Projects

Community Development The Community Development Project (CDP) is the first national transactional pro bono project that provides direct legal services to nonprofit organizations in the most underserved regions of the country. The CDP's mission is to promote housing and economic opportunities in low-income communities through volunteer legal services. The unique national pro bono network of the Lawyers' Committee supplements dedicated resources with high-caliber legal talent to represent client organizations, develop legal materials and training, and advance opportunities in neighborhoods suffering from economic isolation and neglect. This legal assistance helps local community development corporations fulfill their mandate to revitalize impoverished minority neighborhoods and advance economic opportunity. The CDP has provided direct pro bono legal support to community-based organizations in Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, Virginia, Arkansas and the District of Columbia where we have ongoing relationships with local groups dedicated to neighborhood reinvestment. Learn More »
Education The Educational Opportunities Project strives to guarantee that all students receive equal educational opportunities in public schools and institutions of higher learning. Working with private law firms and community leaders, the Educational Opportunities Project has been particularly successful in promoting school integration; supporting the mission of the No Child Left Behind Act; and challenging discriminatory discipline and classroom assignment practices as well as school finance inadequacy. In the wake of the 2007 Parents Involved decision, the Educational Opportunities Project is at the forefront of developing strategic ways to implement constitutionally permissible school assignment plans with a consciousness of race and other factors. The project most importantly emphasizes its concentration on maximizing the potential of disadvantaged students and narrowing the achievement gap between low income and more affluent students, and minority and non-minority students. Additionally, our Parental Empowerment Program promotes the importance of parental involvement in curtailing the significant drop-out rate for Latino and African American youth. The program seeks to: (1) identify local organizers, parents, advocates, and community-based organizations; (2) hold community forums to learn about most pressing issues of discrimination within school districts; and (3) provide practical and easy to understand information on education and civil rights laws and social science research. Learn More »
Employment Discrimination The Employment Discrimination Project ("EDP") challenges all forms of racial, national origin, and sexual discrimination in the workplace, both private and governmental, including discrimination by federal, state and local agencies. The Project is acclaimed for litigating complex and often protracted class action lawsuits on behalf of women and minorities. With the crucial assistance of law firms that co-counsel cases with the Lawyers' Committee, the Project dismantles systemic barriers faced by women and minorities in hiring and promotions. The Project works with government officials and Congress to ensure strong government enforcement of fair employment laws. Technical assistance is provided to a growing network of 6,100 plaintiffs' attorneys who are learning the nuances of fair employment litigation. Learn More »
Environmental Justice Environmental protection begins by ending environmental policies and practices that burden America's most vulnerable communities. Low-income communities and people of color are disproportionately burdened by environmental pollution and the myriad of health problems associated with poor air and water quality and toxic exposure. The environmental justice movement recognizes that America's environmental laws and policies should protect all communities regardless of race, color, national origin or income level. Established in 1991, the Environmental Justice Project works with the private bar to represent and advocate on behalf of communities of color challenging environmentally discriminatory conditions and decisions. Learn More »
Fair Housing & Fair Lending Housing discrimination is a painful, stubborn reality for people of color in the United States. All too often, substandard segregated housing in minority communities exacerbates economic, political and educational disparities. In an effort to overcome these problems, the Fair Housing Project litigates lawsuits under the Fair Housing Act to challenge discrimination in rental and private markets as well as in public and assisted housing. The Project trains numerous local private attorneys to handle fair housing cases and to accept referral cases from fair housing councils that use testing to confirm legitimate complaints of housing discrimination. Our work has resulted in millions of dollars in relief for our fair housing clients. Learn More »
Legal Mobilization Working across and with all subject matter projects, the Pro Bono and LMP staff attorneys and organizers utilize pro bono, technology, litigation, public policy, online communications, advocacy, education, non-litigation assistance and management tools to address civil rights. At the core of LMP was the recognition that a comprehensive, multi-dimensional approach can be incredibly effective in tackling today’s civil rights issues. Learn More »
Public Policy The Public Policy Committee advocates for the effective advancement of civil rights laws at the state and federal level working with other organizations as well as directly with legislators. Learn More »
Voting Rights For more than four decades, the Lawyers' Committee has been at the forefront of the legal struggle to achieve equality and protect advances in voting rights for racial and ethnic minorities and other traditionally disfranchised groups. Today, that tradition continues. With the indispensable assistance of private law firms, the Voting Rights Project is an integrated program of litigation, voter protection, research, advocacy and education. The Lawyers' Committee leads Election Protection (EP), the nation's largest nonpartisan voter protection coalition. In 2008, EP involved more than 10,000 volunteers and the EP hotline received more than 240,000 calls. The Project is defending the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act in the United States Supreme Court and won a groundbreaking ruling that state election officials can be held liable for massive failures in election administration. Learn More »