Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Prof. Dr. Pauline Endres de Oliveira

Refugee Law Clinic Berlin

Prof. Pauline Endres de Oliveira coordinates the training and counseling activities of the Refugee Law Clinic e.V., a student association at Humboldt University, which offers free and independent legal counseling to migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. The initiative enables students to gain expertise in migration law during their studies and apply what they have learned in practice under legal supervision and guidance. At the same time, this creates low-threshold and free legal advice services.

 

Shortlisted for Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin’s Award for Good Teaching 2025 and Nominated for the Faculty of Law’s Award for Innovative Teaching 2025

Prof. Endres de Oliveira is delighted that her lecture “Introduction to German and European Asylum and Residence Law” has been nominated and shortlisted for Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin’s Award for Good Teaching 2025 and the Facultx of Law's Award for Innovatiev Teaching 2025. The lecture was held in the winter semester 2024/25 in cooperation with the Refugee Law Clinic Berlin e.V.

The awards recognize outstanding and innovative teaching concepts implemented as part of regular teaching at HU. The nominated lecture combines legal foundations with current socio-political questions in migration law. It covers the international, European and national foundations of migration law. Through interactive and hybrid formats, guest lectures and practice-oriented reflection, it fosters exchange between academia and civil society practice and provides inclusive access for students and non-students alike. As part of the training programme for volunteer legal counselling at the RLC Berlin, it creates an open space for interdisciplinary exchange and reflective learning, accessible to students from all disciplines as well as non-students. The lecture focuses on social sustainability, legal participation and an open, diverse society.

 

What is a law clinic?
The method of Clinical Legal Education comes from the Anglo-American legal field and comprises a variety of different educational programs in which students deal with real cases or social issues under the supervision of experts. Through student-centered, practice-oriented and interactive learning methods, students should acquire professional skills at an early stage and gain a social understanding of topics relevant to law, such as promoting the rule of law, access to law and justice, peaceful conflict resolution and solving social issues. In this way, students are prepared for a career in law and can gain their own experience in dealing with the law in practice during their studies.
 
Focus on participatory teaching

While the teaching concepts of the various legal clinics differ in detail, they always share a fundamental understanding of participatory learning, application-oriented knowledge transfer and social commitment. Through direct and practice-oriented learning, students can acquire central qualifications and specialist knowledge for future activities and apply this knowledge in exchange with socially relevant practice. In this way, legal clinics impart the ability to solve problems strategically, strengthen analytical and argumentation skills as well as social skills in dealing with people seeking advice, experts from academia and practice, non-governmental organizations, politics and administration.

 

Knowledge transfer between universities and practice

Furthermore, legal clinics create an important transfer of knowledge between universities and practitioners on current topics of high social relevance. Publications and events also promote academic and civil society debates. Legal clinics are thus part of social commitment based on democratic values and the rule of law. Legal clinics have proven themselves as an element of teaching in law studies worldwide. The great demand shows that practice-oriented knowledge transfer and a social understanding of law are of great importance to many students.