About us - Jurfem

Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem”

Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem” is one of the first Ukrainian associations of women lawyers. The aim of the organization is to become a platform for the exchange of experience, development and support of women in the legal profession.

And with the start of full-scale war, JurFem became a place of support for survivors of sexual violence and all kinds of gender discrimination.

More than 300 representatives of the legal profession are members of the Association: female lawyers, student lawyers, scientists, teachers, and law enforcement officers.

Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem” was officially registered in September 2017.

We unite for the growth, visibility, safety, influence of women lawyers in the professional environment and social and political life to affirm equality and justice.

JurFem exists to celebrate the success which women have achieved in the legal profession, and to solve the problems, which are the challenges that lawyers still have to face.

The role of a female lawyer should become visible and significant in the professional community. The assessment of her activity can consist exclusively of professional skills, knowledge and achievements.

A female lawyer must have a safe non-discriminatory environment, equal rights and opportunities for growth in the professional, public and political spheres at the municipal and national levels.

The association of women lawyers will allow to influence the change of the existing state in the professional environment and overcome the stereotypes that have formed in society.

  • promote the professional capacity of women lawyers and their representation, to strengthen the leadership of women lawyers in professional associations and in other organizations;
  • promote the development of effective cooperation and understanding between women lawyers, national and international professional organizations of women lawyers, and scientific and other legal communities;
  • improve the understanding of national and international legislation on equal rights and opportunities for women and men among the legal community to effectively protect women’s rights and opportunities in all spheres of public and political life in Ukraine;
  • uphold the rights and interests of women lawyers;
  • uphold the rights and interests of women, including those who have been abused and discriminated or are in other crisis situations;
  • monitor and investigate the protection of women’s rights in Ukraine, including women lawyers, as well as the principle of gender equality and non-discrimination in Ukraine.

Join the network of judges, lawyers, and other law professionals seeking to succeed and who assist other women in order to reach this. You will make sure that JurFem offers great opportunities for professional development and communication, mentoring etc.

BOARD AND TEAM

KhRYSTYNA KIT

HEAD OF JURFEM AND HEAD OF THE BOARD

Head of Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem”, coordinator of the expert group on conflict-related sexual violence at the Prosecutor General’s Office, co-chair of the sub-pillar group “Access to Justice and Responsibility” Inter-Agency Working Group on Combating Sexual Violence Related to Russia’s Armed Aggression against Ukraine and Assistance to the Survivors (IWG).

Khrystyna is a lawyer, attorney at law and Ph.D. in law. For more than fifteen years, Khrystyna has been working in the field of women’s rights advocacy. 

In 2017 she was one of the initiators and co-founder of the Ukrainian Lawyers Women Association “JurFem”. 

Khrystyna has experience analyzing problems that women face in access to justice and protection of their rights, as well as imperfections of legislation, its wrong implementation, and gender-based discriminative practices.

She is actively involved in developing and implementing legislation and policies; training for social services, police, judges and lawyers on violence against women and women’s rights; monitoring and research on different aspects of violence against women; human rights education, publications development. 

Strategic litigation and training for attorneys at law, prosecutors, investigators, judges, and police. She focuses on the application of a survivor-centered approach to violence against women cases, using the European Convention, CEDAW, and European standards in court practice and investigations. 

Khrystyna strengthens the capacity of the legal community, in particular, attorneys at law, prosecutors, investigators, etc., to respond to sexual violence, including conflict-related sexual violence.   

E-mail: hrystynakit@jurfem.com.ua

Members of the board

Team

Kateryna organizes work related to the development of the Analytical Center, creating new materials, searching for partners, etc.

Lawyer, a JurFem board member, Ph.D. in Law at the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv.

Kateryna Shunevych completed her Master’s degree at the Law Faculty of the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv in 2019.

She has been a visiting scholar at the University of Wroclaw, Poland (2020) and the University of Alberta, Canada (2022). Previously, she was a participant of the First Summer School JurFem.

She studied at the University of Bologna (2018) as the participant of the program “Erasmus+”. Has the experience of working as a legal advisor.

Has the experience of working as a legal advisor. Also, she finished her internship at the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (2019) as a part of her professional development.

Contact: katerynashunevych@jurfem.com.ua 

Lawyer, Ph.D. student in Law at the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (Department of Social Law). For more than two years she worked in the civil service in the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine and the State Environmental Inspectorate of Ukraine.

During 2015-2018 she was actively involved in public and volunteer activities in various public organizations in the fields of youth policy, protection of human rights, and the environment. Participated in international exchanges (Italy, Poland).

She did an internship at the Jerusalem Institute of Justice (Israel) in the field of human rights protection (2019) and was a participant in the Internship Program in the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine – Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Environmental Policy, Nature Management and Chornobyl Disaster Management (2019).

