Ms. Sanya Arora is an Independent Advocate practising in Courts and Tribunals across Delhi/NCR and holds experience in civil and commercial litigation. Besides this, she actively mentors law students and professionals through her online courses and education-based law firm Lawchakra. Her being an avid supporter of women’s rights has brought her to the forefront in various NGOs and advisory bodies. The following are the excerpts of her conversation with Priya Chaudhary, the Editor-in-Chief of Desi Kaanoon-
Q1 Tell us about your initiative Lawchakra.
A. Ever since I took a deep dive into the legal profession, made my way from classroom to courtroom, I’ve been on the constant lookout for a safe space to learn, be nurtured, and grow that I could never find. Being a first-generation lawyer meant I couldn’t anticipate what I was getting into, it meant I couldn’t rely on anyone because I knew no one. It also meant I could only rely on myself.
Lawchakra is my dream project with the vision to create the space I never found, to foster a team that could learn and grow together, do great work together and yet retain their individual identities while fulfilling their responsibility to give back and mentor their juniors.
It is a Teaching Law Firm. We aim to train and bring together budding legal professionals who learn from and grow with each other as the wheel of law turns on its head. Together, we aim to serve and create the society we deserve to the best of our ability. The Firm provides legal services civil & commercial in nature including but not limited to intellectual property and family law matters. The Firm also trains young law students and lawyers to become competent & confident legal professionals.
The name is inspired by the Buddhist Symbol of ‘Dharmachakra’, the Wheel of Law, the spokes protruding beyond the wheel propelling one to break barriers, think outside the box, nurture penetrating insights, go above and beyond. Just like the wheel of time, the wheel of law is constantly turning, constantly changing, one day we are up, the other we are down. Lawchakra reminds you to embrace the transient nature of the law, to know that one cannot know everything, to know that there’s strength in unity, to know that sharing one’s knowledge makes one richer and to believe that a good person makes the best lawyer.
Lawchakra’s vision is built on kindness, a trailblazer mindset and change.
Q2 How has your experience as the Vice President of Chandigarh Anti Sexual Harassment Council [WICCI] been like? How did you land up in the role?
A. Being the Vice President of Chandigarh Anti Sexual Harassment Council [WICCI] has been a humbling, exhilarating and liberating experience, to say the least. To be in the company of such kind, talented, empowered and empowering women is nothing short of magic. When determined women come together, they rise. The sheer dedication, enthusiasm and common will of the entire Council to make the lives of women from all walks of life even a tad easier makes me proud and gives me a renewed sense of purpose every time I am blessed to converse with them.
How I landed up in this role is a testament to how empowered women empower women. At first, on the recommendation of the Legal Advisor at Kartavyam Trust (where I am an Advisory Board Member), I was nominated as the council member by the President of the Council which I was beyond honoured to accept. After a month of regular meetings and working together as a team, the then Vice President of the Council stepped down and nominated me to her post because she believed I deserved it more. Her belief in me, humility, kindness and encouragement reaffirmed my faith in good people in the profession allowing everyone to learn and grow together, fostering an environment of trust, collaboration and responsibility, this experience motivated me to work even harder. I am gratified, humbled and ecstatic, endeavouring to put my best foot forward to do justice to this new role every single day, in everything I do.
Q3 You have partaken in the role of providing pro bono legal services for the Ayuda Foundation. Do you believe that pro bono work only involves representing a low-income individual in a litigation matter?
A. Pro bono services are aimed at representing those that cannot afford adequate legal representation on account of their poor or weaker economic or social status in the interest of justice. To that end, ideally free or pro bono legal services could embrace the entire spectrum ranging from litigation to contract to draft, reviewing, consulting. However, more often than not, a person from such a deprived background would require legal help, if at all, in litigation. As per NALSA, free Legal services encompass facilitating the beneficiaries to get their entitlements under various government schemes, policies and legislations by advising them or representing them as may be required.
To quote David L. Shapiro-“Lawyers have served indigent clients and worthwhile but impecunious causes without pay for centuries. “
Law is a noble profession and the first and foremost duty of a lawyer is to serve her society to the best of her abilities. The service could take any shape or size that may fit the needs of the needy at the time. Sometimes, all they may need is some moral support. Other times, a full-fledged legal battle.
Q4 Being a first-generation lawyer, what are your tips for success?
A. Success is subjective, to some it may mean earning bucket loads of money, to others it may mean sleeping peacefully with a full belly in a home full of love. Not that they’re mutually exclusive or exhaustive notions, but the meaning of success differs from person to person.
I am not from a National Law University, didn’t land a fancy job right after graduation, didn’t know anyone in the profession who could tell me all that I should know before I figure out what to do with my life so I decided to try everything that I could, starting with civil litigation to widen my scope and broaden my legal acumen. My plan is that after at least 7 years of hustle, experience, networking, rejections, failures, once I’m ready and have zeroed in on what I like to do by eliminating all that I didn’t like, I’ll choose one line and settle down.
