What to do if the landlord doesn't pay back the deposit? And does a tweet about a university event actually fall under freedom of speech? Students seeking advice come to the university's student legal advice centre with these and other questions. Students have been offering this free service since 2015.
Thursday afternoon in building A05, first floor. It's time for the weekly office hours of the student legal counselling service. Sebastian Ziemer (26) and Carina Nagorny (27) are waiting in the room. Both are studying Economics and Law - and help people with legal problems on the side. Just like today. A young woman, a pile of papers under her arm, enters the room hesitantly. She doesn't speak German well. "No problem," says Ziemer. And they are already in the middle of a new case. The young woman, a doctoral student at the university, describes her problems with signing a contract, the contents of which - due to her lack of language skills - she has not fully understood. Ziemer and Nagorny look at the documents, ask questions, take notes.
This is how it often goes in the office hours of Student Legal Consulting. "Sometimes people bog us down," reports Ziemer. The problems with which people come for advice are varied. Sometimes it's about tenancy law or the question of whether an employment contract is in order. Some things are more delicate, such as the case of the doctoral student, which also involves a deadline. "Every case has its own details. You can't give standard answers," says Ziemer. That's why personal dialogue is so important.
For almost two years, students at the university with knowledge of law have been advising those who cannot afford traditional legal advice. These could be pensioners, the unemployed, refugees or students. But the service is of course open to everyone, says Nagorny. For Prof Dr Dr Volker Boehme-Neßler, this social aspect of the work is particularly important. "Students are already privileged and it's not a bad thing if they also do something for the less privileged," he says.
The idea of offering student legal advice in Oldenburg also goes back to Boehme-Neßler. Together with committed students who have since changed universities or completed their studies, the professor of public law got the ball rolling. The students set up a website and introduced weekly office hours. In the meantime, a new generation of students is already involved.
The concept of student legal advice originally comes from the USA. Here, law clinics have long been part of the legal training programme. Students gain valuable practical insights into professional life and those seeking advice, especially those on a low income, receive free legal support. In Germany, students were not allowed to offer legal advice until just under a decade ago. It was only when a corresponding law came into force in 2008 that the first advice centres run by law students were established at German universities.
The advantages are obvious: what students would otherwise only study in theory, they now apply in practice. "I learn an incredible amount. No textbook writer could make that up," says Ziemer. Nagorny and Ziemer also say that their motivation for their studies has increased enormously as a result of their work in legal counselling. This is precisely the purpose of the project, says Boehme-Neßler. Because experience has shown: "The moment the students no longer just write for the drawer or for the lecturer, but directly make a difference in the world, they become enthusiastic".
Boehme-Neßler gives the young advisors a free hand in their work. Nevertheless, he is always available in the background via WhatsApp or telephone. On the one hand, this is required by law. Students are only allowed to give advice on legal matters if this is done under the supervision of a person who is qualified to act as a judge. On the other hand, there are cases "that are really tricky," explains Boehme-Neßler. As in the case of the doctoral student, where it is important not to miss the legally relevant deadline. "I get involved in such cases," he says.
Students also benefit from the expertise of other lecturers in the Department of Law, who they can ask for specialist advice. In around half of all cases, the students are able to resolve the problems of those affected on the spot - there is no need to go to a lawyer.
However, students cannot and must not shoulder everything. When it comes to criminal matters such as personal injury, family law or large sums of money, "we leave it alone. A specialist can help better," says Ziemer. "We don't replace the lawyer. We first talk to people who would otherwise not exercise their rights and show them possible solutions," adds Boehme-Neßler.
What the students offer is, in their own eyes, help for self-help. "We put those seeking advice on the right path," says Ziemer. It is also very important to take away the fear of the situation for those affected, adds Nagorny. Ziemer, Nagorny and their fellow students therefore also provide pastoral care during their office hours: "We take the burden off people's shoulders. They know they are being taken seriously," says Ziemer. Many therefore leave the office hours feeling grateful.
This work is not always easy. "Sometimes the problems really get to you," says Nagorny. As the students always work as a team, they also discuss the issues after the office hours. Nagorny and Ziemer find it helpful that they have already completed an apprenticeship before their studies. Because in order to be able to categorise the problems, you have to have "seen something different in life than university and school," says Nagorny.
Boehme-Neßler is actually satisfied with the student counsellors. So far, he says, there have always been people among the students who are up to the counselling situation and do not overestimate themselves. In his opinion, the students' practical counselling work is a "great addition" to their studies.
The student legal counselling office hours are always held on Thursdays, in building A5 1-174, from 4.00 to 6.00 pm and on Tuesdays in the odd calendar weeks in the AStA rooms from 2.00 to 4.00 pm.
