International Federation of Women Lawyers

International Federation of Women Lawyers
source
Name	International Federation of Women Lawyers
Formation	1944
Founder	Margery Corbett Ashby
Type	Non-governmental organization
Headquarters	Lagos, Nigeria
Region served	International
Language	English
Leader title	President
Leader name	Mrs. Olanike Adeyemo

International Federation of Women Lawyers

The International Federation of Women Lawyers is a global non-governmental organization founded in 1944 that brings together women jurists, advocates, and legal scholars to promote women's rights and access to justice through advocacy, litigation, and education. It operates across Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Oceania, engaging with bodies such as the United Nations General Assembly, the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States, and the Commonwealth of Nations. Prominent legal figures and institutions including members connected to the International Court of Justice, the European Court of Human Rights, the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights, and national supreme courts have interacted with the organization.

History

The federation was established in the milieu of post-World War II transnational organizing by women leaders including ties to Margery Corbett Ashby and contemporaries who had networks spanning the League of Nations and the emerging United Nations. Early chapters formed in nations such as Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, India, Pakistan, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, and South Africa, linking bar associations like the Law Society of England and Wales, the American Bar Association, and the Canadian Bar Association. Over decades it interacted with landmark processes including the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and consultations around the International Criminal Court. The federation navigated regional shifts involving the decolonization of Africa, the Cold War, and the Women’s Liberation Movement while establishing legal aid clinics and national chapters tied to judicial actors such as former justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, judges from the Supreme Court of India, and magistrates from the High Court of Kenya.

Mission and Objectives

The federation’s mission aligns with instruments like the CEDAW framework, aiming to advance legal protections for survivors connected to statutes including national Penal Codes and regional charters like the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. Objectives explicitly include strengthening legal literacy among constituencies reachable through partnerships with entities such as the United Nations Development Programme, the UN Women, the World Health Organization, and regional bodies like the Economic Community of West African States Commission. It seeks to influence jurisprudence in forums ranging from the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda precedents to domestic appellate decisions in courts such as the Constitutional Court of South Africa and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Structure and Membership

Organizational structure mirrors federative models used by transnational NGOs and national bar federations, with national chapters, regional coordinators, an international executive council, and committees that liaise with institutions like the International Bar Association and the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights. Membership comprises practicing advocates, solicitors, judges, law professors from universities such as University of Lagos, University of Nairobi, University of Delhi, Harvard Law School, Oxford University, and National University of Singapore, as well as paralegals and legal aid workers. Chapters have registered entities under national legal registries like the Corporate Affairs Commission (Nigeria) and coordinate with local legal education providers such as the Nigerian Law School and the Kenya School of Law.

Programs and Activities

Programs include legal aid clinics modeled after initiatives in cities like Lagos, Accra, Kampala, New Delhi, London, Toronto, and Sydney; training workshops for advocates on issues ranging from domestic violence statutes to inheritance laws; strategic litigation that has reached appellate levels in courts including the Supreme Court of Nigeria and the High Court of Delhi; and policy advocacy for legislative reform interacting with parliaments such as the National Assembly (Nigeria), the Lok Sabha, and the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Activities also comprise collaborations with human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Equality Now, and capacity-building projects funded in partnership with multilateral donors like the World Bank and the European Union.

Notable Campaigns and Impact

Notable campaigns include national drives against gender-based violence that engaged with laws like the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act and property rights campaigns relevant to statutes in jurisdictions such as Uganda and Ghana. Impactful strategic litigation influenced case law in appellate courts and contributed to policy shifts following recommendations to bodies including the UN Human Rights Council and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. The federation’s interventions have paralleled work by organizations like the Global Fund for Women, UNFPA, and the International Rescue Committee in emergency legal response contexts.

Publications and Research

The federation issues manuals, position papers, and training guides used by practitioners, often citing comparative law resources from institutions such as Harvard Law Review, the International Journal of Constitutional Law, and reports from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Research outputs analyze statutes, case law, and policy frameworks across jurisdictions including comparative studies touching on the Indian Penal Code, the Nigerian Criminal Code, and regional instruments like the Maputo Protocol.

Awards and Recognition

The federation and individual members have received recognition from bodies such as the International Bar Association awards, national honors like the Order of the Federal Republic (Nigeria), and civic prizes presented by entities including the Commonwealth Foundation. Its legal advocacy has been cited in judgments by courts including the Appeal Court of Sierra Leone and scholarly commentary in outlets like the Journal of African Law.

Category:Non-governmental organizations Category:Women's rights organizations Category:Legal organizations