Our 2021 Annual Report

Read our 2021 Annual Report

Legal Action
Worldwide

Legal Action Worldwide is an independent non-profit organisation comprised of human rights lawyers and jurists working in fragile and conflict affected areas.

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Latest news and insights

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Brief
23 May 2023
Somalia’s forgotten women, girls and children

Gender Equality & GBV - Somalia - Advocacy

Due to a combination of disasters – climatic shocks, locusts, and COVID-19 – the country has gradually developed into one...
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What we do
11 May 2023
LAW paralegals conducting legal awareness sessions for recently displaced persons in Barxadwenye camp in Mogadishu.

Gender Equality & GBV - Somalia - Advocacy - Legal Aid & Empowerment

LAW has been operating in Somalia since 2013, providing legal assistance, information and representation to victims and survivors of sexual...
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Report
03 April 2023
Now and the future: Gender Equality, Peace and Security in a COVID-19 World

Gender Equality & GBV - Lebanon - Advocacy

This partnership with Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS), Legal Action Worldwide (LAW) and ABAAD (Resource Center for Gender...
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What we do

What we work on is broad and varying, but generally all our work fits into the following four themes:

Gender Equality & GBV

LAW recognises that gender inequality is a root cause of many human rights violations and abuses. LAW advocates for the voices of women to be heard and maintains that women must be included in significant and meaningful roles throughout peace- building efforts if long lasting peace is to be achieved. Closely linked, sexual violence is not a stand-alone problem which can be solved in isolation. A fully integrated approach is required which both addresses deeply rooted gender inequalities and works to empower and recognise the distinct experience of women, men and LGBTQI communities.

Accountability & Rule of Law

LAW works with state institutions to increase accountability and to build internal and international pressure for independent and impartial investigations into violations and abuses. Through this work, LAW aims to reduce the climate of impunity for serious criminal offences and contribute towards rule of law, increased access to justice, peace and security.

Natural Resource Exploitation

Conflict often has the effect of breaking down traditional systems governing the ownership of land and use of natural resources and post-conflict governments have historically struggled to provide their citizens with security of tenure. Marginalised groups such as women and displaced people are disproportionately affected by this trend. LAW works with governments through various dispute resolution mechanisms to improve the ability of marginalised people to know and exercise their rights relating to land.

Transformative Justice

Transitional justice, or as we prefer to call it, Transformative Justice, refers to a process that countries emerging from periods of conflict and repression undertake in order to address extensive human rights violations, too widespread and serious to be dealt with through the ordinary justice system. LAW recognises that transformative justice must be locally driven, and that all sections of society must be meaningfully involved. LAW takes a participatory and gender-sensitive approach in its provision of technical assistance to local legal institutions and organisations and fosters the participation of women, the young, and minority and survivor communities at all levels of the process.

LAW’s Fifth Year Anniversary

Where we work

We work on issues in these locations. Get more info by selecting your prefered location below:

Global

LAW undertakes a number of cutting-edge projects and global campaigns that address issues arising across multiple fragile states and conflict-affected contexts.

Lebanon

Legal Action is fully funded and supported by LAW; using creative legal strategies to increase access to justice for women and girls

Occupied Palestine

LAW works to address the ongoing violations of international law and to increase access to justice and the rule of law in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Syrian Crisis

In response to the COI report, LAW initiated an EU-funded programme to empower survivors of gendered human rights violations and international crimes in Syrian-led justice strategies.

Somalia

Securing access to justice through the formal legal system remains a significant challenge. This is especially true for women and children, members of minority clans, and displaced populations.

South Sudan

In 2019 LAW trained 60 South Sudanese lawyers and human rights activists on documentation and collection of information and evidence on human rights violations and abuses with a gender sensitive approach.

Sri Lanka

The war has taken its toll on the criminal justice system and the rule of law in general in Sri Lanka and there are many institutional and legal challenges to the effective administration of criminal justice.

Rohingya Crisis

LAW is embarking on an innovative new model of legal representation where empowerment of the clients, Shanti Mohila, is mainstreamed throughout the process.

Myanmar

Events & Talks

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Get in touch

If you’d like to talk to us, confidentially, please get in touch.

Our Partners

LAW recognises that without our partners and donors we could not reach the individuals and communities that we support. We want to extend a sincere thank you to those organisations that make our work possible.