Legal Resources Centre

The LRC is an independent, client-based, non-profit public interest law clinic which uses law as an instrument of justice. It was established in 1979 and is South Africa’s largest public interest human rights law clinic. In addition to its national office and its Constitutional Litigation Unit, the LRC has four regional offices in Cape Town, Durban, Grahamstown and Johannesburg. In its earlier years, the LRC challenged the legal mechanisms used by the apartheid government to oppress millions of South Africans.

Since 1994, the LRC has focused on making the South African Constitution a living document and ensuring that the rights and responsibilities enshrined therein are respected, promoted, protected and fulfilled using a range of strategies including impact litigation, law reform and networking. The LRC provides legal services for the vulnerable and marginalized, including the poor, homeless and landless people, and communities of South Africa who suffer discrimination by reason of race, class, gender, disability or social, economic and historical circumstances.