Do no harm ON A WIDER LEVEL, It is essential to think through the potential consequences of program activities, in order to make sure that there are no damaging effects for communities or clients. Formalizing status under discriminatory frameworks can put clients in danger, or may risk validating a law that is not compliant with human rights principles. Empowering clients to make their own decisions by giving them information is a key way to avoid doing harm. One way a program can encourage paralegals to avoid harm is to prepare a list of common problem situations. When paralegals notice such problems, they should consult with their supervisors before taking action. PROGRAMS SHOULD On a wider level, programs should be clear that their role is to help clients encourage the government to meet its obligations to provide relevant legal identity documentation. Paralegals must avoid becoming a substitute for government or a pretext for governments to do less. They can, however, help build government capacity through collaboration and by setting examples, and then push governments to expand budgets, programs, and their reach in seeking to include all people. As projects gain experience, shifting to complex cases can help prevent your program from becoming a substitute for government functions. Helping clients with complex cases can also have a bigger impact. Monitoring government efforts can encourage government officials to conduct their own outreach and increase the accessibility of administrative processes— and is an important way to avoid substituting for functions government should provide. Periodically assessing such dynamics locally can help you be sure that your project is not indirectly getting in the way of state-led initiatives. BE CLEAR THAT THEIR ROLE IS TO HELP CLIENTS ENCOURAGE THE GOVERNMENT TO MEET ITS OBLIGATIONS TO PROVIDE RELEVANT LEGAL IDENTITY DOCUMENTATION. Non-discrimination Many projects apply a non-discrimination principle. This can mean helping anyone referred to your project or anyone who comes to your door with a nationality or documentation issue, even if they are not a part of the marginalized community your project was designed to serve. Just having a focus on a particular marginalized group can lead to accusations of discrimination. You may have to explain, and train paralegals to explain, that by focusing its efforts on marginalized groups, your project will lessen discrimination in society. Confidentiality Similar to lawyer-client privilege that covers client communications in legal representation, communications about cases between clients and paralegals should be strictly confidential. This means that your project cannot share personal information about your clients with anyone, including the state, even in service to clients. Individuals may mistrust the government, for good reason. If your project does research, you DISCRIMINATION EMPOWERMENT SUSTAINABILITY DATA RELATED RESOURCES (EXTERNAL) RELATED SECTIONS (WITHIN) A C O M M U N I T Y- B A S E D P R A C T I T I O N E R ’ S G U I D E : D O C U M E N T I N G C I T I Z E N S H I P A N D OT H E R F O R M S O F L E G A L I D E N T I T Y | 83