Research Position in Criminal Justice Projects at NLSIU

National Law School of India University (NLSIU) has invited applications for 1 full-time Research Position 2025-2026 to work on high-impact Criminal Justice Research Projects. This is a contractual position for one year, based in Bengaluru, offering an excellent opportunity for young researchers to work on cutting-edge empirical legal studies in India.

About the Criminal Justice Research Project

NLSIU is undertaking multiple research projects focusing on the empirical analysis of the Indian criminal justice system using public legal data.

Key project objectives include:

• 📊 Studying sentencing patterns, bail decisions, and undertrial incarceration
• 🧠 Using Natural Language Processing (NLP) to extract insights from court judgments
• 🏛 Analysing judicial decision-making processes using eCourts data
• 🌍 Understanding how social groups and regional disparities influence criminal justice outcomes
• 📂 Creating a publicly accessible legal dataset to support law and policy research in India

Role & Responsibilities

The selected Researcher will work under the guidance of Prof. Mrinal Satish, Prof. Aparna Chandra, Prof. Rahul Hemrajani, and Prof. Nikita Ahalyan and will be responsible for:

• Navigating the eCourts platform to identify structural legal data
• ✍️ Hand-coding judicial cases to build training datasets
• 📈 Analysing judgments to extract and synthesise legal data
• 🗃 Assisting in building a legal database and open data portal
• 📑 Preparing research reports, documentation, and presentations
• 📚 Conducting research on sentencing trends and bail practices
• 🤝 Participating in team meetings and collaborating on project deliverables
• 📝 Assisting in writing academic papers and project reports
• 🗂 Handling administrative and coordination tasks under the project

Eligibility Criteria

Essential Qualifications

• LL.B degree OR Master’s degree in an allied discipline
• Proven experience in coding and analysing large government datasets

Desirable

• Prior experience in empirical legal research
• Knowledge of coding or statistical analysis tools
• Strong research and writing background

Work Experience

• 0–5 years of experience in academic or professional research environments
• Must demonstrate research and writing skills

How to Apply?

Candidates must apply through the official Google Form and submit:

• ✔️ Updated CV
• ✔️ Statement of Purpose (max 500 words) explaining:
  • Why you are applying
  • How it fits your career goals
  • Why you are suitable for this role
• ✔️ Details of two referees (name, designation, contact)
• ✔️ One sole-authored writing sample (published/unpublished)

Salary & Benefits

• Monthly remuneration between ₹50,000 – ₹80,000, based on qualifications and experience

Contact for Queries

For any questions related to the application process, email: recruitment@nls.ac.in