Dr Natalie Sedacca visits the National Law School of India
From 20 – 31 January 2025, Dr Natalie Sedacca, Assistant Professor in Employment Law at Durham Law School, has been visiting the National Law School of India, Bengalaru (NLSIU). This was the first National Law University established in India in 1986.
Natalie was hosted by Dr. Saurabh Bhattacharjee and the Centre of Labour Studies at NLSIU. The Centre is an interdisciplinary research unit designed to address various issues that define regulation and governance in employment relations.
Natalie’s research focuses on human rights and labour law, with a particular interest in domestic workers and other marginalised workers, and in issues of gender and migration. She is currently working on a book project on the rights of domestic workers, which includes India as one of its case studies.
On 22 January 2025, Natalie presented a draft of chapter five of the project to the NSLIU’s Faculty Seminar, entitled ‘The Devaluation of Domestic Work: Regulatory Reform and Challenges to the Perception of a ‘Family-Like’ Relationship.’ She received extremely helpful feedback from NLSIU’s legal academics and social scientists, ranging from technical comments on Indian law to conceptual questions on defining work and its value. More information can be found on the NLSIU website.
Natalie also observed a Stakeholder Consultation organised by NLSIU Faculty for the Women's Inclusion and Leadership in Law project, which examines structural barriers to women's participation and success in court-centred legal practice, attended by women lawyers from across India. In addition, during her visit Natalie has met with members of NLSIU’s Centre for Labour studies and other academics with shared interests such as migration, enriching her understanding of the Indian context and legal system, and providing the basis for future collaboration.
Image credit: Tanvi Shenoy, National Law School of India, Bengalaru.