Background

In India, the lack of legal access for children from underserved communities creates an urgent socio-economic gap especially with respect to their education and employment law. As per UNICEF, more than 6 million children in India are not enrolled in school, and, to the fact, most of them come from families dealing with financial restraints or crises, and who lack access to and awareness of their legal rights and protections. Children, particularly young girls, are the main victims of the resulting school dropouts and later, exploitation in workplaces. 

Such communities, especially those living in congested urban areas often have little to no access to legal aid in the face of difficulties, and find themselves without representation or guidance in emergency situations. Legally Wise was founded to bridge this gap by empowering children and families from underserved communities. The focus of this initiative is to provide awareness of and access to legal aid resources to children at an early age so that they can grow up with the ability to engage with or tackle legal work and legal issues.