The Legal Aid and Consultancy Centre (LACC) as an independent non-profit, non-partisan and non-governmental legal resource organisation was established in 1987 by a group of lawyers for the protection and promotion of the rights and interests of women and children. As a pioneer legal resource organisation, it is dedicated for the advancement and empowerment of women, their dignity, uplifting of their socio-legal status and protection of child rights. There are seventeen women lawyers working in LACC. Prof. (Dr.) Shanta Thapalia, is the founding President of Legal Aid and Consultancy Center.

In the development process, law is an important instrument of control, which promotes and regulates social, economic and political relationships. Most of the existing laws in the country are discriminatory against women. The problems pertaining to women centres around four key issues:

•         The laws themselves tend to be discriminatory and deprives them of opportunities.

•         The application of  laws tend to be arbitrary and prejudicial to women.

•         Women themselves are unaware of their own legal rights; and as a result.

•         Women lack the confidence to take action.

Women in Nepal are also increasingly subjected to violence, sexual abuse, rape, exploitation, battering, divorce, domestic violence and trafficking. Similarly, minor and young children are becoming vulnerable to sexual abuses, sexual exploitation, violence, forced and worst form of child labour. The woman victims of violence, rape, sexual exploitation, abuses, polygamy, battering, forced divorce and trafficking and the child victims of sexual abuses, exploitation and forced child labour needed to contact some organisations which could help the victims to seek justice and help in solving their problems in a more organised way. There was the need of an organisation which could provide free legal aid, counselling, mediation services and court representation as and when required to the needy women and child victims.

Against this backdrop, the Legal Aid and Consultancy Center was established to promote and protect the rights and interests of women and children through legal recourse and judicial process. Thus, LACC was established to provide free institutional legal aid, counselling services and court representation to the needy women victims of violence, rape, sexual exploitation, abuses, domestic violence, social and religious repression, polygamy, bigamy, battering, forced divorce and trafficking in seeking justice through legal and court procedures. It was also created to provide free institutional legal aid, counselling services and court representation to the needy child victims of exploitation, sexual abuses, violence and forced child labour, seeking justice through legal and court procedures. It thus, contributes to ending violence against women and promotes the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

It also organises training, workshop, seminar and sensitization programme on human rights, child rights, women's rights, gender issues, women leadership development and legal issues.

• Gender Equality and Women’s rights.
• Equal property rights of women.
• Violence Against Women.
• Domestic Violence and Abuse.
• Reproductive Rights and Health.
• Beijing Platform for Action.
• Empowerment of women and uplifting the status of women.
• Sexual abuse,  exploitation and trafficking  of women and children.
• Childlabour.
• Education, training, awareness  and leadership development.
• Free legal aid, counseling, mediation and court representation.
• Propagation of international instruments on women’s rights and gender equality.
• Legislative drafting and public policy influencing.
• Advocacy and networking.
• Research, documentation, case studies and publication.