Contact: daria.rosokhata@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, graduated from Law Faculty of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, studies at Ukrainian Catholic University Law School. Ruled the NGO “Law Students Association” in 2021-2022. Scholarship holder of Zavtra.UA.

Graduate of the Fall (2022) and Spring (2023) semesters of the “Invisible University for Ukraine” program from the Central European University.

Completed the internship program at Analytical Center JurFem.

Contact: yaryna.bushchak@jurfem.com.ua

Activist, lawyer, and trainer on non-discrimination and gender equality. She graduated from the Law Faculty of the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (Master’s degree: “Human Rights and their legal support”).

Member of the board of the NGO “Youth Democratic Association” YODA “, legal consultant, and content maker of the Educational Center for Human Rights in Lviv.

During 2016-2018 she was an assistant at seminars and conferences at ELSA Lviv. In 2019, she was the regional coordinator of IFES in the project “Youth does not “like”. Young people are voting”!  Co-founder and host of the educational and entertainment video project ECHR in Lviv, “What will you be imprisoned for”. And also the author and voice of the copywriters “And Your Right Too” from ECHR in Lviv.

One of the authors and co-founders of the feminist school diary “Feminist school planner”. Author of the Program for Prioritization of Human Rights Protection in General Secondary Education in Lviv and a guide for students “Discrimination is not OK. We are learning to detect and counteract. “

Contact: viktoriakarpa@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, feminist. She graduated from the Law Faculty of the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, specialty: “Human rights and their legal support”.

From 2017 to 2020, she was a member of the board of the Lviv regional center of the UBA Student League as a corporate development manager and head of the local public initiative committee. Volunteer for international organizations COCAT, LEGAMBIENTE and Solidarité Jeinesse.

Contact: svitlana.mykhajlyshyn@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, feminist.

Studied law at the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (LLB) and the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (LLM).

Participated in international moot court competitions like Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (2018-2019) and Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitration Moot (2019), coached students’ teams for international law moot court competitions, Lviv Moot Court Society alumna.

Co-hostess at the Prosto Yurydychno | Ukrainian Law at Ease podcast.

Contact: marta.pavlyshyn@jurfem.com.ua

Studied international law at the Leonid Yuzkov Khmelnytskyi University of Management and Law (a bachelor’s degree).

Participated in the Central and East European Moot competition (2023).

An expert at the National Agency for Higher Education Quality.

A graduate of the IV JurFem Summer School.

Contact: a.slobodianyk@jurfem.com.ua 

Lawyer, member of the Association of Women Lawyers of Ukraine “JurFem”.

During her studies at the university, she began to study the problem of domestic violence and gender-based violence in general. She researched the history of the suffragette movement in the world.

Marta is actively engaged in social activities, in which she participates in all projects and activities dedicated to the protection of human rights and the establishment of the principle of equal rights of women and men.

Contactmartazmysla@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, Master of Law Faculty of Ivan Franko National University.

Performs social activities in the field of protection of women’s rights. The author of a number of publications related to the issue of gender-based violence.

Graduate of JurFem Summer School.

Contact: yuliia.nikitina@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, accountant of the Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem”

Contact: hrystynakuptsiv@jurfem.com.ua

Accountant, graduated from Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, majoring in “Accounting and taxation”.

Contact: natalia.havrykhiv@jurfem.com.ua

Yaryna graduated from the Ukrainian Catholic University (Lviv), specialty “History”. Researched the history of women’s and feminist movements. Now she is receiving her second degree at the MPA Program, where she studies the peculiarities of the formation of sensitive and inclusive state policies.

She is a co-author and trainer in several major courses on gender equality, development of internal policies, human rights and civic participation, strategic communication, and dozens of lectures and seminars on these topics. The target audiences are usually public activists, deputies, young people, representatives of small businesses, etc.

During 2015-2019, she managed cultural and social projects in various public organizations. In 2018, she worked in the family policy department of the Department of Social Protection of the Population of the Lviv Regional State Administration.

Since 2019, she has been working at the Ukrainian Women-Lawyers Association of “JurFem”. Head of JurFem Communication Department.

Yaryna is a Member of the Local Council in Murovane Community (Lviv region).

Contact: yarynavoloshyn@jurfem.com.ua

Olena has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Social Communications from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Institute of Journalism. She has also a bachelor’s degree in Law from the Borys Hrinchenko Kyiv University. Studies Regional Studies at the Institute of International Relations of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv (master’s degree).

Olena is a graduate of the School of Judicial Journalism at the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal.

She worked as a journalist for national TV channels.

Director of two documentaries about soldiers who died because of russian invasion of Ukraine.

