Avon Global Center for Women and Justice at Cornell Law School

Clinical Projects

The Center faculty, staff and students work with judges, legal professionals governmental and nongovernmental organizations on selected in-depth projects that work toward improving access to justice for victims of gender-based violence in their respective countries. For example, a judge or local organization leader may be concerned about a particular barrier women face accessing the courts or may have a particular need for assistance to improve women and girls' access to the justice system. A project may involve developing materials for training judges, law enforcement agents and victims on the implementation and adjudication of law and its impact on women. Other projects may involve conducting fact-finding and writing a report or taking legal action related to the improvement of access to justice for victims of gender-based violence. Projects typically begin in January or August, and they are undertaken by teams of law students supervised by Cornell Law School faculty.

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Examples of Avon Global Center Clinical Projects:

Study on women in prisons in Argentina. The Avon Global Center and the International Human Rights Clinic are conducting a case study of women in prison in Argentina studying the causes, conditions and consequences of women's incarceration.
India UN Trafficking Protocol Compliance Project. In October 2012, the Avon Global Center and the International Human Rights Clinic participated in a fact-finding mission to study the amendments to Indian law, policy, and practices of local law enforcement necessary for compliance with the UN Trafficking Protocol and for effective victim protection and rehabilitation.
Report on sexual violence in Zambia's schools. In October 2012, the Avon Global Center, International Human Rights Clinic, and Women in the Law in Southern Africa-Zambia launched a new report on sexual violence against girls in Zambian schools.
Report on barriers to justice for domestic violence survivor-defendants in New York State. In June 2011, the Avon Global Center, in partnership with the Women in Prison Project of the New York Correctional Association, released a report on the barriers to justice that women domestic violence survivors confront when they become defendants for reasons relating to their abuse.
Report on acid attacks against women and girls in Bangladesh, Cambodia and India. In January 2011, the Avon Global Center launched a report that examines acid violence against women and girls in Bangladesh, Cambodia and India.
Virtue Foundation 2011 Senior Roundtable on Women and the Judiciary. The Center and Clinic assisted the Virtue Foundation in preparing for an event that brought together senior women judges from 20 countries to discuss strategies for increasing the participation of women in the judiciary, in order to improve access to justice, especially for women and girls.
Trial advocacy training program on trafficking in persons in Liberia. In November 2010, the Center and Clinic participated in a Lawyers Without Borders trial advocacy training program for Liberian judges and lawyers in Monrovia, Liberia, that focused on criminal prosecution of trafficking-in-person offenses.
Support for Lawyers Without Borders Kenya judicial symposium and trial advocacy training program. The Center and Clinic provided research support to Lawyers Without Borders in preparation for a Kenya Judicial Symposium and Trial Advocacy Training Program, which took place in August 2011 in Nairobi, Kenya, and focused on the trial of urban gender-based violence cases.
Model code addressing acid violence. Drawing upon the findings of their comparative study, the Center and Clinic developed a model code on acid violence that seeks to contribute to efforts to adopt or amend domestic legislation, in order to more effectively address acid violence.