About Us
The Legal Services Clinic (LSC) at the National Law School of India University is one of India’s longest-standing, student-run legal aid initiatives. For over three decades, we have sought to bridge the gap between legal education and access to justice.
Our mission is two-fold:
- to provide legal aid to those who cannot otherwise access it, and
- to empower communities through accessible, rights-based legal education.
In doing so, we create a living classroom where law students learn to combine professional skills with a commitment to public service.
Our History
LSC’s journey began in 1997, and in 2005, a dedicated clinic space opened on campus. What started as a small clinical initiative has since grown into a dynamic institution that blends casework, research, policy engagement, and community outreach.
Over the years, LSC has assisted multiple clients, collaborated with leading NGOs and state bodies, trained students in community lawyering, and contributed to public interest litigation on issues such as juvenile justice and anti-discrimination. In 2014, our work was recognised globally with the MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship.
Over the years, LSC alumni, including former members and convenors, have gone on to excel in the legal profession, carrying forward the clinic’s ethos in their work and advocacy. Notable names include Senior Advocates Trideep Pais (Delhi High Court), Dayan Krishnan (Supreme Court), and C.K. Nandakumar (Karnataka High Court); Prof. Nigam Nuggehalli (Registrar, NLSIU); Prof. Mrinal Satish (Professor of Law, NLSIU, and Member, NALSA); Siddharth Narrain (NLS Faculty); Kunal Ambasta (NLS Faculty); Ashwini Obulesh (Founder, Dhwani Legal Trust); Raghuram Cadambi (Advocate) and, more recently, Aaradhya Sethia (Cambridge International Scholar) and Lakshmi T. Nambiar (Founder, OutLawed).
In the years following COVID-19, the committee was co-convened by Nidhi Agarwal and Archit Sinha (Vth year BA LLB), and is now led by Gurnoor Singh and Abhinav Somani (IIIrd year BA LLB) under the guidance of Darshana Mitra (Faculty Advisor and Director of Clinics).
What We Do
Legal Aid
At the heart of LSC’s work is our legal aid clinic, also reachable via phone (+91 70937 06671) and email (). It works on a system of referral to our network of pro bono lawyers. Our pro bono lawyers, many of them NLSIU alumni, are based in cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, Chandigarh, and Pune.
Our matters have spanned housing disputes, domestic violence, workplace harassment, family law, education grievances, and access to welfare schemes.
Legal Awareness
We believe that justice is not just about legal representation, but about knowing one’s rights. LSC’s Legal Literacy Programmes (LLPs) bring law into classrooms, workplaces, and public spaces, using skits, storytelling, visual aids, and interactive exercises in Kannada, English, and Hindi. Topics range from child rights and consumer protection to digital safety, gender justice, and labour law. These programmes have reached thousands over the years, often in partnership with local schools, shelters, and community groups.
Partnerships and Projects
Apart from Legal Aid and Awareness, we have also worked extensively in policy and research space. We have worked with the Centre for Child and the Law on juvenile justice reforms and model food security rules; with Dhwani Legal Trust on community legal aid camps and rights pamphlets; with Nyaaya on legal query response services and welfare scheme databases; and with OutLawed India on grassroots legal interventions through the Active Citizen Challenge and Nyaaya Mitra Programme.
Other notable partnerships include Nightingale Medical Trust for a handbook on senior citizens’ rights, Project 39A for comparative death penalty research, and Enfold India for child protection awareness. Our collaborations span local communities and national policy networks, linking student work to systemic change.
Events and Initiatives
To be a student-facing committee, we also organise events that bring together students, practitioners, and the public. Our flagship event is Pro Bono Month, aligned with National Legal Services Day, which is a celebration featuring exhibitions, panel discussions, film screenings, and workshops that showcase the power of community lawyering. We have also hosted expert-led workshops on trauma-informed client counselling for children in conflict with the law, and public talks with leading jurists and activists on justice system reform. We have hosted academics, practitioners and experts like Advocate Prashant Bhushan, Anup Surendranath, Maja Daruwala and Senior Advocate S. Muralidhar.
Publications and Resources
LSC also believes in making the law accessible to people by producing simple, practical guides that translate complex legal frameworks into accessible language. Our publications include FAQ handbooks on marriage, wills, domestic violence, and the POCSO Act; the Be A Durga women’s rights guide; a labour law handbook for migrant workers; and an FAQ booklet on the rights of senior citizens. These resources are distributed at awareness programmes, through partner organisations, and online for wider reach.
Our Goal
We aim to be a model university legal aid clinic that not only responds to individual legal needs but also works toward structural reforms in access to justice. Our vision is of a clinic that maintains deep, lasting relationships with communities, trains law students to be both skilled and socially conscious, and develops replicable models of legal empowerment for use across India.
Contact Us
Email:
Phone: +91 70937 06671
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