The SAWF IN Legal Fellowship Programme was launched in 2017 and provides financial and technical support to women lawyers practising in districts courts of India, to strengthen their lens in feminist lawyering in legal practice and their journey in feminist advocacy, helping them build their skills in litigation, and help provide pro-bono support to women and trans* persons litigants in their cases.

The fellowship aims to support women lawyers practising at district courts to:  

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

Until now, 12 legal fellows have gone on to advance feminist lawyering in different district courts in the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Nagaland, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, and Uttar Pradesh. By strengthening their understanding of feminist lawyering, these fellows have engaged with and handled pro-bono cases for marginalised litigants in their respective districts. To date, the legal fellows have supported 260 women with litigation support, while 1100 women, girls, and trans persons received legal counselling and advice. Additionally, training and awareness sessions conducted by the fellows have impacted 1200 girls and women. In the year 2023-24, SAWF IN is supporting the work of 4 fellows in the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland and Tamil Nadu.

Working with individuals from a cross-section of social identities, who have unequal access to power, resources, and decision-making opportunities, this fellowship focuses on building a pool of women lawyers who:

• Apply a feminist approach in their case analysis and strengthen the feminist agenda on access to justice,
• Support women and trans litigants, particularly those facing examination in matters of sexual assault, to engage with the judicial process and access justice with relative ease,
• Claim greater space and voice within the Indian legal system,
• Form a strong regional and national network of skilled women and trans lawyers practicing law with a human rights, feminist approach, in the country’s primary courts;
• Develop enhanced capacities to identify and address barriers to accessing justice, including the reforms needed to strengthen legal responses to women and trans litigants.