Evgeny Ulyumdzhiev is a Muskie [7]fellow studying law at the Northwestern University School of Law [8]. Before arriving in the US in the fall of 2010, Ulyumdzhiev was an attorney in Russia. He plans to return home and continue practicing law next year. Ulyumdzhiev reflects on the community service he completed this semester providing free legal advice to disadvantaged citizens.
What did your community service involve?
I worked as a volunteer at the Catholic Charities Legal Assistance [9]in Chicago, which provides free legal advice to those layers of the population who cannot afford legal advice because of their low income status, including the unemployed, immigrants, homeless, and other underprivileged groups of people. I divided my time between interviewing potential clients seeking free legal aid and doing legal research on child abduction issues.
What types of issues did you address while performing your community service?
I realized that day-to-day legal problems of ordinary people are no less complicated than high-profile legal issues that major corporations face and that an attorney who devotes her time to legal charity meets with no fewer challenges than an attorney working for a business law firm. I also saw that people seeking free legal aid very often need a bit of tea and sympathy more than the actual legal assistance - it is important for them to find a shoulder to cry on and share their sad stories with someone who will understand them and try to help them. Recently, I spent an hour or so listening to a young woman who was allegedly beaten and harassed by police officers here in Chicago. She was crying and I could not help but share in her sadness and despair.
What did you learn about the American legal system?
Before that experience I thought the problems that confront the rest of the world, particularly countries in transition such as Russia in terms of social problems, would not present themselves in such a dramatic way in the US. But I saw that in spite of the public welfare system of the US, there are still those who have to struggle for basic needs. But I first of all learned that the American legal system, in spite of being very practical and pragmatic, still has some space for accommodating the needs of those who are less fortunate than ourselves, because here the pro bono sector is very well organized.
How do the American and Russian legal systems compare?
The Russian system could benefit from a highly professional and organized approach to pro bono work. In Russia, it seems that it’s still regarded more as voluntary work, and when you hear the word ‘voluntary,’ you would normally think of something improvised rather than actual well organized professional work.
With newly honed skills and a broader understanding of the legal challenges facing the underprivileged, Ulyumdzhiev hopes to continue the spirit of volunteerism and apply his community experience to legal services in Russia.
The Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program [7] is administered by IREX and funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs [10] of the US Department of State.