NLU Delhi Recruitment of Legal Fellows | Salary Rs. 30K-40K: Apply by June 25

The National Law University, Delhi is seeking to engage on a contractual basis, Legal Fellows for Nagpur for the Fair Trial Fellowship program of Project 39A supported by a grant from the Azim Premji Foundation.

About NLU Delhi

National Law University, Delhi (NLUD) is a National Law University in India, offering courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

About the Program

The Fair Trial Fellowship Programme (“the Programme”) is an opportunity for young lawyers and social workers to work for providing quality legal representation to undertrial prisoners. The Programme will train and mentor a group of young professionals to work in collaboration with the State Legal Services Authority towards ensuring fair trials for undertrial prisoners at both pre-trial and trial stages.

The Programme is being currently rolled out for work in Nagpur and Pune Central prisons. The twin goals of the program are to reduce the under-trial population in prisons in Pune and Nagpur and to work towards strengthening the legal aid system in Maharashtra. The program has offices in Pune and Nagpur.

About the Opportunity

The Legal Fellow will be assigned to work on cases of undertrial prisoners being represented by District Legal Services Authorities (DLSA) through the panel advocates and the office of the Legal Aid Defence Counsel (LADC) and will be in charge of providing assistance in court hearings, legal research, drafting, and prison visits (for client interviews) to the legal aid lawyer leading the case.

The period of engagement will be for one year and any extension will be subject to the needs of the Program and availability of funds.

Number of Positions

• 02

Location

• Nagpur

Roles & Responsibilities

• Visiting prison with the duty counsels of the DLSA and providing legal counselling to inmates requiring legal aid.
• Coordinating with DLSA and authorities from the Prison Department to ensure allocation of DLSA panel advocates for undertrials who do not have any legal representation.
• Briefing and assisting the LADC and/or the panel lawyer of the DLSA assigned to a case during court hearings at both the pre-trial and trial stage.
• Regular Prison visits to seek instructions from an undertrial client on behalf of the LADC counsels and/or the DLSA panel advocates.
• Reviewing documents brought on record in a case, providing research inputs, and devising legal strategy in consultation with the LADC counsels and/or the DLSA panel advocates concerned.
• Assisting the LADC counsels and/or the DLSA panel advocates in drafting legal documents to be submitted at both the pre-trial and trial stages.
• Following-up ongoing cases in court and updating the client (undertrial) and/or the family members concerned
• Regularly communicating with prison authorities to obtain case-specific information and documents.
• Preparation for Recording evidence and cross-examination.
• Preparing written arguments based on the evidence for the final submissions before the court
• Traveling as required to meet and communicate with family members of undertrial prisoners and other persons who may have oral and documentary information relevant to the case procedure.
• Organizing and conducting training workshops and conferences.
• Documentation and Reporting as per programmatic needs.
• Any other work that may be necessary to further the aims of the Fellowship Programme.

Eligibility

• Registration as a practicing advocate (Sanad) with the Bar Council of any state in India
• Minimum of two-year experience in criminal law practice at the trial court level
• Proficiency in reading, writing, and speaking Marathi
• Ability to read, write and speak English
• Familiarity with the use of MS Office, emails, and the internet  
• Prior work experience in work with the District Legal Services Authority is desirable.

How to Apply?

• Applications and documents will be accepted only through the form link given at the end of the post.
• Interested persons must attach their resume and a statement of purpose, explaining their role and interest in working on this program. The statement of purpose must not exceed 700 words. Shortlisted candidates will be called for the selection process which will be held in Nagpur. The selection process may have multiple rounds.

Compensation

• Fellows will be paid a fellowship amount of INR 30,000- 40,000 per month.

Application Deadline

• June 25, 2023

How to Apply

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