Indian Consulate to Hire Law Firms to Fight Distressed Workers’ Cases in Dubai

In an effort to aid Indians living in Dubai and Northern Emirates, the Indian Consulate is looking to hire a panel of law firms to help with cases of distressed Indian nationals in the region.

The Indian mission has invited proposals for empanelment of law firms for assisting it with cases of distressed Indians, the consulate announced on its website on April 26. It is accepting proposals until May 15.

The consulate had earlier invited legal firms to send their proposals in sealed covers with the caption “Proposals for Empanelment of Law Firms” to Sumathi Vasudev, consul (Consular and Labour) by April 29. The deadline was extended to include as many law firms as possible in its panel, Gulf News reported citing an official.

“This is for addressing the problems of legal issues faced by community members. We will be providing legal assistance to deserving community members on a means tested basis,” the publication quoted an official as saying.

Most cases received by the the consulate are from blue collar workers.  However, the official added that they also get complaints of suffering by white collar workers. “We do offer support if they are genuinely in need of it. We would like to provide assistance as many people as possible who are in distress,” the official said.

To be a part of the panel, the firm must detail the area which it is permitted to practice in, its major achievements, experience in handling Indians’ cases and other specific details to the consulate. The nationality of the owners and lawyers of the firm is not pertinent to the selection.

“Whenever there is a case of a distressed community member, which we choose on a means tested basis, we will provide the case synopsis and seek quotations from the panel of law firms. We will then hire the one quoting the least for taking up the case,” the official said.

The firms hired would be paid by the Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF), which got an increased scope to extend financial help to distressed employees in the country last year.  Before the initiative was helped by the expansion of the fund, the consulate’s role in legal cases was limited to providing legal counselling through the Indian Workers Resource Centre (IWRC). The IWRC offers free legal counselling by volunteer Indian lawyers, conducts legal awareness campaigns in labor accommodations and  holds open houses where the grievances faced by the community are addressed.