Legal assistance for IDPs and Returnees

Legal counseling services are available to help individuals understand their rights and navigate legal challenges.

Lawyers assist with various legal issues, including:

• Civil Law
• Personal Status Law (e.g., marriage, divorce, and custody)
• Civil Affairs Law
• Criminal Law
• Housing, Land, and Property (HLP)

These services help individuals:

• Explore their legal options.
• Claim their entitlements.
• Understand and follow legal procedures.
• Find the best mechanisms to resolve legal problems.

Legal counseling is provided at:

• Legal Centers and Community Centers.
• Through partners’ hotline numbers.
• At mobile units and protection facilities operated by partners.

All legal counseling services are free of charge and tailored to assist vulnerable individuals.

One of the main objectives of the Legal Assistance Program is to conduct regular awareness raising sessions to targeted population on specific legal issues in order to enhance their general awareness of essential issues and empower them to play an active role in the decisions that affect their lives. Main topics for these sessions may relate to the relevant Syrian Laws such as Personal Status Law, Civil Affairs Law, HLP laws, Civil Law, and Penal Code.

The Legal intervention before courts or other governmental bodies is carried on behalf of vulnerable individuals who are more likely to be in need of assistance due to their lack of knowledge on the required legal procedures, having protection concerns, inability to reach the administrative and legal bodies, poverty and financial difficulties. Legal assistance covers the following matters:
• Documenting personal civil events (marriage, birth, divorce and death);
Partners’ lawyers may assist vulnerable individuals on documentation-related issues. The intervention in such cases may take place before civil registries for the issuance of identity cards and family booklets either for the first time or as a replacement for lost or damaged ones. Intervention may also take place before the Syrian courts and then at the Department of Civil Affairs for cases that require registering and documenting personal status events such as authentication of marriage, divorce, or death, when these events have already taken place without being officially registered.
• HLP legal matters:
UNHCR’s partners provide HLP-related services under certain conditions. Partners shall provide HLP counselling and awareness raising sessions according to the same rules that regulates these two activities.
Administrative interventions for HLP matters may include assisting vulnerable PoCs in issuing basic cadastral documents such as issuing replacements of lost/damaged cadastral documents/ownership deeds or copies of power of attorney/ratified sale contract issued by the notary public.
Intervention before courts may include providing support and legal assistance in actions such as restoring real-estate court cases that have been damaged due to the crisis upon ensuing the good faith of the requesting party, authenticating sale contract where the seller acknowledges the contract.
• Legal issues related to the protection/safety of women and children (custody, alimony, inheritance, domestic violence…etc.);
Since women and children still face some protection concerns in many life situations, UNHCR has expanded access to legal assistance and legal remedies to address GBV and CP cases which were either identified by partners’ lawyers and LORVs or referred to them by other units, ORVs, relevant authorities or other NGOs or UN agencies.

Partners of the Legal Support Program can be contacted to receive legal consultations and awareness on:
– Registration of newborns and issuance of personal documents (such as IDs and family booklets).
– Personal status issues, such as marriage, birth, divorce, and death.
– HLP documents and issues.
– Legal representation of people most in need before courts and administrative bodies.

Syrian Arab Red Crescent +963 950 033 116
+963 950 033 260 Damascus: Rawda, Zuheir bin Abi Salama St., Bldg. 17, Bsmt, Tel: 011-332 69 11

Syria Trust for Development +963 951 333 691
+963 951 333 692
+963 951 333 672
+963 951 333 673 Damascus: Bab Sharqi, Arman Neighborhood, Tel:
011-471 07 22
011-473 13 00

Noting that the working days are from Sunday to Thursday, from 9 am to 3 pm.

Hotline Numbers: Syrian Arab Red Crescent
Damascus: Tadhamon Center, Daf Al Shook St., next to Al Dada Bakery. +963 960 088 857 +963 948 333 280 011- 656 01 57
Hasaka: Al Mattar Al Janobi Neighborhood, behind the Directorate of Social Affairs and Labor. +963 950 033 835 +963 950 033 551 +963 950 033 201
Hasaka – Qamishli: Jazeera St., opposite Viola Café, Al Wasta Neighborhood. +963 950 033 201
+963 950 033 810
Hama: Qairouan Engineering Group Bldg., Al Bonok St., AL Assi Sq. +963 950 033 122 +963 948 333 286 +963-33-2226 671
Der Ezzor: next to Daowar Al Mwazafin. +963 950 033 250 +963 950 033 252
Aleppo: Aleppo, Al Serian Al Jadida Neighborhood, Past Al Salam Hospital, Railways Bldg. +963 950 033 231 +963 950 033 578
Raqqa: Raqqa, Daowar Al Battani. +963 950 033 007 +963 950033887

Hotline Numbers: Syria Trust for Development
Aleppo: Al Mohafaza Neighborhood, Souk Al Intaj. +963 951 333 853 +963 943 043 452
Lattakia: Al Sheikh Dhaher. +963 951 333 978
Tartous: Tartous. +963 943 043 510
Hama: Al Andalous Neighborhood. +963 943 044 043
Sweida: Tishreen Sq. +963 943 043 228