Report. Uganda desires to become a “tier 1” nation, which is the highest ranking given. We are reviewing the Ugandan report and making recommendation on how Uganda can better combat human trafficking. 

CGJ Student Staff Projects for Fall 2017

We wanted to provide a brief update on the work of the Center this semester. Every semester the Center for Global Justice student staff completes legal projects for other organizations.

Currently, we are working on a number of important projects, and we welcome your prayers for each. The projects are listed based on the organization for whom the project is done and the human rights issue that it covers:

1. Shared Hope: We continue to assist Shared Hope with the Protected Innocence Challenge, a comprehensive 50-state survey that grades each state with respect to its legislative framework for combatting child sex trafficking. This semester our project focuses on researching and analyzing the laws of the fifty states with respect to alternative court processes for minors. The goal is to determine which process is best suited for child sex trafficking victims and whether changes to the processes need to be made to better protect these victims. We also are assisting Shared Hope with researching whether any state has passed new legislation that could impact their grades on the Protected Innocence Challenge.

2. International Justice Mission: We are doing different projects for various IJM offices this semester. One relates to holding police officers accountable for their actions, and this project is largely confidential. The other projects relate to strengthening the rule of law and creating a case digest of all domestic violence cases in Uganda.  

3. Justice Ventures International: JVI fights human trafficking in India and also works to protect the poor. This semester we are researching the laws of the state of West Bengal regarding various governmental entitlements that human trafficking victims and the poor can utilize. The goal of the research is to supplement a lawyers’ manual that will aid local lawyers in securing benefits for the poor.

4. Handong/Mongolian Parliamentarian: In conjunction with Handong International Law School, we are researching the history of religious freedom in Mongolia, going all the way back to Genghis Khan empire. Surprisingly, Khan offered robust protections for religious minorities, including Christians. Ultimately, we would like to use our memo to advocate for Mongolia to enhance its protection of religious freedom.

5. Kyampisi Childcare Ministries: KCM continues its great work of fighting child sacrifice in Uganda. Ugandan law allows for courts to order that the offender pay restitution to child sacrifice victims. We are drafting a memo on why restitution is a key piece of a criminal justice system, particularly for child sacrifice victims, and providing a draft order for courts to use. In addition to this project, we will assist KCM on any child sacrifice cases that come through the courts this semester.

6. ADF International: In partnership with ADF International and various other pro-life groups, we drafted a submission to the United Nations Human Rights Committee arguing that abortion is not a protected right under Article 6, Right to Life, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. To read our post, go here. To read more about the project, go here.

Student Staff Projects for Spring 2017

We wanted to provide a brief update on the work of the Center this semester. Every semester the Center for Global Justice student staff completes legal projects for other organizations. 

Currently, we are working on a number of important projects, and we welcome your prayers for each. The projects are listed based on the organization for whom the project is done and the human rights issue that it covers:

1. International Justice Mission/Rule of Law, Domestic Violence, & Land Grabbing:IJM works in Uganda to protect women from violence and to protect widows and children from the scourge of land grabbing. We are drafting two legal memoranda that will aid IJM in this work. The first memo relates to the proper procedures for prosecuting domestic violence cases and how to obtain custody of children. The second memo provides legal analysis on how various common law countries handle the question of prosecuting a defendant for multiple offenses arising out of the same conduct.

2. Kyampisi Childcare Ministries/Rule of Law & Protecting Children:KCM works to combat child sacrifice in Uganda. This past summer, the Center sent three interns to work with the Director of Public Prosecutions. Our interns informed the DPP of one child sacrifice case that the Center has worked on previously and noted potential legal defects in the trial against the witch doctor. After reviewing the file, the DPP, with the help of our students, drafted a legal appeal. The court recently agreed to hear the appeal. We drafted a legal memo for KCM and our other partners on why the case should be overturned and a new trial should be granted against the witch doctor. We will provide ongoing support as the case progresses.

3. Uganda Christian University/Protecting Children:Uganda is considering making abortion legal in certain circumstances. The Center is drafting a policy paper in conjunction with Uganda Christian University that argues why Uganda is not legally obligated to change its abortion laws and neither should it change its abortion laws as a matter of policy.

