Natalia Venegas

Experience

• 

  Universidad del Rosario

  Jan 2017 - Dec 2020

  •Represented individuals in disciplinary proceedings within state entities, ensuring effective advocacy throughout the process.•Developed and implemented defense strategies, including drafting comprehensive defenses, presenting arguments, and delivering closing statements. •Acted as a public defendant, successfully providing legal aid to victims of domestic and gender-based violence, providing them with the resources they need to rebuild their lives through legal actions, proceedings, and economic aid. •Defended victims of domestic and gender-based violence by preparing and filing injunctions. •Researched the effects of domestic and gender-based violence on women and children. •Provided teaching support in the following courses: Introduction to Civil Law, Law of Persons, Colombian Constitutional Law II: State Structure and Legal Foundations of Colombian Constitutional Law.•Coordinated with the professor to develop study guides and deliver reinforcement classes to students, increasing test scores.

  • Public Defender

    Nov 2019 - Dec 2020

  • Active Member of the Domestic and Gender-Based Violence Clinic/ Public Defender

    Nov 2019 - Nov 2020

  • Teaching Assistant

    Jan 2017 - Nov 2020
• 

  Colombian Constitutional Court

  Jan 2019 - May 2019

  Legal intern

  •Researched 30 human rights actions per day to support claimants’ human rights protection in assigned cases.•Reviewing human rights cases and assessing opportunities for judges to reexamine. •Drafted legal concepts on matters of fundamental rights, unconstitutional actions, and human rights violations.

• 

  Geneva International Centre for Justice (GICJ)

  Jan 2022 - Jul 2022

  Legal Intern

  •Delivered speeches on the human rights situation in South Sudan and Sudan at the UNHRC 49th and 50th sessions, urging governments to strengthen protection mechanisms for women and children.•Authored 10+ articles on human rights violations in Latin America, including a UN-published statement on enforced disappearances, posts on US detention of child migrants, Colombian Truth Commission and independence of judges and lawyers, etc.•Coordinated a group of 5 contributors to achieve regularity in the Spanish language newsletter. Show less

• 

  Project Expedite Justice

  Aug 2022 - Apr 2023

  Visiting Legal Professional

  • Developed projects to address gender-based violence with partners on the ground, mobilising local resources and providing NGOs with technical guidance and training materials. • Took part in meetings to review budget and fundraising strategy, and engaged with grant donors to develop new partnerships advocating for social policy and justice system reforms and strengthening institutional cooperation.

• 

  Alexandra Lozano Immigration Law PLLC

  May 2023 - Aug 2023

  Bilingual Attorney

  Evidence Verifier:• Full-time position at the fastest-growing immigration law firm in the US, gaining practical experience before the LL.M.• Handled cases for victims of domestic violence seeking immigration relief and protection from deportation under the US Violence Against Women Act, leading interviews, setting strategy and drafting declarations.

• 

  Human Rights in Practice

  Sept 2023 - Jun 2024

  Research Assistant

  •Analyzed Latin American armed conflict cases, studying strategic litigation's types, impacts, and challenges in addressing serious violations during and post-conflict to guide strategic litigation approach to serious violations.•Assisted in strategic litigation cases to be filed at the HRC and the ECHR.

• 

  Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies

  Sept 2023 - Sept 2024

  Assistant Editor at Leiden Journal of International Law

  •Edited articles with academic authors to improve readability before submission to Cambridge University Press.•Participated in editorial board meetings

• 

  DCAF - Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance

  Dec 2024 - now

  Junior Project Officer

  Operations Europe and Central Asia