Att. Franc Terihati is the Executive Director of Centre for Legal Empowerment (CLE) form December 2021. CLE is a legal centre which deliver effective legal education activities at the community level, and sustaining community active participation in advocacy and legal processes, including strategic litigation cases. CLE is focused on delivering primary and secondary free legal education and aid services, identifying, and pursuing cases affecting a large number of citizens and that may bring changes in strategic level and bring about change at the policy level that will guarantee the protection of social-economic rights.
CLE provide expertise in the following areas:
In 2020 was established the online platform Juristionline.al which aims the provision of online free legal assistance to citizens and CSO’s. The online platform has addressed 4200 requests for primary legal aid services and at least 400 000 citizens receive every year legal information from answers of the lawyers already registered in Juristionline through accessing the platform.
Prior to joining CLE, Terihati was the Program Manager of the Programs of Protecting Socio-Economic Rights and Legal Empowerment at the Open Society Foundation for Albania from September 2017. During this period, he worked together with CSOs and local and international experts on drafting the Legal Needs Survey in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in 2019, on providing substantial support and assistance to the MoJ for drafting the legal framework, establishing the institutional infrastructure and increasing capacities of the Directorate of FLA. From 2018, 4 legal aid service centers were established in Tirana, Durres, Shkoder and Vlore to provide primary and secondary legal aid services to marginalized and poor communities. In terms of results, these centers have provided primary legal aid services to approximately 5.000 citizens, secondary legal aid for more than 200 cases and 25 strategic/collective litigation cases are legally represented in the court.