4. Shared Hope/Sex Trafficking and Protecting Children:
   Shared Hope works to combat the sex trafficking of children in the United States. One of the ways it does this is through the Protected Innocence Challenge, a 50-state survey that comprehensively reviews the laws of every state and makes recommendations on how each state can and should improve its laws as they relate to sex trafficking. We are helping Shared Hope update the PIC by conducting a 50-state analysis of how state trafficking laws criminalize conduct of victim-offenders (i.e., trafficking victims who are forced to traffic other women) and the consequences of being convicted (e.g., sex offender registration).

5. Justice Ventures International/Human Trafficking:
   Justice Ventures International fights sex and labor trafficking in India. JVI often provides legal assistance to non-profit organizations that provide employment and services to trafficking victims. To aid these organizations, the Center is putting together a legal toolkit that explains all the steps involved in creating a non-profit corporation.

6. Turkey Project/Religious Freedom:
   The Center is working with key partners in Turkey to draft a short booklet/legal memo that explains the legal situation regarding religious freedom in Turkey. Although in theory a secular country, Turkey is becoming more and more Islamic, and Christians are facing persecuting. The Center is drafting a booklet that will educate the Turkish on what Turkish law actually says and inform Christians of their rights.

7. Alliance Defending Freedom/Religious Freedom:ADF works to defend religious freedom in Europe. The Center monitors all new cases before the European Court of Human Rights to help ADF determine whether it wants to intervene in certain cases.

Student Staff Projects for Fall 2016

To provide Regent Law students with practical experience in the legal protection of human rights, students volunteer with the center each semester for a minimum of 5 hours/week. Here is an overview of the projects that our student staff members are working on this semester:

IJM Uganda: International Justice Mission Uganda fights land grabbing, a terrible problem that affects thousands of widows and orphans in Uganda. In order to aid IJM's work, the Center is expanding a legal memo it drafted last semester on the legal doctrine of res judicata. The Center's memo will help IJM decide the best legal strategy to bring civil suits on behalf of widows whose land was stolen.

Kyampisi Childcare Ministries: KCM is a nonprofit organization in Uganda that fights child sacrifice. In order to aid KCM in its work of monitoring child sacrifice cases, as well as aid prosecutors, the Center is putting together a legal manual that outlines the steps involved in a child sacrifice case, applicable charges for the defendant, and various legal issues that will have to be addressed to have a successful prosecution.

Handong: The Center works in partnership with Handong International Law School to advance the rule of law and expand religious freedom in Mongolia.  This semester, the Center is drafting a legal memorandum relating to the implementation of homeschooling in Mongolia.

Shared Hope: Every semester the Center supports Shared Hope with the Protected Innocence Challenge (PIC).  The PIC is a 50-state survey designed to improve the laws of all 50 states as they relate to the sex trafficking of children. This semester, the Center is analyzing whether each state has vacatur laws that allow minor sex trafficking victims to have any convictions that resulted or related to their trafficking vacated rather than merely expunged.  When a sentence is vacated, it is completely erased from all existence, as opposed to expungement, which normally just seals the records of the conviction.  Vacation of a sentence thus offers greater protection to the victim.

Turkey Project: This semester the Center is planning on writing a short book that discusses the legal framework regarding secularism and religious freedom in Turkey.  Turkey is a very strategic country, situated between the west and the east, mostly Muslim but constitutionally secular, etc.  Recent events in Turkey, however, have the potential to upset this balance and make Turkey another Islamic state.  The booklet is thus intended to explain Turkey's constitutional commitment  to secularism and guarantee of the Free Exercise of Religion and (2) the illegality of many of the government's recent actions, including the ongoing state support of mosques. We intend to use the booklet as a means to educate those in Turkey about what Turkish law actually says and requires.

African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights: The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) is the body responsible for overseeing and implementing the major human rights treaty for Africa. The Center for Global Justice is currently praying about whether to become a certified non-profit organization (NGO) before the ACHPR, which hosts two sessions every year in order to address the status of human rights in the continent. Center Executive Director, Professor Jeffrey Brauch, will be attending the next session, which is to be held in The Gambia in October. We are drafting a legal memo on the ACPHR to help us identify if and how we can be involved and to better understand the major human rights issues that need to be addressed from a biblical perspective.

ADF International: As always, the Center is partnering with ADF International to monitor all cases before the European Court of Human Rights to ensure that we identify all cases on which ADF should intervene.

