Gender bias is a preference or prejudice toward one gender over the other. Bias can be conscious or unconscious, and may manifest in many ways, both subtle and obvious. In many countries, eliminating gender bias is the basis of many laws, including those that govern workplaces etc. In a progressive world, it is also important that people have access to their basic rights including access to quality and impartial justice. The effects of gender bias in the justice process can be viewed in two ways: first, it limits women to access formal justice remedies; and second, the judicial remedy that may be given to women may be inadequate due to presence of gender bias during the adjudication process.

The International Judicial Conference 2012 will provide a forum to review the extent of gender bias in courts and formulate suggestion to curb this phenomenon.