SUBMISSION DEADLINE FEBRUARY 5^TH 2021, MIDNIGHT IST

SAWF IN is pleased to announce a call for a year-long legal fellowship to women lawyers practicing at district courts in India.

The Legal Fellowship Programme was initiated by SAWF IN in 2017 in partnership with Women's Fund Asia. The year-long fellowship support is aimed at enabling women lawyers hone feminist lawyering and litigation skills, and advocate for women and trans* rights. At the same time, the programme offers opportunities for peer learning, building networks with lawyers from other countries and receiving mentoring support from senior feminist lawyers.

SAWF IN is launching the call for legal fellows against the background of the humanitarian crisis unleashed by COVID 19. The pandemic has exposed and exacerbated social and economic inequalities in all forms. Numerous studies have shown that the effects of COVID have been particularly harsh on women and trans* people. Women’s groups have reported exacerbated incidents of inter spousal abuse, domestic violence and sexual assault. For many such women legal recourse for the violations faced by them is highly challenging as they are either unaware of the remedies available or the legal system is highly intimidating and unresponsive to their situation. Further, the high cost of litigation also deters women from seeking the rights granted to them under the law.

Through the fellowship SAWF IN wishes to address the unmet need for litigation support to women who choose to use the legal remedies they are entitled to. The fellowship will support women lawyers practising at district courts to:

• Provide free legal aid and support to women and trans* litigants
• Build their own skills in feminist lawyering in primary courts, particularly in building constitutional arguments.
• Advocate for more gender responsive lawyering at district courts
• Lead and participate in actions that directly contribute to realising the rights of women and trans*

For more information on the criteria for application and the application process, please download the application package below.

Each package has three documents (Fellowship Announcement Note, Application Form and a Checklist of Documents for submission). Please read all documents before applying. For any query please feel free to write to legalfellowship.sawfin@gmail.com 
 

Please download all three documents

1. Application Format
2. Application Criteria and Process Note - English, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu
3. Document Checklist

Please remember that the SUBMISSION DEADLINE for all applications is FEBRUARY 5^TH 2021, MIDNIGHT IST. You can email the application format and documents to legalfellowship.sawfin@gmail.com