Recognising the need to support young lawyers opting to practice in the “social justice” field, two NGO's have come together to offer a two-year fellowship for the same. The Centre for Social Justice, Ahmedabad (CSJ) has teamed up with Pune-based NGO Econet to offer the “Lawyers for Change” Fellowship (LfC). The LfC Fellowship includes a monthly stipend of Rs.16,000.

The LfC Fellowship is open to final year law students (graduating in June 2012), practicing lawyers associated with rights-based organisations and lawyers who want to practice in the field of social justice.

This is the second such fellowship being offered by CSJ, but this time the target is more specific says Satyajeet Mazumdar, the LfC Programme Anchor. The last time around, CSJ had reached out to NGO's and asked them to nominate lawyers who might be interested in the LfC Fellowship. Unfortunately, this did not provide the kind of reaction that the LfC team was looking for and hence they have gone in for a different appproach.

This year, the LfC is targetting fresh lawyers and law students in particular. They have sent their brochures to various law schools and are hopeful to get a better response. They are now looking for people who can litigate at the High Courts and those who are interested in social justice issues.

Talking more about LfC Fellowship, CSJ's Managing Trustee Nupur Sinha tells us that the programme provides training in “both leadership and law”. The two-year programme works at three, different levels. One, at the individual level (“Who am I? What are my own biases towards women, dalits and minorities. Two, the programme tries to develop the understanding of social reality from a “legal perspective”. For example, what would be the best law applicable in a given situation. Three, the programme aims to develop a “social justice lawyer” says Sinha.

“The focus is much more holistic. You learn to talk to the community....to articulate issues in a particular manner....you learn to use legal strategies towards a larger goal.” explains Sinha. Perhaps what really sets the LfC Fellowship apart from other such programmes is the fact that it is much more directed towards direction action. “It is not only theoretical understanding that you develop. You file RTI's, you see the response....you learn that this is how it should have been done.”

The LfC Fellowship has been designed keeping in view the goal of the programme. After the first orientation session, the Fellow goes back to his/her area and does a “mapping”. Basically, the Fellow must answer questions such as “What are the social issues in my area? What are the organisations working here? Where can I contribute?” clarifies Sinha. Once this exercise is completed, the Fellow must develop a work plan and follow it up.

This is certainly not a new venture for CSJ in the sense that they have been training lawyers for more than a decade. Thus far, they have managed to get quite a positive response from particpants. Altaf Ghasura, a lawyer from Banaskantha district in Gujarat recalls how CSJ's training helped him professionally. “ After the fellowship, in spite of being a junior lawyer, I could effectively stand up for my cases and argue in Court. Though I used to work for clients, I always tried to be a mediator between my client and opponent to solve the case.” says Ghasura.

Ghasura is not alone in his praise. Bipin Jariya from Bharuch district, remembers how CSJ's training (received in 1995) was unique in the sense that “...though [the course material] was rich in content, they taught us how to use them too. It was not bookish knowledge but hands-on training of how to go out there and thrash out issues. This is something no law school has ever taught”. Jagruti J. Joshi, a lady lawyer from Saurashtra, says that the CSJ training exposed her to the harsh realities of life and made her a lot stronger. “The condition of society is stark.”, she says with great simplicity, “I cannot change the life of everyone but if my actions can help a few individuals, then it is worth it.”

Given the kind of experience CSJ has had with its training programmes, there is no doubt that they are well equippred to handle something like the LfC Fellowship. Sinha hopes that the LfC Fellowship will offer an alternative option for lawyers or law graduates who are discouraged from joining the social sector due to financial considerations.

Applicants must send in an e-mail to leaders.law@gmail.com on or before February 29, 2012 along with their CV. The “Subject” of the e-mail must clearly mention “Application for Programme”. The maximum age limit for applicants is 32 years. More information is available at www.facebook.com/lawyersforchange