CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: The Innovative Lawyers Awards 2025
REDRESS is inviting applications for the Innovative Lawyers Awards 2025 to recognise the vital work of new and emerging anti-torture champions, expose them to a broader peer support network, and offer them financial support to pursue public interest litigation.
This support is made available through the United Against Torture Consortium, which is funded by the European Union.
This call for applications will recognise and support human rights lawyers using strategic litigation against torture who have deployed new or innovative legal or campaigning techniques.
This may include legal claims using public interest litigation, human rights cases, constitutional challenges, criminal cases, or civil claims. They might be in national courts, regional tribunals, or the UN treaty bodies. It may include campaigns where legal cases have been supported by innovative grassroots activism, policy advocacy at national, regional, or international levels, or through the use of social media and the press.
To highlight the work of the winners, REDRESS will feature their work in a blog piece, video, or podcast.
The Context
Across the globe, torture is used to silence those who dissent or to further oppress marginalised and excluded minorities. The use and threat of torture against human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, protesters, or others who dissent closes civil society space, creating an atmosphere of fear that makes it even more difficult to hold governments to account.
The United Against Torture Consortium (UATC) is working to oppose this by using strategic litigation to challenge torture. We work with national civil society partners to hold governments to account and to protect those who may feel powerless to respond to such abuses.
Information on Financial Support
Under this call for applications, you can apply for financial support of €2,000 Euros.
Eligibility Criteria
We are particularly interested in applications from lawyers who are new to the anti-torture movement.
As this is an award for early-career lawyers, we will be less likely to consider candidates with more than five years of legal experience post-qualification. We will not be able to consider academic lawyers or lawyers working for large law firms.
Application Review Cycle
| Step | What you can expect |
| Application Received | These will be reviewed on a rolling basis. |
| Initial Review | We will review the application form and let you know if we can take the application forward. |
| Review Process | Applications will be looked at more carefully. Applicants may need to provide supporting documentation. There will also be a due diligence process to assess the capacity of the NGO to deliver the work. We will communicate to applicants who do not pass the review process and provide feedback on both the application and the due diligence assessment outcome. |
| Final Decision and Payment | We will contact successful applicants after which the funds will be disbursed. |
How to Apply
Fill out the Application Form via the button below. You will be asked to briefly explain the basis for your nomination in 500 words or less. This can be based on, for example, your accomplishments in the anti-torture field, innovative work in the anti-torture field, research, strategic litigation/PIL, etc.
As part of your application, you will need email us a copy of your CV. You can also choose to submit a reference in support of your application. Any documents that form part of your application should be sent to [email protected].
Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. Please note that once all of the available awards have been allocated, we will close the call for applications.
About the United Against Torture Consortium
The United Against Torture Consortium brings together the global memberships of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) and the International Federation of Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture (FIACAT) with the Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT), Omega Research Foundation, and REDRESS. The consortium works in partnership with national civil society organisations and other partners worldwide to build a global movement. The three-year project is focused on providing direct assistance to thousands of torture survivors and strengthening local staff capacity to advocate with national actors responsible for torture prevention and rehabilitation. Survivors’ experiences and, for those who wish, their direct participation is at the centre of the consortium’s torture prevention, rehabilitation and justice processes, both nationally and internationally.