Shirin Ebadi

Shirin Ebadi
Shirin Ebadi in 2015
Born	(1947-06-21) 21 June 1947 (age 69) Hamadan, Iran
Residence	London, England
Nationality	Iranian
Alma mater	University of Tehran
Occupation	Lawyer Judge
Known for	Defenders of Human Rights Center
Awards	Rafto Prize (2001) Nobel Peace Prize (2003) JPM Interfaith Award (2004) Legion of Honour (2006)
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Shirin Ebadi (Persian: شيرين عبادى‎‎ Širin Ebādi; born 21 June 1947) is an Iranian lawyer, a former judge and human rights activist and founder of Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. On 10 October 2003, Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her significant and pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights, especially women's, children's, and refugee rights. She was the first ever Iranian to receive the prize, and thousands greeted her at the airport when she returned from Paris after receiving the news that she had won the prize.

In 2009, Ebadi's award was allegedly confiscated by Iranian authorities, though this was later denied by the Iranian government. If true, she would be the first person in the history of the Nobel Prize whose award has been forcibly seized by state authorities.

Ebadi lived in Tehran, but she has been in exile in the UK since June 2009 due to the increase in persecution of Iranian citizens who are critical of the current regime. In 2004, she was listed by Forbes magazine as one of the "100 most powerful women in the world". She is also included in a published list of the "100 most influential women of all time."

Ebadi was born in Hamadan, Iran. Her father, Mohammad Ali Ebadi, was the city's chief notary public and a professor of commercial law. Her family moved to Tehran in 1948.

She was admitted to the law department of the University of Tehran in 1965 and in 1969, upon graduation, passed the qualification exams to become a judge. After a six-month internship period, she officially became a judge in March 1969. She continued her studies in University of Tehran in the meantime to pursue a doctorate's degree in law in 1971. In 1975, she became the first woman president of the Tehran city court, and also the first ever woman judge in Iran.