A group of summer interns attend a brown bag lunch during their first week at NYLAG.

In early August, NYLAG’s summer interns met for Happy Hour at the storied Fraunces Tavern in lower Manhattan to enjoy one last gathering before saying good bye and heading back to law school.

The class of 2015 interns worked alongside staff members in a number of practice areas, assisting the elderly, veterans, members of the LGBTQ community, domestic violence survivors, unrepresented consumer debt defendants, immigrants and others with a range of legal services. In addition to handling substantive work, interns had the opportunity to participate in a comprehensive training program covering the civil legal services practice in New York City. There was also a series of brown bag lunches on fellowships, clerkships and other topics of interest, and social events in and around NYLAG’s office in the financial district.

NYLAG first recruited summer interns in 1996. Twenty years later, the program has grown and flourished, providing much-needed support within units and projects across the agency, while giving students hands-on legal and courtroom experience and the chance to work with seasoned public interest attorneys. Each student commits to working 10 weeks, generally from late May to early August. There were 66 summer interns in the 2015 class (primarily rising second- and third-year law school students), chosen from of a field of 750 applicants.

Here are just a few of this year’s interns, sharing thoughts about their summer at NYLAG:

Shreya Patel, Michigan State University College of Law

“I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been a part of the Evelyn Frank Legal Resources Program at NYLAG. My favorite experience was being given the chance to work with clients directly. Law school can only teach you so much in theory; it was really the practical experience that I gained during my time here that was invaluable to me. My supervisor, Marie Vaz, not only coached me through my interactions with my clients, but she also would take the time to give me a comprehensive background of the law for every assignment she gave me. I have learned more about Medicaid and Medicare law interning under her than I could have possibly learned from any course.”

Sam Stanton, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

“While as a queer person of color I’ve always had to fight for my education (and continue to do so), I know that I have tremendous privilege as a law student. I also know how extremely important it is to see people that look like you in agencies and in positions of power. I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to use my privilege to help our clients work against institutionalized racism, heterosexism and transphobia. I also feel very fortunate to have had the guidance and mentorship of the tireless advocates in the LGBTQ Law Project, who remain critical of legal establishments that continually marginalize queer and transgender people of color.”

Rita Vega, New York Law School

“My summer at NYLAG has really bolstered my decision to go into go into public interest. All the attorneys in the Storm Response Unit are true advocates who fight tirelessly for the rights of their clients. Further, everyone here has fostered a great learning environment where I am encouraged to interact with multiple attorneys, attend educational seminars, and engage in legal outreach. One of my favorite moments was going to the Rent Guidelines Board hearing on rent stabilization with Sunny Noh, Kamilla Sjodin, and my fellow intern Rachel Russell and hearing passionate speeches from the public about the widespread need for affordable housing. It was great to see New Yorkers mobilize in order to effectuate change – and NYLAG’s support of their efforts.”

Brian Highsmith, Yale Law School

“Over the course of my internship with the Special Litigation Unit, I have gotten the opportunity to apply a longstanding passion for economic justice to my interest in using impact litigation and other innovative legal strategies as a tool to advance important policy goals. For example, I researched legal issues in a class action lawsuit we initiated against a group of debt buyers who had wrongfully obtained and enforced millions of dollars of default judgments against low-income New York families. Without legal representation, our named plaintiffs faced long odds in going up against these sophisticated, repeat-player debt buyers. But with help of the dedicated and deeply-caring lawyers at NYLAG, our clients were able to bring a suit on behalf of the entire class of individuals who had been wronged — and work to secure relief not only for themselves, but also for tens of thousands of other low-income New Yorkers.”

Jennifer Cao, Queen’s University Faculty of Law

“My time with LegalHealth at NYLAG this summer has been one of both professional and personal development. I had the opportunity to work under four incredible attorneys in matters involving veterans and undocumented persons. I wrote numerous memos regarding housing, immigration, wills, social benefits and family law. I especially enjoyed meeting with clients and seeing our work make a true and positive difference during a hard time in someone’s life. At NYLAG, I witnessed firsthand the human side of the legal profession and the immense dedication, care and passion each attorney brought to work every day. It has been an inspiring and invaluable journey and one that I will always hold in my heart.”

Jenna Cohn, Touro Law Center

“In the Elder Law Practice, many of our clients are in poor health and have to face inevitable end of life decisions. Understandably, clients may be hesitant or fearful to discuss their end of life wishes, which are required to draft advance directives. For some, it is a difficult process to acknowledge that the end of their life may be near. I found that through multiple conversations and a display of compassion and respect for the aging client, I was able to ensure a higher level of comfort and trust. I found it very rewarding and humbling to know that I was able to provide integral legal services to vulnerable individuals who deserve to have their end of life wishes and assets sufficiently protected.”

Heather L. Betz has been named Supervising Attorney of NYLAG’s LGBTQ Law Project, which provides direct legal services to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community throughout New York City. Since its inception in 2008, the project has helped low-income LGBTQ individuals break down the complex barriers to justice they face, address the shortage of experienced, culturally competent lawyers available to provide free services on a range of legal issues, and advocate for changes to our legal system that will expand the rights of LGBTQ New Yorkers.

“We are so pleased to have an attorney of Heather’s caliber and diverse experience join NYLAG to lead our LGBTQ Law Project, which has made great strides in recognizing and helping to address the unmet needs of New York’s LGBTQ community,” said NYLAG President and Attorney-in-Charge Beth Goldman. “Under her leadership, supported by the amazing LGBTQ Law Project staff, we look forward to continuing to provide critical legal services   ̶ and a voice ̶ for uniquely vulnerable New Yorkers.”

Betz has spent several years representing members of the LGBTQ community.  She comes to NYLAG after serving as Project Director of the DREAMER Pro Bono Project at Cornell Law School, where she oversaw the work of a team of volunteer attorneys and law students representing undocumented young people applying for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which provides temporary relief to immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as young children. Earlier, she was Senior Staff Attorney at the HIV Law Project and Director/Echoing Green Fellow at the Lesbian and Gay Refugee Advocacy Project. Betz received her law degree from the City University of New York School of Law in 2001.

NYLAG’s LGBTQ Law Project provides assistance in a wide range of legal matters including housing, employment discrimination, family law, immigration, elder law, and life planning. In 2015, the project served hundreds of people with legal matters ranging from securing orders of protection on behalf of survivors of intimate partner violence to ensuring that transgender and gender non-conforming immigrants, regardless of illegal status, can access the courts to seek a legal name change.

The project leverages the resources of community organizations, private law firms, law schools, and the expertise of attorneys from other NYLAG divisions. Its attorneys staff legal clinics across New York City, and work with other organizations and elected officials to conduct outreach to offer legal services, and provide trainings to agencies and professionals serving LGBTQ communities.

The LGBTQ Law Project plays an active role in advocating for the rights of LGBTQ individuals. In the last several years, in coalition with community organizations, the Mayor’s office and the New York City Council, NYLAG has supported the creation of a gender-affirming Municipal ID, reforms to State and City birth certificate and Medicaid policies, and stronger policies to enable New York City’s Commission on Human Rights and Human Resource Administration to better serve LGBTQ communities.

