Martin Ferguson

My time at MDAC has been varied, with my workload reflecting the reality of a dynamic NGO. I was part of the strategic litigation team. As a background project I worked on an online database of case reports, summarising judgments from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) with a view to their being used as an educational tool for anyone from amateurs to legal professionals. Given the nature of litigation, other pressing assignments took priority almost every day. Coming straight from an undergraduate academic background most of the tasks involved steep learning curves. Moreover, they were thoroughly rewarding as I felt that through my legal work I was directly contributing to the protection of human rights for specific people.

Examples of my work include; researching for and drafting a number of written submissions to the ECtHR, composing a dossier of one area of litigation and assessing its similarities to another area of disability discrimination in order to evaluate the potential of future litigation, writing to the ECtHR to request that a case be both rectified and restored for further consideration and proof reading and editing responses to Government submissions in ongoing cases before the ECtHR. To give a little more insight, one of my responsibilities was to write a request to the Court in the case of a client whose legal capacity had been removed, meaning that they were unable to conduct any legal actions such as marry, vote, sign contracts etc. Constructing the submission from its inception to completion was incredibly satisfying. Another example is being part of the ongoing collaboration between several human rights NGOs as we work on constructing a case concerning gross human rights violations in a home for people with mental disabilities. Being given the responsibility and opportunity to further the human rights of people so directly was particularly engaging.

On top of the work I was able to do it was fantastic to be able to participate in many conferences and discussions held at MDAC involving professionals from many countries, such as the Access to Justice project workshop and the Litigating Torture training. Overall my time with MDAC has been extremely educational, rewarding and enjoyable and I would highly recommend an internship to anyone seeking to become involved in advancing the human rights of people with intellectual or psycho-social disabilities.