Pro Bono Month 2025-26 | Organised by Legal Services Clinic, NLSIU
November 12, 2025
The Legal Services Clinic (LSC) at NLSIU announces the commencement of Pro Bono Month 2025, a month-long celebration dedicated to promoting legal aid and awareness. Initiated as part of the LSC’s outreach efforts, this annual flagship event marks 30 years of the establishment of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA). To commemorate this milestone, the LSC will be organising a series of events throughout November, including:
- The Annual Panel Discussion with Ford Foundation Chair on Public Interest Law;
- Playing “Sabha”: A Game Night with JusticeAdda;
- Discussing Dissent: Documentary Screening & Discussion;
- The Justice Definitions Edit-a-Thon with DAKSH India;
- The Constitution Day Quiz;
- Legal Aid Roundtable: Indian Legal Aid and Awareness Network (ILAAN).
November 09, 2025 | Annual Panel Discussion
On the occasion of National Legal Services Day, the Legal Services Clinic and the Ford Foundation Chair on Public Interest Law organised the Annual Panel Discussion on the theme of “Access to Justice in the Age of AI: The Future of Legal Aid in India” on November 9, 2025.
The Panel Discussion, held at the Conference Hall, Training Centre included the following panellists:
- Mr. Sachin Malhan, Co-Founder of Agami (Speaker);
- Mr. Hemanth Bharatha Chakravarthy, CEO & Co-Founder of Jhana.ai (Speaker);
- Ms. Shirisha Reddy, Samvidhaan Fellowship Coordinator at Nyaaya (Speaker);
- Ms. Varsha Aithala, Assistant Professor of Law at NLSIU (Discussant).
The Panel Discussion saw vivid debate on the role of AI in tendering legal advice, and whether offering such advice violates ethical norms. The panellists also drew from their wealth of experience in diverse fields to explain AI’s potential as an equaliser in the 21st century. Mr. Malhan underscored the potential of AI to increase the legal aid delivery speed manifold. This requires the rise of multiple initiatives by civil society, facilitated by the government. Hemanth, on the other hand, provided an illuminating economic analysis, explaining how AI could reduce infrastructural costs, thus bringing down barriers. Ms. Reddy drew on her experience from working with marginalised communities, and cautioned for the need of safeguards and last-mile support before AI is implemented.
After the panellists’ initial remarks, the discussion moved to a QnA session from the audience. Students raised interesting questions about their role with the AskNyaaya initiative, a long-term collaboration of LSC where law students answer legal questions in a simplified language. Consensus emerged on the potential use of AI to automate such tasks, and ensure immediate redressal of queries. Ultimately, the Panel Discussion ended with the deeper question of how law students can effectively contribute to the improvement of legal aid, especially in light of technological innovations.
Reflecting on the Panel Discussion, LSC thanked the panellists; Dr. Kamala Sankaran, Professor of Law at NLSIU and Mr. Pranav Verma, Assistant Professor at NLSIU of the Ford Foundation Chair for Public Interest Law; and the audience, for their continued support in the Panel Discussion, expressing hope for making it an annual event.
November 13, 2025 | Game Night with JusticeAdda
The Legal Services Clinic, in collaboration with JusticeAdda, a non-governmental organisation committed to access to justice, is organising a Game Night for its members on November 13, 2025. The initiative aims to increase political awareness amongst LSC members.
The strategy game Sabha, was designed by JusticeAdda and Hanns Seidel Foundation, where players take on the role of Members of Parliament (MPs) and participate in the Indian democratic setup. The game is completely open-access, with digital files available for free online.
36 students will play the game across 8 boards, in English and Kannada. The gameplay will be supervised by Ms. Varsha Aithala, Assistant Professor at NLSIU and Partner at JusticeAdda.