The work of the LGBTQ Law Project is generously supported by The Orrick Community Responsibility Program.

More than 100 NYLAG staff members, interns and friends marched alongside the agency’s Mobile Legal Help Center in the New York City Pride March on June 24, 2012.

It was NYLAG’s first year participating in the annual celebration, the route of which spans Fifth Avenue from East 38th Street to Christopher Street in the West Village. Entitled “Share the Love,” this year’s March commemorated the one-year anniversary of the passage of New York’s same-sex marriage law. A cloudless Sunday made for an especially festive occasion, involving approximately 500,000 participants and attracting an estimated one million spectators.

NYLAG made a big impact for its first appearance at the parade. Participants wore matching t-shirts, an abundance of rainbows and glitter, and carried signs proclaiming “NYLAG PRIDE” as they danced and chanted down the parade route. The Mobile Legal Help Center, with a giant rainbow “Pride” flag waving from its window, followed the group and demonstrated the New York State Office of Court Administration’s partnership with NYLAG in support of equal rights. Materials about NYLAG and the LGBT Law Project, accompanied by lollipops and branded decals, were handed out to spectators along the parade route, informing the diverse crowd about NYLAG’s free civil legal services.

While the passage of marriage equality in New York State is a milestone to be celebrated, NYLAG recognizes that LGBT communities still face numerous inequalities and discrimination when accessing critical services. The LGBT Law Project at NYLAG conducts outreach and provides culturally sensitive legal services to surmount these barriers. Virginia Goggin, Director of the Project, is thrilled with the high level of participation in the parade, remarking, “NYLAG’s large and highly visible presence at the March made a strong statement that we support the right to justice of all individuals, regardless of sexual preference or gender identity.”

For more photos of the parade, click here.

Pictured above: Ez Cukor, Harvard Law School Irving R. Kaufman Fellow, who will implement the new Transgender Employment Law Project at NYLAG.

The New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) has launched a program to help low-income transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) workers combat discrimination and other unlawful practices that represent formidable barriers to earning a living in New York City.

NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project, which currently provides culturally competent representation to low-income LGBT clients, will draw on the employment law expertise of NYLAG’s Justice at Work Project (JWP), bridging two existing areas of NYLAG’s work and expanding its ability to help LGBT clients across a broader spectrum. Elizabeth “Ez” Cukor, Harvard Law School Class of 2012, was awarded a Harvard Law School Irving R. Kaufman Fellowship for Public Service to develop the project with NYLAG.

“It is outrageous that today, in New York City, transgender people continue to experience discrimination in the workplace, and with this new program NYLAG is putting employers on notice that this behavior is illegal and will not be tolerated,” said NYLAG President, Yisroel Schulman. “We will address the problems of poverty and discrimination within the transgender community through direct legal representation of transgender workers by bringing together the expertise of two of our most effective legal services programs. Our LGBT Law Project attorneys will provide culturally competent representation for our transgender clients, while the Justice at Work Project attorneys will bring their expertise in employment law. And, we are thrilled to welcome Ez Cukor to NYLAG and partner with her in this effort.”

In a recent survey of transgender workers, half of all respondents had never been offered a job while living openly as transgender and nearly 60% had experienced employment discrimination. A large nationwide study yielded similar results: almost 80% of TGNC respondents reported experiencing discrimination on the job. A staggering 47% of respondents had been fired, denied promotion, or not hired because of their gender identity. Moreover, TGNC people are nearly four times more likely to be living in dire poverty than the general population.

NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project offers free direct legal assistance to low-income LGBT community members. The Project offers assistance with matters that involve family law, second-parent adoptions, orders of protection, legal name changes, housing discrimination, wills and advanced directives among other areas. This work is made possible by a generous grant from the Orrick Community Responsibility Program. For more information go to www.nylag.org/lgbt or call 212-613-5000 x 5107.

NYLAG’s Justice at Work Project provides advice, consultations, and legal representation to low-wage workers on issues related to employment. JWP assists workers seeking to enforce their rights in the workplace, particularly in the areas of wage violations, unemployment insurance appeals, employment discrimination, and the Family and Medical Leave Act.

The New York Legal Assistance Group has joined a national coalition of bar associations, civil rights groups and legal service organizations as co-signatories in an amicus brief supporting Edith Windsor in the U.S. Supreme Court case, United States v. Windsor. The coalition argues that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional as it excludes legally married same-sex couples from the federal rights, benefits, and burdens that are guaranteed to other married couples and should therefore be struck down.

“The Supreme Court should accord a higher level of scrutiny in cases that involve a person’s sexual orientation. Gays and lesbians have historically experienced discriminatory treatment based on their sexual orientation. DOMA should be found unconstitutional because it allows the federal government to treat married same-sex couples as if they are legal strangers and not family, and that is simply wrong,” said Yisroel Schulman, NYLAG’s President and Attorney-in-Charge.

NYLAG represents low-income gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) New Yorkers who have firsthand experience with the discrimination and pain that DOMA has caused, including:

Denial of Family Medical Leave

Because of DOMA, the federal government does not recognize valid state marriages and since the Family Medical Leave Act is a federal law, it does not provide same-sex couples with the protection that other married couples are guaranteed, such as taking time off work to care for an ill spouse.

Loss of one’s home when a spouse dies

Because of DOMA, if the spouse from a same-sex marriage dies, the federal government requires the surviving spouse to pay an estate tax, often forcing the survivor to sell her or his home, the only asset the couple may have owned. An opposite-sex married couple would be granted a ”˜marital deduction’ which would not require payment of the estate tax, and would allow the living spouse to keep their home.

Denial of immigration rights

Because of DOMA, a foreign-born, same-sex spouse of an American cannot obtain a green card. The same-sex couple is denied the immigration rights afforded to other similarly situated bi-national couples because the federal government does not recognize their marriage. These couples are forced to either move out of the US together or to stay in the country without benefit of legal status. 

The Siri-Princz family after they completed their second parent adoption.

In a victory for same-sex couples, the Queens Family Court has changed a long standing policy that required both parents to petition for adoption in all second parent adoptions. This unfair practice meant that a biological parent was literally required to adopt her own child. Now, thanks to NYLAG’s advocacy, only the parent without the biological relationship to the child will be required to petition the court for the adoption.

The policy change comes as NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project completes its first second parent adoption in Queens County, making the Siri-Princz family whole in the eyes of the law. Though she gave birth to the couple’s son Kayden, Segal Siri-Princz was asked to complete the same second parent adoption documents as her wife, Or, so that Or could legally adopt Kayden. This included being fingerprinted, listing all residences in the past 20 years, and passing a background check. NYLAG attorney Amira Samuel successfully argued that this requirement places an unfair and unnecessary burden on legal parents who are forced to petition for adoption of their own child. As a result, a new policy has been put in place that will require only the non-biological parent to complete the arduous second parent adoption process.

