Eligibility  

• Women with at least 10 years’ experience in law at the time of applying. (Only expierence after the completion of an LLB will be considered).
• Women who show resilience, grit, determination and strength of character to be a pioneer or leader in the legal world in Aotearoa New Zealand.

How it works

• The Fellowship can be used for professional development courses, further study including postgraduate degree, or an ‘inquiry project’. It should build the leadership capacity of the Fellow.
• An ‘inquiry project’ would allow the Fellow to pursue an inquiry, or pioneer solutions to legal issues, and leverage their knowledge and contacts.
• There is no minimum or maximum time commitment – it depends on the Fellowship proposal.
• Emphasis will also be placed on financial need as well as the potential of the Fellow.
• Prior academic achievements are not a pre-requisite for applying.
• Strong focus will be given to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Exclusions

• General legal practice.

Please also see our general grant exclusions.

Application dates

Applications open once a year in March. The dates for the next application round are:

Applications open: March 2025

Applications close: April 2025

Decisions confirmed: July 2025

Earliest fellowship could begin: August 2025

How to apply

To apply you need to prepare all your paperwork first, then submit this information through our online application. The proposal template and online application form will be available when we are accepting applications.

1. Complete the proposal template including your proposal and personal statement. This document should be no more than 7 pages with max 5 pages for your proposal and max 2 pages for your personal statement. There are two proposal templates for this fellowship depending on the type of application. If you are applying for the purposes of pursuing professional development courses or further study including a postgraduate degree, use the Women Leaders in Law Fellowship proposal template (professional development). If you are applying for an inquiry project, use the Women Leaders in Law Fellowship proposal template (inquiry).
2. Prepare your CV or resume (max 3 pages).
3. Ask two people for permission for the Borrin Foundation to contact them directly to provide a written reference – you can use our template to request written references (The Borrin Foundation will contact referees and provide a link to an online reference form after the application deadline has closed).
4. Once all your paperwork is ready, complete our online application and upload your proposal and CV as PDF files.

If you have any questions contact Oli at admin@borrinfoundation.nz.