Promoting Legal Literacy and Legal Awareness to achieve Inclusive Legal System so that “Access to Justice is for all”
J&K Legal Services Authority
The erstwhile State of J&K vide Govt. Order No. 1223 dated 26.10.1987, constituted a board called J&K State Legal Aid and Advice Board for providing free legal services to the weaker sections of the community. In the Year 1997, The J&K State Legal Aid and Advice Board was repealed by Jammu and Kashmir State Legal Services Authority Act 1997, which provided for establishment of State Legal Services Authority, High Court Legal Services Committee, District Legal Services Authorities and Tehsil Legal Services Committees to provide free and competent legal services to the weaker section of the society and to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities, and to organise Lok Adalats to ensure that the operation of the Legal System promotes justice on the basis of equal opportunities. In August 2019, the Parliament passed the J&K Re-organization Act 2019, which came into force on 30.10.2019, by which the State of J&K was bifurcated into two Union Territories called UT of J&K and UT of Ladakh. By virtue of the same legislation, J&K State Legal Services Authority Act 1997 was repealed and the Legal Services Authority Act 1987 (Central Act) came into force in the UT’s of J&K and Ladakh. The UT of J&K has constituted the State Legal Services Authority vide notification dated 2nd of December 2019.