Supported in part by the Skadden Foundation, NYLAG’s second parent adoption initiative is a groundbreaking new project that is addressing the growing need among New York’s LGBT community for assistance with issues related to their legal rights as parents. According to the Movement Advancement Project (MAP), there are 645,317 LGBT persons living in New York State, and an estimated 21% of same-sex couples in New York are raising children. Custody, visitation and other complications related to child rearing can arise if a same-sex couple separates, moves to a state where their marriage is not recognized, or if the biological parent dies. Second parent adoption gives non-biological parents important parental rights – from picking a child up from school to making medical decisions in cases where they might otherwise be deemed “legal strangers.”

Click on the photo to watch Jen and Katherine’s baby Edie, in the campaign’s video.

NYLAG is also working to remove another major barrier to adoption: cost.  After spending $3,000 to adopt their own daughter, Jen Abrams and Katherine Pradt wondered what happened to low-income LGBT people who cannot afford to pay for second parent adoptions.  While searching for answers, they found the LGBT Law Project at NYLAG, which provides these services – and many others – at no cost to financially qualified LGBT community members. Jen and Katherine responded by launching an online fundraising campaign and enlisted their baby, Edie, to give her own must-see video endorsement. All funds raised support NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project to help low-income same-sex families legally adopt their children, ensuring that the child’s relationship to both parents is protected. The 30-day online fundraiser successfully raised over $6,000. Donations can now be made through NYLAG’s website by clicking here.

The New York Legal Assistance Group’s LGBT Law Project and the LGBT Bar Association Foundation of Greater New York (LeGaL Foundation) have been awarded a $9,000 grant from the Stonewall Community Foundation in support of the organizations’ LGBT Life Planning Clinic. The grant, already being used to support expansion of the clinic, was among those awarded specifically to community organizations working in collaboration on a new or existing project.

“We’re so pleased to receive this support,” said Virginia Goggin, Coordinating Attorney of NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project. “The grant not only enhances our ability to serve the community but also further strengthens our organizations’ collaboration.”

The LGBT Life Planning Clinic assists community members of modest means with the preparation of long-term life planning documents, including health care proxies, living wills, wills, and powers of attorney. As a result of the grant award, the clinic is now held regularly each Tuesday night at The Center alongside the LeGaL Foundation’s existing legal clinic; additionally, a law student fellow has been hired for the project.

“We’re thrilled to see a service that began as a pilot project receive the support needed to expand,” said LeGaL’s executive director, Brad Snyder. “We’re looking forward to reaching more community members throughout New York City.”

The clinic was created in response to the increasing need for life planning documents, which are vital to ensuring the greatest protections possible for the LGBT community in the face of continuing inequality under the law and ever-changing legal developments.

The law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, a generous supporter of both organizations, will host a May 20^th CLE for attorneys interested in volunteering for the project (details at www.le-gal.org).

Attorneys interested in volunteering for the clinic should e-mail info@le-gal.org.

Inquiries from individuals in need of assistance should e-mail lgbtlaw@nylag.org.

On November 6, 2013, NYLAG testified before the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (DHPD), commenting on proposed changes to the Mitchell-Lama program rules.  The Mitchell-Lama program provides affordable housing to moderate- and middle-income New York City families.

The proposed new rules would deny succession rights to family members not related by blood or marriage, and allow succession only upon the death or relocation of the tenant to a long term care facility – a dramatic departure from the past rules, which would limit those who can qualify for succession.

The DHPD proposed restrictions on succession based on marital status infringe on the rights of all couples, but especially harm unmarried low-income same-sex partners. Despite the fact that same-sex marriage is recognized both federally and by the State of New York, just as with opposite-sex couples, not every same-sex couple chooses to marry. Older LGBT people in particular may not want to out themselves by such a public act, out of consideration for the feelings of family members, or concerns about implications for their careers, or other aspects of their lives. NYLAG’s testimony gives several examples of LGBT clients who would have lost their homes without DHPD succession rights in their current form. Read the full testimony here.

NYLAG’s testimony states that the proposed changes are “contrary to the Mitchell-Lama program’s purpose to address the “seriously inadequate” supply of affordable housing.” The program operates more than 44,600 units citywide. The proposed policy changes would potentially affect thousands of New Yorkers, including a disproportionate number of LGBT families, since they are more likely to be poor than their straight counterparts, and thus more likely to qualify for and live in Mitchell-Lama housing.

The New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) is pleased to announce that Anya Mukarji-Connolly has joined the organization as Supervising Attorney of NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project. The LGBT Law Project provides direct legal services to low-income lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community members throughout New York City. The Project is unique in its ability to provide comprehensive legal services to its clients, while expanding the pool of culturally competent lawyers addressing the legal needs of the LGBT community.

“We are thrilled to welcome Anya to NYLAG and to our LGBT Law Project, which over the past five years has made tremendous strides in filling a gap in the provision of legal services for low-income members of LGBT communities,” said NYLAG President and Attorney-in-Charge Yisroel Schulman. “Anya brings a rich background, depth of expertise, and incredible passion and energy to this critically important work. Under her leadership we look forward to making even more progress in the next five years to address a growing need among LGBT clients for free legal services to overcome discriminatory barriers to self-sufficiency, and to provide the direct individual services necessary to access relief.”

Before joining NYLAG, Ms. Mukarji-Connolly worked as a staff attorney at Brooklyn Defender Services in the Family Defense Practice, helping to reunite parents involved in the child welfare system with their children. Prior to that, she was the Director of the Peter Cicchino Youth Project at the Urban Justice Center, providing legal services and systemic advocacy for homeless and at-risk LGBTQ youth and young adults. As an Equal Justice Works Fellow, she developed and coordinated an initiative to address the needs of LGBTQ youth experiencing homophobia, transphobia, and violence in their families, and worked to prevent youth from entering the foster care system. Ms. Mukarji-Connolly received her law degree from the City University of New York School of Law in 2002.

Ms. Mukarji-Connolly joins an LGBT Law Project that has grown exponentially since its inception in 2008, thanks to a growing roster of talented staff members, including: Elizabeth “Ez” Cukor, a recent Harvard Law School graduate specializing in Employment Law, focusing on the transgender population; Ashe McGovern, an Equal Justice Works Fellow specializing in Elder Law; and Lorenzo Van Ness, a paralegal who supports attorneys in providing consultation, advocacy and representation of LGBT New Yorkers on a variety of legal issues. In September 2014, the team will expand its resources even further when Eugene Chen, a CUNY Law School graduate and former NYLAG intern, begins an Equal Justice Works Fellowship to focus on Housing Law. Kim Susser, Director of NYLAG’s Family Law Unit, oversees the LGBT Law Project.

NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project was established to help low-income LGBT individuals access legal resources and services in order to break down the complex barriers to justice they face, and to address the shortage of experienced, culturally competent lawyers available to provide free services on a wide range of legal issues. NYLAG was a pioneer in developing a coordinated, cross-disciplinary approach that leverages the resources of community-based organizations, private law firms, law schools, and attorneys from other NYLAG divisions with specific expertise in matters including housing, family law, immigration, elder law, and life planning.

