The National Jewish Commission on Law and Public Affairs (COLPA) is a voluntary association of

attorney Attorney may refer to: * Lawyer ** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions * Attorney, one who has power of attorney * ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film See also * Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...

s whose purpose is to represent the observant Jewish community on legal, legislative, and public-affairs matters. It was founded by Dr.

Marvin Schick Marvin Schick (July 3, 1934 – April 23, 2020) was a Hunter College and The New School, New School for Social Research political science and constitutional law professor. He was also known for his work in Jewish education.

in 1965, who served as its first president. Successors to Schick include Howard Rhine and ''Sidney Kwestel'' Others who have served in that capacity include

Julius Berman Julius "Julie" Berman (born 1935) is an American attorney and Orthodox rabbi. He is involved in many large Jewish organizations, many of them non-denominational, and has served in key leadership positions. Early life and education Berman was b ...

, Howard J. Zuckerman, and

Allen Rothenberg Allen Rothenberg is the current president of COLPA, the National Jewish Commission on Law and Public Affairs. He was preceded by Dr. Marvin Schick and Julius Berman Julius "Julie" Berman (born 1935) is an American attorney and Orthodox rabbi ...

, its current president. Dennis Rapps is COLPA's Executive Director.

Accomplishments

COLPA has represented, without fee, thousands of individuals and institutions in appearances before Federal and State courts and regulatory agencies throughout the United States and has made presentations before the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

, including by renowned constitutional attorney

Nathan Lewin Nathan Lewin (born January 31, 1936) is an American attorney who has argued many cases before the Supreme Court of the United States. Early life and education Lewin was born in Łódź, Poland. His grandfather, the chief rabbi of Rzeszow, was ...

. Sabbath observance in work situations is among the areas they've given assistance.

References

{{reflist Jewish organizations based in the United States Legal advocacy organizations in the United States