Advocates are already working in the brigades: launch of the «Advocate+» pilot project in the combat zone
This week, advocates made their first visits directly to military units in the combat zone as part of the implementation of the decision by the UNBA Committee on the protection of victims of armed aggression to launch the «Advocate+» project.
The first to join the initiative, hold meetings with military personnel and provide them with consultations were chairman of the relevant UNBA Committee Andriy Yermak, Committee members Ihor Andriyev, Polina Marchenko, Vadym Hatezh and advisor to the President of the UNBA, BCU Artemiy Karpenko.
As part of the pilot program, servicemen from the 157th Separate Mechanized Brigade and the 79th Separate Airborne Assault Tavriya Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as the 3rd Special Operations Brigade «Spartan» of the National Guard of Ukraine were able to communicate directly with advocates, identify the most pressing issues regarding the protection of their rights, and receive initial general explanations and recommendations.
This involves the practical implementation of the «Advocate+» model — a system of legal support for military personnel at the brigade level, which in the future will combine digital tools with in-person work by advocates directly within the units.
The first visits confirmed the demand for in-person legal support regarding basic yet critical issues: military service, pay, medical examinations, transfers, and the preparation of documents and reports.
At the same time, a network of advocates is being formed to scale up the project.
Today, meetings of two regional branches of the UNBA were held in Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia. As a result, additional members of the association — highly qualified advocates — put forward their candidacies to participate in the «Advocate+» project with the aim of providing legal assistance to military personnel and their families.
The next stage involves systematizing the received requests, refining the assistance algorithms, and gradually scaling the initiative to other units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
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