The LGBT Law Project works with other organizations and elected officials to conduct advocacy, outreach, and community education, and offer legal services, and provides trainings to mainstream agencies and professionals serving LGBT communities.

The LGBT Law Project is generously supported by Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP; The Calamus Foundation; and Equal Justice Works.

LGBTQ people are far more likely than their non-LGBTQ peers to live in poverty.  As a result, they are more likely to lack access to health insurance and adequate healthcare. This disparity is particularly stark for communities of color, transgender and gender non-conforming communities, and aging communities.  Even those community members who are able to access care often experience significant barriers to comprehensive treatment because of harassment, legal restrictions on gender affirming care, an inability to obtain gender appropriate identity documents, and an inability to find and maintain safe and affordable housing.  These social and legal stressors contribute to the documented fact that LGBTQ communities suffer worse health outcomes overall.

To help address these issues, NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project offers free legal services to low-income people in several areas including accessing healthcare and public benefits.  Using NYLAG’s holistic service model, the LGBT Law Project seeks to address health issues in tandem with other matters, such as access to safe housing, stable employment, proper identification, and family relationship recognition all of which contribute to a person’s health and well-being.

In September, NYLAG welcomed Equal Justice Works Fellow Ashe McGovern to launch the Health & Economic Justice Initiative, which expanded the agency’s existing work in access to healthcare for low-income LGBTQ communities, particularly aging, transgender, and gender non-conforming communities””given their higher levels of poverty compared to LGBTQ communities overall.  During LGBTQ Health Month, the LGBT Law Project remains committed to helping clients assert their rights in accessing healthcare and in turn, creating a reduction in LGBTQ health disparities.  Specifically, the LGBT Law Project offers free legal advice and counsel in the following areas:

• Accessing Medicaid, Medicare and Public Assistance: including representation at hearings when benefits have been wrongfully terminated or access has been restricted as a result of harassment due to a person’s LGBTQ identity.
• Ensuring Safe and Affirming Access to Hospital and Medical Care: including advocacy with hospitals who fail to provide LGBTQ-competent healthcare or gender affirming treatment.
• Creating Vital Life Planning Documents: including health care proxies, wills, power of attorney and other advanced directives.

NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project staffs legal clinics across New York City, offering free educational workshops on health related matters for the LGBTQ community, and working with community centers and groups in order to serve clients within their own neighborhoods.

If you are a low-income LGBTQ person with a health or public benefits related legal issue, please call the Project’s intake line at (212) 613-5000 ext. 5107.

With fall comes the arrival at NYLAG of 19 young lawyers intent on closing the justice gap by implementing innovative and collaborative law projects that they themselves designed. They join NYLAG thanks to a proliferation of public interest fellowships established by law schools and social justice organizations, sponsored by private law firms and foundations.

Fellowships enable service providers to reach more people who otherwise would not be able to receive legal counsel, and provide recent law school graduates with an opportunity to grow as lawyers and deepen their commitment to public interest work.

“It is a pleasure to welcome this year’s fellows – who are as usual an amazing group of young lawyers. Their projects are timely and innovative, and as diverse as NYLAG itself,” said Yisroel Schulman, NYLAG’s President and Attorney-in-Charge. “Many are former NYLAG interns returning to make a new contribution and hone their growing legal skills. NYLAG and our clients will be the beneficiaries of their creativity, passion and commitment.”

Becoming a fellow
The fellowship application process is rigorous and highly selective. Recent applicants must identify unmet needs among a vulnerable population and, in partnership with a legal services organization, develop a detailed project plan that includes measurable goals, a timeline, and the additional resources (such as the involvement of community groups or the support of pro bono attorneys) necessary to achieve success. Fellowships are generally for a one- or two-year period.

Among the new class of NYLAG fellows are graduates from some of the country’s most prestigious law schools. They will be assisting a number of particularly vulnerable populations, including elderly or disabled people being denied health benefits, immigrant youths escaping violence, older immigrants unfairly saddled with student loan debt, veterans struggling with mental illnesses, and LGBTQ people and families of color facing housing discrimination.

Meet the fellows
Here is a look at a few of the new fellows and their projects:

Eugene Chen, Equal Justice Works Fellow, sponsored by the Paul Rapoport Foundation

Eugene Chen, Equal Justice Works Fellow, sponsored by the Paul Rapoport Foundation, will provide legal advocacy and education to low-income LGBTQ people from communities of color who are at risk of eviction, or who have been denied housing because of discrimination. Chen, a graduate of CUNY Law, plans to focus his work on clients who are aging, transgender or affected by HIV/AIDS.

Chen’s own background powerfully informs his work: “Growing up gay in Manhattan’s Chinatown in the 1980’s I sometimes forgot I lived in New York City – structural racism in America along with strong cultural traditions left few places where lesbian, gay and transgender Asian-Americans could be themselves. This project emerged from my experiences growing up under economic and social conditions that are common to many LGBT people from low-income communities of color.”

Yale Law School graduate Jason Glick has been awarded a Skadden Fellowship to create a project that will expand NYLAG’s ability to provide systemic relief from student loan debts for former students of unscrupulous for-profit schools. Glick plans to focus the majority of his time on direct representation of clients and use his Spanish and Mandarin skills to conduct community outreach and build awareness among immigrants of the risks of attending certain for-profit schools. Glick attributes his commitment to public interest to his experience as a law student representing clients in a civil rights case arising out of immigration raids.

“Throughout the case, the plaintiffs demonstrated the power of a marginalized but committed group to obtain redress for injustice, and to effect policy changes that reverberated outside their individual struggles,” said Glick. “I carry with me a sense of inspiration from those clients and their example of how a community can resist injustice.”

Keith Hoffmann‘s father was a Vietnam veteran and a psychiatrist who treated veterans for PTSD and other mental trauma. “I grew up hearing stories of dad’s veteran patients. He always emphasized the long-lasting effects of war on society. In 2001, my father died of cancer caused by exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. Later, as a result of my dad’s sacrifice, the VA awarded me survivor’s benefits, which I used to pay for college and law school.”

Hoffmann, an Equal Justice Fellow and graduate of Fordham Law, will work in Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) hospitals to help qualified veterans obtain VA benefits and other legal services. His project, the first attorney-staffed, hospital-based program to assist veterans with VA benefits claims, will fill a huge void for seriously disabled veterans disadvantaged by poverty and the lack of legal assistance. Approximately 220,000 veterans live in New York City, and about a quarter of them receive their care in VA medical centers. NYC veterans face one of the longest VA benefits waits in the nation, while those whose claims are erroneously denied must often wait over three years for justice.

