Legal Professional Development and Anti-Corruption Program in Liberia (LPAC) Monthly Report (October 1 – October 31, 2016)

The program aims to promote a more effective and accountable formal justice sector through improved capacity of five legal institutions: the James A. A. Pierre Judicial Institute (JI), the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law (Law School), the Liberia Legal Information Institute (LiberLII), the Liberian National Bar Association (LNBA), and the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC). LPAC consists of two components. Component A supports human and institutional capacity development at four legal educational, information, and professional institutions, with the ultimate aim of making those institutions financially and administratively sustainable. Component B supports the Government of Liberia to increase capacity to prevent, investigate, and prosecute corruption, including within the justice sector, and to educate the public regarding the fight against corruption in Liberia. The JI has sustainable capacity to support an accountable judiciary that instills increased trust in Liberia's formal justice system. To achieve sustainability, it will be necessary for the Institute to obtain reliable funding from the Government of Liberia and better manage its scarce resources. LPAC provided technical assistance to the Research Director to better support the Supreme Court, Court Administration, and the JI. An update to the strategic plan was developed that will be shared with JCACM in November. Training needs assessments were conducted for judiciary personnel, and a judiciary-wide training needs assessment was initiated. LPAC also provided technical and capacity-building training for JI staff to design and conduct future needs assessment surveys. A working group was established to oversee the development of a curriculum based on international best practices. The Professional Magistrates Training Program (PMTP) Cycle III Project Proposal was discussed with the Chair of the JI Board of Governors, and final approval of the revised proposal is pending. The Public Defenders Training Program was finalized, and preparations were made for the program to be held in Ganta from October 31 to November 5, 2016. The program will train 34 public defenders on various topics, including the New Jury Law, Handling Exhibits in Legal Proceedings, and Forensic Science. The Court Management Curriculum was finalized, and a Model Code of Conduct for judiciary employees was developed. Guidelines and standards for human resources management at the JI were also finalized. The Finance and Budget Administration Process was supported by LPAC's administrative and financial advisors. The JI's Finance Officer submitted the first petty cash report generated from the new financial management system. The Procurement process was also supported, and the JI's Procurement Officer was trained on the LPAC-developed inventory tracking system.