International Law Section - Afghan Scholarship
The ABA Afghan Legal Professionals Scholarship & Mentoring Pilot Program helps breathe new life into the careers of judges, lawyers, and prosecutors who fled Afghanistan for the U.S., and lost nearly everything in the wake of the fall of Kabul in August 2021. We honor these heroic Afghan legal professionals who seek to continue their work in advancing U.S. values of justice and democracy, and we support their journey to practice law in the U.S.
The Pilot Program assists Afghan legal professionals, especially women, in these meaningful ways:
·
Dedicated Pilot Program U.S. volunteer
lawyers and judges mentor Afghan legal professionals seeking to qualify to
practice law in several jurisdictions in the U.S. by earning LLM degrees and
passing a U.S. bar exam.
·
The Pilot Program has arranged for 24
law schools across the country to offer full-tuition scholarships to Afghan
legal professionals who qualify for their LLM programs.
·
To the
extent funding permits, the Pilot Program awards modest, need-based stipends of
$25,000 to qualified Afghan legal professionals attending LLM programs through
the Pilot Program. These stipends help cover housing and living expenses during
their LLM programs.
·
To date, the Pilot Program has helped
ten Afghan legal professionals gain admission to U.S. LLM programs on
full-tuition scholarships with stipends for housing and living expenses when
needed. They include:
o
Two LLM students who graduated in May
2024, one from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law and one from University of
St. Thomas School of Law;
o
Seven LLM students who are currently
enrolled at Duke Law School, Albany Law School, George Washington University
School of Law, American University Washington College of Law, Loyola University
New Orleans College of Law, Loyola Law School Los Angeles, and Syracuse
University College of Law (New York); and
o One student who will enter the LLM program for the academic year beginning in August 2025 at Loyola Law School Los Angeles.
As one Mentee Fellow advises:
"I joined the
Pilot Program because, as a practicing lawyer in Afghanistan, I felt hopeless
after resettling in the U.S., thinking I wouldn’t be able to continue working
in my field. To practice law in the U.S., I need to pass the bar exam, which requires
earning 24 credits through an LL.M. degree at a law school accredited by the
American Bar Association. The Pilot Program has been an invaluable opportunity,
allowing me to actively pursue my goal of practicing law in the U.S. With their
support, I am gaining the knowledge and skills to navigate the U.S. legal
system and work toward passing the bar exam, enabling me to continue my legal
career in a new legal environment."
- LLM Candidate, American University Washington
College of Law
Your Gift Matters
Many more Afghan legal professionals would benefit from the Pilot Program, but we need to raise additional funding to provide stipends for housing and living expenses to more Afghan judges, prosecutors and lawyers. The Pilot Program—run by lawyers, for lawyers—is counting on the US legal community to help position our Afghan colleagues to restore their careers in the law.
Please consider
giving by October 24th, ABA Giving Day, so that we may exceed our $50,000 goal
and fund stipends for at least two more Afghan legal professionals. An
anonymous donor has provided a matching contribution of $5,000, so please make
your gift today.
Volunteer
Please share your expertise as a mentor and help guide Afghan legal professionals as they reignite their legal careers in the US. Learn more at ABA Afghan Legal Professionals Scholarship & Mentoring Pilot Program.
For more direct experiences of Pilot Program Mentee Fellows and Mentors, please see the October 2024 edition of the Pilot Program Newsletter at: Newsletter 2 September 2024