Low income Serbians set to benefit from free legal aid in 2018 - report

BELGRADE - Serbia has been struggling for six years to put in place a law on free legal aid, which is one of the requirements for progress in its EU accession negotiations. The law will be adopted by the end of 2016 and implemented in 2018, the justice ministry told EurActiv Serbia.

Due to the low salaries, high fees and lengthy court proceedings, many Serbs have difficulty affording justice.

The average salary in Serbia is around 45,000 Dinars or €365, while the data on the median salary is not published. It is widely believed that the median salary is far lower than the average one, the latter being boosted by the high salaries paid to company managements and in public companies and some lucrative sectors such as banking. Court and lawyer fees amount to hundreds of thousands of dinars which many cannot afford.

The draft law on free legal aid that is most likely...