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Facts/Issues

In 2006, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) devised the Gender, Institutions and Development Database, which measures the economic and political power of women in 162 countries. An analysis of the OECD data shows that, with few exceptions, the greater the power of women, the greater the country's economic success.

The disparity in opportunities for women entering the practice of law begins long before graduation from law school. Nepali families send their sons to foreign law schools but rarely their daughters. This gives these male lawyers opportunities not available to female lawyers trained in Nepal such as exposure to international legal knowledge, skills, attitudes and networks.

In 2009, the Nepal Bar Association published Ringing The Equality Bell: The Role of Women Lawyers in Promoting Gender Equality in Nepal below are facts/issues derived from this report:

Facts

  • Before 1960, women were not permitted to practice law in Nepal.
  • Only 7.6% or 1 in 12 of Nepal's legal professionals are women.
  • In 1969, the first Nepali female District Court Judge was appointed.
  • In 1988, the first Nepali female law professor degree was granted.
  • Only 31 of Nepal's 67 districts are home to female lawyers.
  • In 2001, the first Nepali female Supreme Court Judge was appointed.

Issues

  • Gender bias during hiring process
  • Denial of promotion
  • Client's preference to work with males
  • Parental/Familial responsibilities
  • Limited access to mentorship programs
  • Sexual harassment
  • Denial of high-profile court cases

It is never to late to be what you might have been.

~ George Eliot