Lindsey Kaley, Harvard Public Service Venture Fellow

Harvard Law graduate Lindsey Kaley first became interested in working with immigrants in 2007 while studying abroad in Nicaragua, where she was struck by how many people she met whose friends and relatives had fled to the US to escape economic restrictions and political repression. Once she returned, she began volunteering with various immigrant services organizations, where she saw firsthand the power and privileges citizenship bestows.

“Through my involvement in the community I became committed to the fight for immigration reform. I came to law school to learn how to utilize the law as a tool in that struggle, particularly to address the needs of undocumented immigrants, who have the least social and legal protection.”

As a Harvard Public Service Venture Fund Fellow, Kaley will screen young immigrants who may be eligible for permanent forms of legal status, such as Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). The qualifications for SIJS are stringent, as applicants must demonstrate that they were abused, neglected, or abandoned by at least one of their parents. These cases are extremely time-consuming and complex, as they require representation in both family and immigration court. For that reason Kaley will be working jointly with NYLAG’s Family & Matrimonial Law and Immigrant Protection attorneys to get their expert guidance and support.

Peter Travitsky, Borchard Fellow

As a social worker for five years, Peter Travitsky helped poor and low-income seniors secure the services and support that would enable them to maintain economic independence and remain in their own homes. That experience and his time as a home attendant for an 80-year-old man with dementia motivated him to become a lawyer and advocate for a better quality of life for all seniors. In May 2014 he graduated from Brooklyn Law School, and has now been awarded a Borchard Fellowship to focus on some of New York’s most vulnerable healthcare consumers: chronically ill seniors and people with disabilities who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. His project comes at a pivotal time, as New York reshapes its financing and delivery of long-term care services in response to the Affordable Care Act.

“NYLAG’s expertise in traversing the long-term care system is critical to the well-being of the very people I went to law school to serve””an often fragile population that is unable to advocate for itself,” said Travitsky. “With the State’s recent experiments in privatizing long-term care, we have a brief window of opportunity to set the ground rules for years to come.”

Complete list of NYLAG’s new fellows
Eugene Chen, Equal Justice Works Fellow, LGBTQ Housing Law
Wendy Cheng, NYU Law Women’s Rights Fellow, Matrimonial & Family Law
Janice Chua, Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow, Immigrant Protection
Eliyahu Freedman, Avodah Fellow, General Legal Services
Sara Friedman, Brooklyn Law School Fellow, Matrimonial & Family Law
Jason Glick, Skadden Fellow, Special Litigation
Danielle Greene, Avodah Fellow, Matrimonial & Family Law
Keith Hoffmann, Equal Justice Works Fellow, Legal Health
Alexander Hu, Brooklyn Law School Fellow, Immigrant Protection
Lindsey Kaley, Harvard Public Service Venture Fellow, Immigrant Protection/Matrimonial & Family Law
Joey Morris, Avodah Fellow, Immigrant Protection
Wilson Osario, Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow, Matrimonial & Family Law
Lauren Price, Brooklyn Law School Fellow, Special Litigation
Carolyn Sharzer, Avodah Fellow, Evelyn Frank Legal Resources
Monroe Solomon, Vanderbilt Law School Fellow, Matrimonial & Family Law
Peter Travitsky, Borchard Fellow, Evelyn Frank Legal Resources
Marta Vandenberg, Notre Dame Law School Fellow, Foreclosure Prevention
Allison Yurcik, Columbia Law School Fellow, Matrimonial & Family Law

In October, the New York State Appellate Term, First Department, overturned a Civil Court judge and granted an undocumented transgender woman’s name change request. This is the first appellate decision clarifying that undocumented immigrants who are New York residents can get a court ordered name change.

The plaintiff was represented by Ez Cukor, staff attorney with NYLAG’s LGBTQ Project, which handles over fifty legal name changes each year on behalf of low-income LGBTQ and immigrant clients, and survivors of domestic violence. The New York Civil Liberties Union submitted an amicus brief in the appeal.

“After this decision, undocumented New Yorkers, like the plaintiff in this case, are able to change their names in court, and use their new legal names on official documents,” said Cukor. “The decision is especially timely given New York’s new municipal identification card, scheduled to launch early next year. Now more New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status and gender identity, will have access to accurate identification.”

The plaintiff in the case has been living openly as a woman – and using a feminine name – for twenty years. Her birth certificate, however, carried a distinctly masculine name. Like so many transgender individuals, whether they are citizens or not, this meant that she would have great difficulty in obtaining ID documents that reflect who she is.

Presenting a mismatched ID when applying for a job, receiving medical care and other services, finding housing, and gaining access to buildings can mean instant harassment, humiliation, or violence. At the very least, having identification with the wrong name puts many people in situations where they have to explain their gender history when it is neither relevant nor safe. Forty percent of respondents in a National Transgender Discrimination Survey reported being harassed as a result of presenting ID that did not match their gender identity and expression. Fifteen percent reported being asked to leave the place where they had presented the ID. Three percent reported being physically assaulted.

The appellate ruling demonstrates that while legal name change applications may appear straightforward, for many vulnerable communities including immigrants, the process can be complicated. And the implications of the decision extend beyond the transgender immigrant community. Naming conventions are not globally uniform. As a result, immigrants in the United States often have identification documents that list a name other than their preferred name or that contain naming inconsistencies, such as those due to multiple surnames, order inversion, and translation from one alphabet to another.

All New Yorkers can now sign up for id NYC.

In July, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed into law an identification system that will make it possible for all New Yorkers to gain access to municipal services, interact safely with law enforcement and government agencies, enjoy world-class cultural institutions, and participate more openly in the life of their city.

The ID program will offer a photo identification card for residents of New York City who are at least 14 years old, regardless of immigration status, homeless status, or gender identity. When it is launched, in January 2015, the city’s ID system will be the largest such program in the US.

“We applaud the City Council and the Mayor’s office for taking this critical step toward a more inclusive and vibrant city. The lack of a valid ID card has made life difficult for so many of the clients we serve, in particular immigrants and transgender or gender non-conforming people, who struggle to navigate City services, interact with government officials and law enforcement, seek employment, and gain access to most buildings, both public and private,” said NYLAG President and Attorney-in-Charge Yisroel Schulman. “If executed well, the ID system will enhance lives, and protect vulnerable and marginalized New Yorkers.”

Because of their lack of legal status, undocumented immigrants with no means of identifying themselves are often too afraid to seek municipal services and benefits to which they are entitled, and avoid seeking assistance from the police when a crime has occurred. The lack of access to accurate and valid ID cards is also a pressing issue for transgender and gender non-conforming individuals.

Not having a valid ID that accurately reflect a person’s self-identified gender is one of the greatest factors in causing discrimination and often leads to humiliation, harassment and violence against transgender and gender non-conforming people.

According to City officials, the widespread adoption of the new ID cards by a broad range of residents will be a priority in order to guarantee that the ID card does not stigmatize and further marginalize those who carry it. To encourage enrollment, the Mayor announced in September that all ID card holders will have access to one-year free memberships at over 30 museums, performing arts centers and zoos in all five boroughs, as well as discounts at a range of shops and restaurants throughout the city.  Click here for more information.

