Free legal aid in the penitentiary system: development prospects

Introduction. Due to its importance, the institution of providing free legal aid to convicts is often discussed in scientific circles, but there are a number of issues that have not been legally regulated. They are related to the quality of its provision, territorial accessibility, and modernization of the service itself. In this regard, we would like to emphasize that legal aid is a more comprehensive concept, which includes legal education, which has not reached a new level in modern conditions of digitalization in places of detention.

Purpose. To describe the procedure for providing legal information to persons in institutions of the penal system, to formulate proposals for improving the effectiveness of legal assistance to convicts.

Theoretical foundations. Methods. The theoretical basis of the research was made up of scientific articles, statistical reports of government departmental structures, materials of judicial and investigative practices. The methodological basis is made up of commonly used scientific research methods, the application of which determines the choice of systemic, activity-based, functional and interdisciplinary approaches to the study of an urgent problem.

Results. The existing information terminals of correctional institutions are often not connected to legal reference systems or are connected with minimal access. In such circumstances, convicts are limited in their right to access information of a legal nature, guaranteed in the basic law. It seems reasonable for persons who are in places of deprivation of liberty or who are being held in pre-trial detention facilities to have access not only to basic and mandatory legislation, but also to other regulations affecting: living conditions and medical care; labor activity (for convicts), etc.

Conclusions. An important issue is the availability of legal aid to convicts located in remote territories, where the nearest lawyers are located tens of kilometers away. The author believes that there is a practical need to provide free legal aid in a remote format, which should be provided by a correctional institution at the request of a convicted person.

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