The project

State of play - the EU

Over the last 2 years, a number of key documents have been adopted at European level that directly address women's rights and support the implementation of equality priorities - the Care Strategy, the Directive on Combating Domestic Violence, the Pay Equality Directive, etc. All of these documents are to be implemented by Member States and the civil sector is a key partner both from an expert perspective and a stakeholder monitoring these processes. Building the capacity of the civil sector to recognise, support and communicate strategic litigation is a key indicator of sustainability and democracy in any society. The establishmnet of civil society coalitions that are united by human rights cases is part of this process and for it to be a fact, a meaningful investment of time and resources is needed.

In Bulgaria, many organisations working on the grass-root level often share the frustration of recurring problems and administrative dead ends. There is a visible need for capacity building on how a grass-root case study can be recognised as a systemic tool for change and what are the core functions that need to be developed in an organisation for this process to be successful. Working on and with strategic litigation is a critically important approach to creating case law in women's rights cases, but it is also a tool for changing attitudes and influencing public opinion. This is where the importance of external communication comes in- in addition to the need for valid legal aid, we need to work with organizations to build communication and leadership capacity.

State of play Bulgaria

Within the project we will implement public meetings and trainings on advocacy, leadership and communication. The development of these three pillars in civic leaders and representatives from leading civil society organisations will be a sector-wide investment that supports diverse women in their life and court battles.

The project will:

1) work to raise awareness of the importance of strategic litigation and why engaging with it is important for the sustainability of the rule of law

2) conduct trainings and public meetings with real case studies from litigation and advocacy practice

3) provide best practice exchanges for women in leadership positions with leading experts in the field

A "good" example 
Maya Doneva's case is a landmark case for women's rights and the gender pay gap, as well as for the lack of transparency and equality in the EU and the double standard towards experts from Eastern Europe. The very fact that the case is in court in Brussels is extremely important, because rarely do such cases reach the court stage due to a lack of finances, courage or simply because of NDA and out-of-court settlements. Establishing legal examples and transparent communication around them is extremely important for de-stigmatising the issue of women's pay and making all stakeholders - employers, trade unions, institutions, employers' organisations - aware of their responsibilities. Stepping on a specific court case in this project is an opportunity for civil society to build capacity and develop skills for a public response that can be multiplied in other similar cases.