Is PIL for me?

Use public interest litigation if you want to:

• seek compensation for something that happened
• stop or prevent someone from doing something
• establish or enforce your rights
• strengthen your position when faced with a strong adversary
• tell your story to a court or tribunal
• find out information
• enable the truth to be heard, even in a situation where you lose your case and the status quo is preserved
• use legal action as part of a wider campaign. The ideal litigation is one in which the mere act of bringing the case can help you meet your goal, regardless of the outcome
• establish a point of principle
  overturn an unjust law or government action
  force someone to do something that will help to redress a harm you have suffered or are suffering
• seek a settlement of your claim or an agreed solution to your problem.

Do not use public interest litigation if:

• You need a very quick solution. Although courts can grant urgent or emergency orders, litigation can take many months or years, leading to high legal bills. At a national level, it can take two to three years for litigation to reach its conclusion. At an international level, this timescale can double.
• It will damage your reputation or credibility
• It will exhaust your energy or resources
• It will close the door to other easier ways to reach your goals
• you only have a moral case, rather than a legal one
  the facts are very unclear, or there is serious doubt whether you can establish these facts
• the risk of losing your case is high, and the implications of such a loss will make your situation worse.

These links explain the legal aspects of problems in the following areas:

• Land rights
• Environmental or pollution issues
• Problems resulting from climate change
• Right to information
• Human rights of various types (economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights)
• Constitutional Rights which you may have under your constitution
• Corruption
• Gender issues