I’m still a work in progress, still trying new things. I love to learn so recently, I also became a legal instructor because I think when you’re teaching, you learn better. I wanted to learn the end to end processes and lifecycle of cases, so I started building my own practice after a couple of years of working under someone. I simultaneously started teaching the ones just starting out through my experience, trying to be for them what I wanted someone to be for me when I began, the idea that gave birth to Lawchakra.
I enjoyed brokering peace between families and counselling people so I also starting taking up matrimonial and family law matters. I felt passionate about women safety and women empowerment, so I started providing pro bono services to women, became an advisory board member at Kartavyam Trust, legal volunteer at Ayuda Foundation, VP at Chandigarh Anti-sexual Harassment Council, WICCI, got empanelled as Legal Counsel and External Member for ICC at various companies at Gurugram, started conducting several gender sensitization and legal awareness workshops. I’m yet to dip my toes in criminal and hardcore corporate matters, so I’m excited for and open to new experiences.
To me, every day I get to learn something new is a success, every time I meet and collaborate with people that teach me something new is a success, every time I am able to translate a complex legal issue into laywoman’s terms to explain its implications to a client or a law student is a success. A friend once told me to never get attached to any organization, but to a mission. My mission is to learn and serve and in the process, to try and make the lives of those around me a tad easier, better, kinder. Whatever I do, if it fits the bill, I give it my all and let my journey carve its own path.
My advice to anyone reading this would be to just foster a better relationship with yourself, identify your mission and once you do, go wherever it takes you. In the meanwhile, do not forget to celebrate little victories and take lessons from big failures.
Q5 What are some basics of civil litigation you’d wish every fresh graduate to know?
A. This could go on forever. But for starters, CPC IS your Bible, keep it handy. Do not downplay the role of various rules & regulations of the court you’re practising in. Even if you haven’t secured a job right after graduation, go to your nearest court and just observe the proceedings. If you cannot physically go, watch live streaming of Gujarat and Karnataka High Court Proceedings on YouTube and try to make sense of them. Make your own processes, your own guidebook containing important definitions (to refer to while drafting), important case laws (including citations and main legal issues), flow charts and mind maps of filing procedures in various courts, tribunals you frequent, legal updates. Read LiveLaw daily. Write a lot, simplify legal jargon & latest developments, engage in meaningful conversations with your peers and seniors. Never stop learning.
Q6 Considering your role as the Presiding Officer of the Internal Complaints Committee at Lawctopus helped you understand problems related to an unhealthy work environment?
A. My role as the Presiding Officer of ICC at Lawctopus did give me an opportunity to collaborate with my team members to foster a safe and healthy working environment for everyone. However, the role was merely a rubber stamp since it’s a sole proprietorship that is heavily influenced by its proprietor which did not allow us any real liberty or power to discharge our duties or take action without any influence or bias. The gender sensitization sessions were made to happen quarterly instead of weekly or monthly and were subject to the proprietor’s approval and discretion, the anti-sexual harassment policy wasn’t revised or made prominently available, the ICC member details were not made available, there was no complaint mechanism, no dispute resolution process, a lot of gender bias, no equal pay for equal work and subtle forms of harassment. There was a lot of talks but no intent and anyone who spoke up got shot down with the threat of losing their job. In a way, my experience there practically taught me a lot about unhealthy work environments albeit sadly, without any solutions, efforts or improvements. I now aim and hope to find out ways to ensure that sole proprietors and private companies comply with and abide by the POSH Act, rules & regulations in the practical scheme of things.
Q7 What would you consider as your most significant case?
A. My most significant case is the one that didn’t happen. I got a distressed call from a woman who had been contemplating ending her 25 years old marriage. There were no instances of abuse, cruelty, adultery or disaffection but she believed the marriage had irretrievably broken down. I spoke to her for hours at length and realized how she just hated how distant her husband had become. I explained the legal procedures involved, walked her through the processes she may have to undergo once she decides to separate, encouraged her to envision and imagine her life without her husband. I gave her just one suggestion, to share just exactly how she was feeling, in as non-confrontational, unprovocative and kind a manner as possible, with her husband, considering it to be the last civilized conversation with him before she takes the plunge. She followed my advice, called me the next day and told me how grateful she was because, in that conversation, she and her husband remembered what brought them together in the first place. She went on to tell me how I saved her marriage (her emotions exaggerating the facts and overlooking that it was she who was patient and trusting enough to have that one last conversation with conviction) and gave me so many blessings that I couldn’t stop smiling the entire day.
This incident became a turning point in my career, it’s what made me realize how good people make the best lawyers, how important it is to humanize your clients and understand their needs, how distressed people seek you out not just for legal advice but also moral support. As lawyers, we must understand that legal battles can be emotionally, financially and physically taxing and destabilizing, thereby altering the entire life or livelihood of our clients. The people we are trying to help, whose interests we are trying to protect, need us to also be their friends, in order to build that rapport, to prove our reliability and to help us stand by our legal and moral work ethics. Legal subjects, nuances, case laws can be taught but character, dependability, kindness, dedication can’t be. And it’s the things that can’t be taught that set you apart.