Jerusalem Institute of Justice: This semester the Center is continuing a project from last semester for JIJ on the Palestinian refugees. One of the primary points of disagreement between Israel and Palestine is what to do with the Palestinian refugees.  Palestine claims all refugees have a "right to return" to Israel. Israel claims that no such right exists.  We are analyzing the legal situation of the refugees, specifically looking at whether a future (or existing?) state of Palestine has an obligation under International Law to grant citizenship to the refugees.

Student Staff Fall 2015 Semester Summary

To provide Regent Law students with practical experience in the legal protection of human rights, students volunteer with the center each semester for a minimum of 5 hours/week. Here is an overview of the projects that our 28 student staff members worked on this past semester:

Land and Equity Movement, Uganda

Drafted a legal memorandum that summarized the Ugandan approach to proving customary law in court and argued that Uganda should scrap its approach and adopt the approach used by South Africa. The approach used in South Africa makes customary law much more accessible for those who wish to live under it.

National Center on Sexual Exploitation

Began updating a 100-plus page legal manual that outlines how to constitutionally regulate sexually-oriented business. Once updated, the manual will be distributed free of charge to cities and other local governmental agencies wishing to adopt ordinances that effectively zone and regulate these businesses to help curb their negative secondary effects.

Shared Hope

• Drafted a legal memorandum that summarized all federal and state case law regarding how prosecutors and judges have dealt with “bottom girls.” “Bottom girls,” pimps’ top prostitutes, often engage in trafficking-related activities, but the problem is that they are often trafficking victims themselves. Our memo will assist Shared Hope in deciding how best to advocate for these victims.
• Drafted a legal memorandum that discusses the criminal law doctrine of merger under Hawaii law. The memo will be used as a resource to help pass Hawaii’s first sex trafficking statute, which has been defeated two years in a row, in part because of an improper understanding of the doctrine of merger.   

Alliance Defending Freedom International

• Monitored all new cases before the European Court of Human Rights and sent ADF a weekly update outlining particular cases of interest.
• Drafted summaries of various Resolutions of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe for ADF’s digital library.

Advocates International

Drafted a legal memorandum that outlines the legal frameworks with respect to adoption and foster care and recommended how Nepal and Bangladesh can improve their child welfare systems. The memo summarized U.S. law, international guidelines, Nepal and Bangladesh law, and then recommended what changes Nepal and Bangladesh need to make to better protect children. Advocates will use this memo at a conference run by World Without Orphans in February.

Universitas Pelitas Harapan

Researched and compiled all Indonesia laws that relate to human trafficking. The research is part of a “legal toolkit,” a document that is intended to be used by judges, police officers, prosecutors, and government officials to combat sex trafficking.

Jerusalem Institute for Justice

Drafted a legal memorandum that detailed how the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees receives funding and argued that the continued funding of the organization likely violates U.S and international law. JIJ intends to send the memo to two United States senators.

International Justice Mission

Drafted a comprehensive legal memorandum that summarized best practices for police accountability. Specifically, the memo looked high profile investigations and prosecutions of police officers in the United States and United Kingdom and discussed why they were or were not successful. The memo also looked at the various ways in which nations hold police officers accountable, whether internal affairs, independent oversight, or a hybrid method, and analyzed which is the best method.

Confidential

The project related to drafting a legal memorandum that will be used to help save unborn children.

Student Staff Fall 2014 Semester Summary

To provide Regent Law students with practical experience in the legal protection of human rights, students volunteer with the center each semester for a minimum of 5 hours/week. Here is an overview of the projects that our 20 student staff members worked on this past semester:

Shared Hope

Students assisted Shared Hope with the Protected Innocence Challenge. Shared Hope acknowledged our support on page 4 of the challenge report.

International Justice Mission (IJM)

Students Provided IJM invaluable legal support as they seek to hold police accountable and transform the legal systems in East Africa to protect the poor.  Students put togehter a case digest involving the prosecution of police officers and a Separation of Powers presentation that was used to influence Kenyan judges and parliamentarians to think about these issues from a Biblical perspective.

  

Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)

Students supported the work of ADF by reviewing cases before the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and drafting case summaries for their digital library.  This work will enable ADF to be more effective in their advocacy.

Kyampisi Childcare Ministries (KCM)

Students wrote a legal memorandum that was used by KCM to advocate before the government to take a strong stance against child sacrifice. The Center also drafted court petitions for KCM and provided other legal research.

Additional Projects

Students worked on additional projects for for IJM Thailand and M1:Zero that will be completed next semester.

Read additional student staff updates >