L to R: Supervising Attorney of the LGBTQ Law Project Anya Mukarji-Connolly, Advisory Board members Christopher Riano, Deborah Berkman, David O’Connell and Erik Graham-Smith

NYLAG’s LGBTQ Law Project celebrated the arrival of spring and recognized the support of its Advisory Board, LGBTQ organizations and law firm partners at a reception on May 14. The event was hosted by Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, a strong supporter of NYLAG.

Click here to view photos from the event.

Anya Mukarji-Connolly, Supervising Attorney of the LGBTQ Law Project, welcomed guests, recognized the contributions of the Project’s staff, and thanked the Advisory Board members for their support. The board was established in 2014 to provide guidance and propose initiatives that can further the impact of the LGBTQ Law Project.

“I want to recognize and thank our Advisory Board – each of you has made personal and professional commitments to our work – spending many an early morning meeting with us to help grow this vital program,” said Mukarji-Connolly. “Together with our staff, community and law firm partners and elected officials, we have fought to protect our client’s relationships with their children, helped LGBTQ survivors of intimate partner violence access the courts and seek orders of protection, and ensured that transgender and gender non-conforming immigrants can access the courts to seek a legal name change.”

Christopher Riano, Partner, Drohan Lee LLP.

“It is so heartwarming to see so many old friends and new faces here tonight in support of the critical mission of NYLAG’s LGBTQ Law Project,” said Christopher Riano. “On behalf of the Advisory Board, thank you so much for supporting our work, which provides for our ability to offer direct civil legal assistance to those LGBTQ New Yorkers among us who are most in need.”

The LGBTQ Law Project was founded in 2008 at a time when there were few legal service programs addressing the wide range of civil legal needs among low-income LGBTQ communities in New York City. Many programs focused on a particular segment of the community or a particular issue. NYLAG saw the need for a comprehensive legal service program for low-income or no-income LGBTQ New Yorkers, regardless of age or immigration status.

In 2014, the LGBTQ Project’s legal staff and volunteers served over 350 people in over 450 legal matters including family law, employment, housing, public benefits, shelter access, name changes, gender marker changes, and life planning. NYLAG also works in coalition with community organizations, the Mayor’s office and the City Council to expand the rights of LGBTQ New Yorkers. In the last year, the City has made great strides: a gender affirming Municipal ID program was launched; State and City birth certificate policies were reformed; a trans-exclusion Medicaid policy was revoked, and stronger policies were introduced to enable New York City’s Commission on Human Rights and Human Resource Administration to better serve LGBTQ communities.

The Project staffs six monthly legal clinics in Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island, and works with LGBTQ organizations and City Council members in Queens and Brooklyn to provide Know Yours Rights trainings and legal clinics. NYLAG partners with LGBTQ social service providers across the city, including Destination Tomorrow, Center Families, NY LGBT Community Center, Rainbow Heights Club, LeGaL, Trinity Place Shelter, and SAGE (Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders).

According to Daniel Brito, Art Coordinator and Guest Speaker Coordinator with Rainbow Heights Club, who attended the event, “Our consumers come to our program seeking culturally competent recovery support services in a safe and affirming environment. We are thrilled to be able to refer our consumers who suffer from mental illness to high quality legal services from a program that shares a similar mission and commitment to vulnerable LGBTQ communities. We are proud of our partnership with NYLAG’S LGBTQ Law Project.”

LGBTQ Law Project Advisory Board
Paris Baldacci, Cardozo School of Law
Deborah Berkman, New York Legal Assistance Group
Terry Boggis, Formerly of the NYC LGBT Community Center, Stonewall Foundation and Queers for Economic Justice
Brian Esser, Law Office of Brian Esser
Erik Graham-Smith, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP
Erica Kagan, The Kurland Group
Stephen Lessard Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
David O’Connell, Ewenstein Young & Roth LLP
Christopher Riano, Drohan Lee LLP
Fuaud Yasin, Conde Nast

A group of summer interns attend a brown bag lunch during their first week at NYLAG.

In early August, NYLAG’s summer interns met for Happy Hour at the storied Fraunces Tavern in lower Manhattan to enjoy one last gathering before saying good bye and heading back to law school.

The class of 2015 interns worked alongside staff members in a number of practice areas, assisting the elderly, veterans, members of the LGBTQ community, domestic violence survivors, unrepresented consumer debt defendants, immigrants and others with a range of legal services. In addition to handling substantive work, interns had the opportunity to participate in a comprehensive training program covering the civil legal services practice in New York City. There was also a series of brown bag lunches on fellowships, clerkships and other topics of interest, and social events in and around NYLAG’s office in the financial district.

NYLAG first recruited summer interns in 1996. Twenty years later, the program has grown and flourished, providing much-needed support within units and projects across the agency, while giving students hands-on legal and courtroom experience and the chance to work with seasoned public interest attorneys. Each student commits to working 10 weeks, generally from late May to early August. There were 66 summer interns in the 2015 class (primarily rising second- and third-year law school students), chosen from of a field of 750 applicants.

Here are just a few of this year’s interns, sharing thoughts about their summer at NYLAG:

Shreya Patel, Michigan State University College of Law

“I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been a part of the Evelyn Frank Legal Resources Program at NYLAG. My favorite experience was being given the chance to work with clients directly. Law school can only teach you so much in theory; it was really the practical experience that I gained during my time here that was invaluable to me. My supervisor, Marie Vaz, not only coached me through my interactions with my clients, but she also would take the time to give me a comprehensive background of the law for every assignment she gave me. I have learned more about Medicaid and Medicare law interning under her than I could have possibly learned from any course.”

Sam Stanton, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

“While as a queer person of color I’ve always had to fight for my education (and continue to do so), I know that I have tremendous privilege as a law student. I also know how extremely important it is to see people that look like you in agencies and in positions of power. I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to use my privilege to help our clients work against institutionalized racism, heterosexism and transphobia. I also feel very fortunate to have had the guidance and mentorship of the tireless advocates in the LGBTQ Law Project, who remain critical of legal establishments that continually marginalize queer and transgender people of color.”

Rita Vega, New York Law School

“My summer at NYLAG has really bolstered my decision to go into go into public interest. All the attorneys in the Storm Response Unit are true advocates who fight tirelessly for the rights of their clients. Further, everyone here has fostered a great learning environment where I am encouraged to interact with multiple attorneys, attend educational seminars, and engage in legal outreach. One of my favorite moments was going to the Rent Guidelines Board hearing on rent stabilization with Sunny Noh, Kamilla Sjodin, and my fellow intern Rachel Russell and hearing passionate speeches from the public about the widespread need for affordable housing. It was great to see New Yorkers mobilize in order to effectuate change – and NYLAG’s support of their efforts.”