November 14, 2025 | Documentary Screening & Discussion
The Legal Services Clinic is hosting a screening of a documentary titled “Prisoner No. 626710 is Present” on November 14, 2025. Open to members of the entire NLS community, the documentary portrays the incarceration of Umar Khalid, a student activist at Jawaharlal Nehru University. It uses forensic analysis and accounts of close friends to obtain a chronology of events leading up to Khalid’s imprisonment under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
The screening will be followed by a discussion on the documentary and themes of free speech and judicial delays with Mr. Lalit Vachani, Director of the award-winning documentary and Lecturer at the University of Göttingen, Germany. The discussion will be moderated by Ms. Radhika Chitkara, Assistant Professor at NLSIU.
Register for the Movie Screening here.
Justice Definitions Edit-a-Thon
The Justice Definitions Edit-a-thon is being organised by the Legal Services Clinic in collaboration with the Judicial Data Collaborative (convened by DAKSH India), starting November 16, 2025. Participants can research, write, and compete for exciting prizes while contributing to the Justice Definitions Wiki.
The Justice Definitions Project is a collaborative initiative to build a comprehensive repository of definitions and taxonomies related to the Indian justice system on a wiki platform. NLSIU students already actively contribute as Research Associates, with their drafts published on the Justice Definitions Wiki (accessible here).
The Edit-a-Thon is a multi-stage competition, where students, participating in teams of two, undertake a week-long project to update outdated definitions on the Justice Definitions Wiki, guided by researchers at DAKSH India.
The Edit-a-Thon officially starts with the inauguration, orientation, and allotment of themes to teams on November 16, 2025. Then, over the course of the week, teams will draft updated entries for the Justice Definitions Wiki, with select teams being shortlisted for the next round. Finally, the competition will conclude on November 23, 2025, where shortlisted teams will showcase their work to a panel of judges.
Winning teams will receive exciting cash prizes of INR 5,000, 3,000 and 2,000 respectively. Teams that successfully participate in the Edit-a-Thon will also receive Certificates and the chance to join the Research Associate Program, where their work will be published on the Justice Definitions Wiki.
Interested teams may register here by Friday, November 15, 2025 (11:59 PM).
November 26, 2025 | Constitution Day Quiz
On the occasion of Constitution Day, the Legal Services Clinic, in collaboration with the NLS Quiz Club (NLSQC) and Law and Society Committee (LawSoc) is organising a Quiz on the history and provisions of the Constitution on November 26, 2025.
The event, which is open to all members of the NLS community, shall feature exciting prizes up for grabs. A prize pool of INR 3500+ shall be offered to the winners.
November 30, 2025 | Legal Aid Roundtable
Lastly, to mark an end to the Pro Bono Month celebrations, the Legal Services Clinic, in collaboration with the Legal Services Committee, National Law University Delhi shall organise a Legal Aid Roundtable of the Indian Legal Aid & Awareness Network (ILAAN), a pan-India initiative to connect LSCs at various law schools.
The online Roundtable shall allow various LSCs to provide inputs on the format of the Legal Aid Exchange, 2026, which will be a physical two-day conclave where the ILAAN shall be officially inaugurated. The Roundtable will also allow LSCs to agree on the formal structure of the Indian Legal Aid and Awareness Network, and seek support from partner organisations.
Find more information about the history, objectives and proposed activities of the Indian Legal Aid and Awareness Network here.
If your Legal Services Clinic is interested, reach out to us at to receive an invitation to the Roundtable.
Looking Ahead
Pro Bono Month 2025-26 is an attempt toward furthering LSC’s mission of increasing student outreach and encouraging active participation in legal aid. Through panel discussions, quizzes, film screenings, and other events, the Clinic has fostered meaningful dialogue, reinforced the importance of legal aid in achieving justice, and underscored the crucial role of clinical spaces in providing students with practical legal experience.
The reinvigorated LSC looks forward to continuing our meaningful work for the community, including our collaborations with various partner institutions. We also aim to organise the Legal Aid Exchange, 2026, a flagship conference of various law schools, building on our decades of service for the community.
Follow LSC’s Instagram page for future updates.