Free Legal Aid, Addresses
Article 41.
Public defense
1. Public defense shall be deemed the free legal aid provided in the cases envisaged by this Article.
2. Free legal aid includes:
1) counseling — the drawing up of statements of claim, applications, complaints and other procedural documents of a legal nature, including the provision of legal information;
2) representation or defense — in criminal, civil, administrative and constitutional cases.
3. Within the meaning of this Article, representation or defense shall be carried out in the pre-trial proceedings of a criminal case, in the first instance, appellate and cassation courts of the Republic of Armenia, as well as in the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Armenia.
4. The body conducting proceedings in criminal cases shall provide free legal aid through the Public Defender's Office — in the cases provided for by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia or by international treaties, or where the interests of justice so require.
5. The Public Defender's Office, with the exception of the provision of legal aid to a suspect or an accused in a criminal case, as well as the cases specified in part 6 of this Article, shall provide the free legal aid envisaged by this Article to the following persons:
1) family members of a serviceman who fell (died) during the defense of the borders of the Republic of Armenia;
2) persons with disabilities of the 1st and 2nd groups;
3) convicts;
4) members of a family registered in the family vulnerability assessment system and having a vulnerability score higher than 0;
5) participants of the Great Patriotic War and of combat operations during the defense of the borders of the Republic of Armenia;
6) the unemployed;
7) pensioners living alone;
8) children left without parental care, as well as persons among the number of children left without parental care;
9) refugees;
10) persons who have received temporary protection in the Republic of Armenia;
11) insolvent natural persons who submit reliable data confirming their insolvency. Within the meaning of this point, an insolvent natural person shall be deemed to be one who has no sufficient income, no cohabiting working family member, and who, apart from a personal dwelling, does not own any other immovable property or a means of transport whose value exceeds a thousandfold the minimum wage;
12) persons with mental disorders undergoing treatment in a psychiatric organization;
13) persons recognized as a victim or a victim of a special category by the commission for the identification of victims of human trafficking and exploitation in the manner prescribed by law;
14) asylum seekers in the Republic of Armenia. 6. Free legal aid may not be provided to the persons specified in part 5 of this Article — 1) in cases of an entrepreneurial nature (including corporate disputes); 2) in cases involving a property (monetary) claim exceeding a thousandfold the minimum wage, with the exception of cases where the person acts as a respondent or as a third party acting on the side of the respondent;
3) if there are reliable factual data refuting the insolvency of the applicant person.
(Article 41 revised by HO-339-N of 08.12.11, supplemented by HO-29-N of 30.04.13, HO-215-N of 17.12.14, amended, supplemented by HO-157-N of 17.10.16)