Contact: olena.ohonovska@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, feminist.

Graduated from Law Faculty of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. During her studies at the university, she began to research the problems of sexual violence and discrimination against women in society.

Contact: marta.martsinko@jurfem.com.ua

Activist, lawyer, and trainer on non-discrimination and gender equality. She graduated from the Law Faculty of the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (Master’s degree: “Human Rights and their legal support”).

Member of the board of the NGO “Youth Democratic Association” YODA “, legal consultant, and content maker of the Educational Center for Human Rights in Lviv.

During 2016-2018 she was an assistant at seminars and conferences at ELSA Lviv. In 2019, she was the regional coordinator of IFES in the project “Youth does not “like”. Young people are voting”!  Co-founder and host of the educational and entertainment video project ECHR in Lviv, “What will you be imprisoned for”. And also the author and voice of the copywriters “And Your Right Too” from ECHR in Lviv.

One of the authors and co-founders of the feminist school diary “Feminist school planner”. Author of the Program for Prioritization of Human Rights Protection in General Secondary Education in Lviv and a guide for students “Discrimination is not OK. We are learning to detect and counteract. “

Contact: viktoriakarpa@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, feminist. She graduated from the Law Faculty of the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, specialty: “Human rights and their legal support”.

From 2017 to 2020, she was a member of the board of the Lviv regional center of the UBA Student League as a corporate development manager and head of the local public initiative committee. Volunteer for international organizations COCAT, LEGAMBIENTE and Solidarité Jeinesse.

Contact: svitlana.mykhajlyshyn@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, feminist.

Studied law at the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (LLB) and the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (LLM).

Participated in international moot court competitions like Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (2018-2019) and Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitration Moot (2019), coached students’ teams for international law moot court competitions, Lviv Moot Court Society alumna.

Co-hostess at the Prosto Yurydychno | Ukrainian Law at Ease podcast.

Контакт: marta.pavlyshyn@jurfem.com.ua

Studied international law at the Leonid Yuzkov Khmelnytskyi University of Management and Law (a bachelor’s degree).

Participated in the Central and East European Moot competition (2023).

An expert at the National Agency for Higher Education Quality.

A graduate of the IV JurFem Summer School.

Contact: a.slobodianyk@jurfem.com.ua 

Lawyer, member of the Association of Women Lawyers of Ukraine “JurFem”.

During her studies at the university, she began to study the problem of domestic violence and gender-based violence in general. She researched the history of the suffragette movement in the world.

Marta is actively engaged in social activities, in which she participates in all projects and activities dedicated to the protection of human rights and the establishment of the principle of equal rights of women and men.

Contact: martazmysla@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, Master of Law Faculty of Ivan Franko National University.

Performs social activities in the field of protection of women’s rights. The author of a number of publications related to the issue of gender-based violence.

Graduate of JurFem Summer School.

Contact: yuliia.nikitina@jurfem.com.ua

Yaryna graduated from the Ukrainian Catholic University (Lviv), specialty “History”. Researched the history of women’s and feminist movements. Now she is receiving her second degree at the MPA Program, where she studies the peculiarities of the formation of sensitive and inclusive state policies.

She is a co-author and trainer in several major courses on gender equality, development of internal policies, human rights and civic participation, strategic communication, and dozens of lectures and seminars on these topics. The target audiences are usually public activists, deputies, young people, representatives of small businesses, etc.

During 2015-2019, she managed cultural and social projects in various public organizations. In 2018, she worked in the family policy department of the Department of Social Protection of the Population of the Lviv Regional State Administration.

Since 2019, she has been working at the Ukrainian Women-Lawyers Association of “JurFem”. Head of JurFem Communication Department.

Yaryna is a Member of the Local Council in Murovane Community (Lviv region).

Contact: yarynavoloshyn@jurfem.com.ua

Olena has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Social Communications from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Institute of Journalism. She has also a bachelor’s degree in Law from the Borys Hrinchenko Kyiv University. Studies Regional Studies at the Institute of International Relations of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv (master’s degree).

Olena is a graduate of the School of Judicial Journalism at the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal. 

She worked as a journalist for national TV channels.

Director of two documentaries about soldiers who died because of russian invasion of Ukraine.

Contact: olena.ohonovska@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, feminist.

Graduated from Law Faculty of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. During her studies at the university, she began to research the problems of sexual violence and discrimination against women in society.

Contact: marta.martsinko@jurfem.com.ua

Lawyer, accountant of the Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem”

Contact: hrystynakuptsiv@jurfem.com.ua

Accountant, graduated from Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, majoring in “Accounting and taxation”.

Contact: natalia.havrykhiv@jurfem.com.ua

Statutory documents