DPA launches courthouse for production of legal dramas
4 min read
Courthouse
The Due Process Advocates International (DPA), has announced the launch of a courthouse for the production of legal dramas.
The launch was confirmed in a statement made by it’s founder, attorney Emeka Ugwuonye.
According to the Harvard trained attorney, the courthouse shall be a stage for the production of legal dramas and movies to entertain the world.
It will also be a place where the organization will try cases and settle disputes between people who will volunteer to have their disputes resolved without the need to go to the government owned courts, which are too expensive and too time-consuming.
Ugwuonye said, “Fellow Advocates, Ladies and Gentlemen! I am pleased to introduce to you the DPA COURTHOUSE. It is a project that has been in the works for a long time now. The construction of the Courthouse was completed today. Having finished most of the hard aspect of the project, we shall continue on the soft aspect.
“The DPA COURTHOUSE shall serve the following important purposes:
“First, it shall be the set or stage for the production of legal dramas and movies to entertain the world.
“Second, it is actually a courthouse where we try cases and settle disputes between people who will volunteer to have their disputes resolved by DPA without the need to go to the government-owned courts, which are too expensive and too time-consuming.
“Thirdly, it shall be a place where we simulate court trials for the purpose of preparing our clients/members for court appearances. For instance, most people have not been to court of law before and will not appear in courts until the day they have a case and appearing either as witnesses for their own trial. As a result, most people have no preparation as to what to expect when they actually appear in court.
“Appearing in court for the first time can be very intimidating. The DPA Courthouse is a place to prepare you if ever you are to appear in court. It will be a realistic court situation for your rehearsal and preparation for court. You will be put through the same situation that you will face in actual court. There will be lawyers to examine you and a judge to supervise the proceedings. By the time you have gone through the simulation in the DPA Courthouse, you will be a star witness in any court of law. You will no longer be intimidated by the court if you appear in one.
“Fourthly, the DPA Courthouse is an additional platform to use in teaching the law. We shall develop legal facts and trial scenarios that will be as close to real court trials as possible. We will cite and apply the law exactly as it is applied in the formal courts of law. The cases processed will be well articulated to educate the people on the workings of the law.
“The DPA Courthouse shall have all the features and deliverables – a TV court show, a center for mediation and alternative dispute resolution, a platform for legal education, and a stage for the simulation of trials and preparation of DPA members facing court trials. The cases to be treated in the DPA Courthouse will be well diversified – family law cases, criminal cases, civil cases, etc.
“I chose to lauch the DPA Courthouse today, the 2nd of Februry because I wanted the launch to coincide with the 75th Birthday of my mother, Ebemma, who raised me and my siblings as a widow and made sure that we all graduated from the university. Ebemma taught me everything I know – including how to cook, how to wash clothes and clean the house, and how to fight for those who have no one to fight for them. Being raised by Ebemma instilled in me my current sense of justice and fairness. Even though she has no real knowledge of how the modern justie system works, her sense of fairness has guided me over the years. She will be happy to know that her child had a hand in establishing a court like this. So, Happy 75th Birthday to Ebemma. This court shall be dedicated to her.
“All functions of the Courthourse will not begin at once. We now have to recruit people who will play various roles in the court either as lawyers, registrar, court bailiff, police officer as court orderly, prison warder to bring in defendants from prison and a judge. Those to play the roles of judges and the lawyers must be people who have legal education and are able to easily cope with legal language and procedure. We shall start auditioning almost immediately. Given that the Courthouse will be active almost everyday, those to play these roles will be needed almost all the time. So, they will be paid salaries like they are in any other kind of employment or in a drama series. Based on prior-arraingement, DPA members will be allowed to play the roles of the public who are in court.
“I thank all the staff of DPA and our lawyers who helped in making the DPA Courthouse a reality, including the lawyers who gave ideas and suggestions, our Artistic Director and Graphics experts who helped to design the logos, banners, the structural designers who custructed the furniture and wall paintings, the airconditioning team who refitted the airconditioning system to allow for the size of people expected in the courtroom, etc. I am grateful to all of you.”
