Strategic litigation as an advocacy tool: Experiences of Litigating Women’s Rights in Peru and South Africa

In many countries, women's rights organizations use the law as a tool to highlight and counteract discrimination, violence, and violations of women's rights. At the same time, legal systems are often characterized by power structures and limited resources, which can make it difficult to pursue legal processes related to gender-based violence or sexual and reproductive rights (SRR).

Previous research has mainly focused on countries in the Global North that have relatively stable political and institutional contexts. We therefore know much less about how legal mobilization through strategic legal processes takes place in more unstable political and institutional contexts, such as in Peru and South Africa. In order to improve the protection of women's rights, more knowledge is needed about the strategies organizations use, the obstacles they face and the effects of their work.

Therefore, the project has three main research questions:

  1. What are the challenges to using litigation strategies, including from the lived experience of cases and claims-makers, and within and throughout court procedures both domestically and internationally?
     
  2. Given these challenges,
    1. Why do women’s rights organizations (i.e., claims-makers) choose litigation as a key strategy to address gender-based violence and SSR?
    2. How do they manage to pursue these strategies in the face of these challenges?
       
  3. What consequences do litigation strategies have for protecting women from gender-based violence and ensuring their SSR?

By studying these issues, the project contributes to new knowledge that can be used by researchers, decision-makers and organizations working for gender equality and human rights. The aim is to strengthen the opportunities to protect women against gender-based violence and improve access to sexual and reproductive rights.

Funding

Swedish Research Council - Project grant for research into crime 2025

Project members

Anna-Britt Coe, Professor of Sociology
Annika Rudman, Professor of Gender Studies