Brian Highsmith, Yale Law School

“Over the course of my internship with the Special Litigation Unit, I have gotten the opportunity to apply a longstanding passion for economic justice to my interest in using impact litigation and other innovative legal strategies as a tool to advance important policy goals. For example, I researched legal issues in a class action lawsuit we initiated against a group of debt buyers who had wrongfully obtained and enforced millions of dollars of default judgments against low-income New York families. Without legal representation, our named plaintiffs faced long odds in going up against these sophisticated, repeat-player debt buyers. But with help of the dedicated and deeply-caring lawyers at NYLAG, our clients were able to bring a suit on behalf of the entire class of individuals who had been wronged ”” and work to secure relief not only for themselves, but also for tens of thousands of other low-income New Yorkers.”

Jennifer Cao, Queen’s University Faculty of Law

“My time with LegalHealth at NYLAG this summer has been one of both professional and personal development. I had the opportunity to work under four incredible attorneys in matters involving veterans and undocumented persons. I wrote numerous memos regarding housing, immigration, wills, social benefits and family law. I especially enjoyed meeting with clients and seeing our work make a true and positive difference during a hard time in someone’s life. At NYLAG, I witnessed firsthand the human side of the legal profession and the immense dedication, care and passion each attorney brought to work every day. It has been an inspiring and invaluable journey and one that I will always hold in my heart.”

Jenna Cohn, Touro Law Center

“In the Elder Law Practice, many of our clients are in poor health and have to face inevitable end of life decisions. Understandably, clients may be hesitant or fearful to discuss their end of life wishes, which are required to draft advance directives. For some, it is a difficult process to acknowledge that the end of their life may be near. I found that through multiple conversations and a display of compassion and respect for the aging client, I was able to ensure a higher level of comfort and trust. I found it very rewarding and humbling to know that I was able to provide integral legal services to vulnerable individuals who deserve to have their end of life wishes and assets sufficiently protected.”

Heather L. Betz has been named Supervising Attorney of NYLAG’s LGBTQ Law Project, which provides direct legal services to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community throughout New York City. Since its inception in 2008, the project has helped low-income LGBTQ individuals break down the complex barriers to justice they face, address the shortage of experienced, culturally competent lawyers available to provide free services on a range of legal issues, and advocate for changes to our legal system that will expand the rights of LGBTQ New Yorkers.

“We are so pleased to have an attorney of Heather’s caliber and diverse experience join NYLAG to lead our LGBTQ Law Project, which has made great strides in recognizing and helping to address the unmet needs of New York’s LGBTQ community,” said NYLAG President and Attorney-in-Charge Beth Goldman. “Under her leadership, supported by the amazing LGBTQ Law Project staff, we look forward to continuing to provide critical legal services   Ì¶ and a voice ̶ for uniquely vulnerable New Yorkers.”

Betz has spent several years representing members of the LGBTQ community.  She comes to NYLAG after serving as Project Director of the DREAMER Pro Bono Project at Cornell Law School, where she oversaw the work of a team of volunteer attorneys and law students representing undocumented young people applying for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which provides temporary relief to immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as young children. Earlier, she was Senior Staff Attorney at the HIV Law Project and Director/Echoing Green Fellow at the Lesbian and Gay Refugee Advocacy Project. Betz received her law degree from the City University of New York School of Law in 2001.

NYLAG’s LGBTQ Law Project provides assistance in a wide range of legal matters including housing, employment discrimination, family law, immigration, elder law, and life planning. In 2015, the project served hundreds of people with legal matters ranging from securing orders of protection on behalf of survivors of intimate partner violence to ensuring that transgender and gender non-conforming immigrants, regardless of illegal status, can access the courts to seek a legal name change.

The project leverages the resources of community organizations, private law firms, law schools, and the expertise of attorneys from other NYLAG divisions. Its attorneys staff legal clinics across New York City, and work with other organizations and elected officials to conduct outreach to offer legal services, and provide trainings to agencies and professionals serving LGBTQ communities.

The LGBTQ Law Project plays an active role in advocating for the rights of LGBTQ individuals. In the last several years, in coalition with community organizations, the Mayor’s office and the New York City Council, NYLAG has supported the creation of a gender-affirming Municipal ID, reforms to State and City birth certificate and Medicaid policies, and stronger policies to enable New York City’s Commission on Human Rights and Human Resource Administration to better serve LGBTQ communities.

The work of the LGBTQ Law Project is generously supported by The Orrick Community Responsibility Program.

Panelists, from left to right: Michael Wishnie; Kristen Rouse; Sasha Buchert; Sue Fulton; Shannon Price Minter.

“What are some of the biggest challenges for LGBTQ service members and veterans right now?” That was the question of the evening on January 18 when NYLAG hosted Serving While LGBTQ, a panel discussion on issues affecting LGBTQ servicemembers and veterans.

Bringing together a distinguished panel of experts, the discussion zeroed in on the unique challenges in the ongoing fight for LGBTQ rights in the military. Panelists included Sasha Buchert, Staff Attorney at Lambda Legal; Shannon Price Minter, Legal Director at the National Center for Lesbian Rights; Sue Fulton, Executive Director of Women in the Service Change Initiative and former President of SPART*A; Kristen Rouse, Founding Director at NYC Veterans Alliance; and moderator Michael Wishnie, the William O. Douglas Clinical Professor of Law at Yale Law School. The event was co-sponsored by the American Constitution Society and Debevoise & Plimpton.

Panelists spoke about the urgency of fighting to ensure that transgender Americans have the right to serve openly in the U.S. military and to receive the same medical benefits as all servicemembers.

Fulton, a West Point graduate and veteran, remembered how servicemembers and veterans reacted last July when President Trump tweeted that transgender people were banned from the U.S. military. Like a family, they rallied together and reached out to their transgender comrades, showing solidarity in a time of uncertainty.

Shannon Minter, one of the lead attorneys fighting to stop the administration’s transgender military ban, spoke about recent developments in court. Despite the Department of Justice’s interim policy guidance for processing transgender applicants for military service, issued in December, the case is ongoing. “We’re not out of the woods,” Minter said.

In addition to legal protections, the panelists also talked about the need to dispel myths about the cost and necessity of gender-transition related medications and surgeries. Buchert said that the American Medical Association and most medical experts agree that such treatments are medically necessary. And she cited a 2016 Rand Corporation study that found that the cost of care for transgender servicemembers is a small fraction of the total cost of health care in the military.

“The issue of cost is false. The Rand study found that the government is spending more on Viagra than on all of the care for transgender servicemembers. At the same time medicalizing trans people is wrong. It is unfair to single out a specific population for their medical needs.”

As an LGBTQ veteran, Fulton addressed the need to change harmful attitudes toward gender within the military. “My biggest issue isn’t being gay. It’s being a woman.” She described the military as among the most gendered environments in the U.S., one that fosters a masculine culture that can be damaging to women and non-binary people.

Rouse, who served in the military for 17 years under Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, spoke about the impact that can be made at the local level. Last year, the New York City Veterans Alliance helped advocate for a law to protect veterans and servicemembers from discrimination in housing, employment, and places of public accommodation. The law, which took effect late last year, will provide the strongest local-level protection against discrimination in the nation.

