Abstract:
ABSTRACT
ANALYSIS OF THE ROLE OF PARALEGALS IN ENHANCING LEGAL ACCESSIBILITY IN THE COMMUNITY BASED ON ARTICLE 5 OF THE REGULATION OF THE MINISTER OF LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS NUMBER 3 OF 2021 ON PARALEGALS IN THE PROVISION
OF LEGAL AID IN TASIKMALAYA REGENCY
Sufi Anah Hamidayati
NIM. 82338230013
Paralegals are individuals originating from community groups who have undergone education and training and possess a strong commitment to providing legal assistance for impoverished communities who face difficulties in accessing formal legal services to attain equal rights before the law and legal justice. Paralegals play a strategic role in enhancing legal accessibility. However, in practice, they still face numerous challenges such as the lack of support from local governments, the absence of explicit regulations that formally recognize and facilitate paralegal activities, and the limited provision of continuous training to support the capacity and competency development of paralegals, despite their essential and fundamental role. These issues raise critical questions about the extent to which Regulation of the Minister of Law and Human Rights No. 3 of 2021 on Paralegals in Legal Aid Provision, particularly Article 5, can serve as a legal foundation to ensure the enhancement of paralegals' capacity and competency qualifications. This study aims to examine the regulatory policies and the role of paralegals in providing legal aid to poor communities in Tasikmalaya Regency. The research applies a normative-juridical method with a descriptive-analytical specification and employs a qualitative approach. The findings indicate that some paralegals involved in legal aid assistance do not possess the necessary competencies, have not undergone proper training, and are not registered with the Badan Pembinaan Hukum Nasional (BPHN). Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop legislative frameworks that explicitly recognize, facilitate, protect, and supervise paralegal activities.
Keywords: Paralegal, Competency and Training, Legal Aid
