A fellowship to support young first generation women litigators in India
Deadline for applications: 11:59 PM IST, 28 February 2026
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Law schools across India have witnessed increased enrolment from women and now have a more gender diverse student body. However, when women graduate from law schools, and are interested in a career in litigation, they are faced with many formidable challenges from various quarters. The courtroom can present itself as a difficult choice for first generation women litigators as they begin their professional careers.
The fellowship is intended to support young first-generation women litigators by providing them with the necessary support systems and professional training at the start of their litigation careers. The aim of the fellowship is to provide:
Financial Support
Each selected fellow will be provided a grant of INR 3,60,000 for a period of 1 year. The amount will be disbursed on a monthly basis and the fellowship will commence in June/July 2026.
Mentorship Support
The selected fellows will also have the benefit of mentorship from a network of experienced women litigators.
Open to Women Only
The fellowship is only open to women.
0-2 years of experience
Final-year students and early-career litigators (with less than two years of experience) are eligible to apply
First generation lawyers
Open to first-generation litigators who do not have immediate family members in the legal profession. Preference is given to applicants with demonstrated economic need.
Open Litigation Fellowships
The Open Litigation Fellowship will be awarded to 6 first-generation women litigators. The Open Litigation Fellows are ‘encouraged’ to secure employment with litigation chambers of their own choosing. Interested applicants are encouraged to identify litigation chambers where they will receive the required mentorship, professional exposure and training that align with their professional goals. The applicants will have to disclose the details of the chambers if employment has already been secured.
✔️ Free to secure employment with any litigation chamber
✔️ Mentorship from experienced women litigators
✔️ Professional exposure and training aligned with career goals
Lawyer in residence fellowships [LIR]
2 Fellowships
LIR Fellowship 1: Chambers of Mr. Shrutanjaya Bhardwaj (Pravah Law )
1 fellow will be attached to Pravah Law, New Delhi for a period of 1 year. Working at Pravah Law is a condition attached to the LIR Fellowship.
About Pravah Law
Pravah Law is the litigation chamber of Mr. Shrutanjaya Bhardwaj. The chamber's practice is primarily situated at the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court, and the practise areas include constitutional law, criminal law, sports law, service law, arbitration law and intellectual property law. The chamber routinely undertakes pro bono advisory and litigation work.
LIR Fellowship 2: Chambers of Ms. Mansi Sood and Mr. Vinayak Mehrotra (E-23 Chambers)
1 fellow will be attached to E-23 Chambers, New Delhi for a period of 1 year. Working at E-23 Chambers is a condition attached to the LIR Fellowship.
About E-23 Chambers
E-23 Chambers is the litigation chamber of Ms. Mansi Sood and Mr. Vinayak Mehrotra. Both Ms. Sood and Mr. Mehrotra are independent practitioners based in New Delhi. Mr. Mehrotra is also an Advocate-on-Record in the Supreme Court of India. Their practice focuses on civil, commercial and constitutional law with their work spanning various courts and tribunals across Delhi including the Supreme Court, Delhi High Court and district courts. The chamber also handles arbitrations before both ad-hoc arbitral tribunals as well as institutional arbitrations.
Deadline: 11:59 PM IST, 28 February 2026
Apply Now
Can apply to only 1 type of fellowship
Unlike previous years, applicants can only apply to one of the following types of fellowship for the 2026 cycle:
Open Fellowship;
LIR 1 Fellowship - Chambers of Mr. Shrutanjaya Bhardwaj (Pravah Law ); or
LIR 2 Fellowship - Chambers of Ms. Mansi Sood and Mr. Vinayak Mehrotra (E-23 Chambers).
Deadline
The final date for receipt of application is 11:59 PM IST on 28 February 2026.
The selection of successful fellows will be made by mid to late May 2026.
Queries
This fellowship empowers young, first-generation women litigators by equipping them with the training and support needed to thrive early in their careers
For any queries, please feel free to drop an email to indianlitigationfellowship@gmail.com.
Please note that applications will not be accepted over email. Due to high volume of emails, responses to such emails will also not be sent.
Note to applicants
Please do not use any generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT) to draft your responses to the application. We are interested in hearing your story, in your authentic voice, and not generic LLM generated statements.
In the previous cycle, we received an overwhelming number of applications that appeared to be AI-generated. To preserve the integrity of the fellowship process, applications found to be AI-generated will not be considered.
In the previous cycle, we received an overwhelming number of applications that appeared to be Al-generated. To preserve the integrity of the fellowship process, applications found to be substantially Al-generated will not be considered.