Not everyone is in a position to directly make change happen, but if you’re passionate about LGBTQ rights, the panelists had advice for how you can get involved. “Do what’s in front of you,” said Fulton, who describes herself as a “late in life activist.” If you don’t have time to tackle every issue, pick the issue you care about most and start there. Buchert’s advice was simple: “Call your congress members. Talk about transgender issues. It makes a difference.”

Pictured above: Ez Cukor, Harvard Law School Irving R. Kaufman Fellow, who will implement the new Transgender Employment Law Project at NYLAG.

The New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) has launched a program to help low-income transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) workers combat discrimination and other unlawful practices that represent formidable barriers to earning a living in New York City.

NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project, which currently provides culturally competent representation to low-income LGBT clients, will draw on the employment law expertise of NYLAG’s Justice at Work Project (JWP), bridging two existing areas of NYLAG’s work and expanding its ability to help LGBT clients across a broader spectrum. Elizabeth “Ez” Cukor, Harvard Law School Class of 2012, was awarded a Harvard Law School Irving R. Kaufman Fellowship for Public Service to develop the project with NYLAG.

“It is outrageous that today, in New York City, transgender people continue to experience discrimination in the workplace, and with this new program NYLAG is putting employers on notice that this behavior is illegal and will not be tolerated,” said NYLAG President, Yisroel Schulman. “We will address the problems of poverty and discrimination within the transgender community through direct legal representation of transgender workers by bringing together the expertise of two of our most effective legal services programs. Our LGBT Law Project attorneys will provide culturally competent representation for our transgender clients, while the Justice at Work Project attorneys will bring their expertise in employment law. And, we are thrilled to welcome Ez Cukor to NYLAG and partner with her in this effort.”

In a recent survey of transgender workers, half of all respondents had never been offered a job while living openly as transgender and nearly 60% had experienced employment discrimination. A large nationwide study yielded similar results: almost 80% of TGNC respondents reported experiencing discrimination on the job. A staggering 47% of respondents had been fired, denied promotion, or not hired because of their gender identity. Moreover, TGNC people are nearly four times more likely to be living in dire poverty than the general population.

NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project offers free direct legal assistance to low-income LGBT community members. The Project offers assistance with matters that involve family law, second-parent adoptions, orders of protection, legal name changes, housing discrimination, wills and advanced directives among other areas. This work is made possible by a generous grant from the Orrick Community Responsibility Program. For more information go to www.nylag.org/lgbt or call 212-613-5000 x 5107.

NYLAG’s Justice at Work Project provides advice, consultations, and legal representation to low-wage workers on issues related to employment. JWP assists workers seeking to enforce their rights in the workplace, particularly in the areas of wage violations, unemployment insurance appeals, employment discrimination, and the Family and Medical Leave Act.

The New York Legal Assistance Group has joined a national coalition of bar associations, civil rights groups and legal service organizations as co-signatories in an amicus brief supporting Edith Windsor in the U.S. Supreme Court case, United States v. Windsor. The coalition argues that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional as it excludes legally married same-sex couples from the federal rights, benefits, and burdens that are guaranteed to other married couples and should therefore be struck down.

“The Supreme Court should accord a higher level of scrutiny in cases that involve a person’s sexual orientation. Gays and lesbians have historically experienced discriminatory treatment based on their sexual orientation. DOMA should be found unconstitutional because it allows the federal government to treat married same-sex couples as if they are legal strangers and not family, and that is simply wrong,” said Yisroel Schulman, NYLAG’s President and Attorney-in-Charge.

NYLAG represents low-income gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) New Yorkers who have firsthand experience with the discrimination and pain that DOMA has caused, including:

Denial of Family Medical Leave

Because of DOMA, the federal government does not recognize valid state marriages and since the Family Medical Leave Act is a federal law, it does not provide same-sex couples with the protection that other married couples are guaranteed, such as taking time off work to care for an ill spouse.

Loss of one’s home when a spouse dies

Because of DOMA, if the spouse from a same-sex marriage dies, the federal government requires the surviving spouse to pay an estate tax, often forcing the survivor to sell her or his home, the only asset the couple may have owned. An opposite-sex married couple would be granted a ”˜marital deduction’ which would not require payment of the estate tax, and would allow the living spouse to keep their home.

Denial of immigration rights

Because of DOMA, a foreign-born, same-sex spouse of an American cannot obtain a green card. The same-sex couple is denied the immigration rights afforded to other similarly situated bi-national couples because the federal government does not recognize their marriage. These couples are forced to either move out of the US together or to stay in the country without benefit of legal status. 

The Siri-Princz family after they completed their second parent adoption.

In a victory for same-sex couples, the Queens Family Court has changed a long standing policy that required both parents to petition for adoption in all second parent adoptions. This unfair practice meant that a biological parent was literally required to adopt her own child. Now, thanks to NYLAG’s advocacy, only the parent without the biological relationship to the child will be required to petition the court for the adoption.

The policy change comes as NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project completes its first second parent adoption in Queens County, making the Siri-Princz family whole in the eyes of the law. Though she gave birth to the couple’s son Kayden, Segal Siri-Princz was asked to complete the same second parent adoption documents as her wife, Or, so that Or could legally adopt Kayden. This included being fingerprinted, listing all residences in the past 20 years, and passing a background check. NYLAG attorney Amira Samuel successfully argued that this requirement places an unfair and unnecessary burden on legal parents who are forced to petition for adoption of their own child. As a result, a new policy has been put in place that will require only the non-biological parent to complete the arduous second parent adoption process.

Supported in part by the Skadden Foundation, NYLAG’s second parent adoption initiative is a groundbreaking new project that is addressing the growing need among New York’s LGBT community for assistance with issues related to their legal rights as parents. According to the Movement Advancement Project (MAP), there are 645,317 LGBT persons living in New York State, and an estimated 21% of same-sex couples in New York are raising children. Custody, visitation and other complications related to child rearing can arise if a same-sex couple separates, moves to a state where their marriage is not recognized, or if the biological parent dies. Second parent adoption gives non-biological parents important parental rights – from picking a child up from school to making medical decisions in cases where they might otherwise be deemed “legal strangers.”

Click on the photo to watch Jen and Katherine’s baby Edie, in the campaign’s video.

NYLAG is also working to remove another major barrier to adoption: cost.  After spending $3,000 to adopt their own daughter, Jen Abrams and Katherine Pradt wondered what happened to low-income LGBT people who cannot afford to pay for second parent adoptions.  While searching for answers, they found the LGBT Law Project at NYLAG, which provides these services – and many others – at no cost to financially qualified LGBT community members. Jen and Katherine responded by launching an online fundraising campaign and enlisted their baby, Edie, to give her own must-see video endorsement. All funds raised support NYLAG’s LGBT Law Project to help low-income same-sex families legally adopt their children, ensuring that the child’s relationship to both parents is protected. The 30-day online fundraiser successfully raised over $6,000. Donations can now be made through NYLAG’s website by clicking here.