The Public Interest Law Center, founded in 1969, is a nonprofit law firm based in Philadelphia. The Public Interest Law Center works primarily in the greater Philadelphia region occasionally taking on issues on a national scale. The Public Interest Law Center's project areas include Education, Voting, Employment,

Environmental justice Environmental justice is a social movement to address the unfair exposure of poor and marginalized communities to harms from hazardous waste, resource extraction, and other land uses.Schlosberg, David. (2007) ''Defining Environmental Justic ...

, Healthcare, Housing and Community Services and Voting.

History

Founded by Edwin D. (Ned) Wolf, The Public Interest Law Center's history dates back to 1969, rooted in the Philadelphia chapter that was one of seven local affiliates of the

Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, or simply the Lawyers' Committee, is a civil rights organization founded in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy. At the time, Alabama Governor George Wallace had vowed to resist cou ...

. In its early years, the Public Interest Law Center's initial mission was to dismantle specific aspects of institutional racism by targeting discriminatory policies and practices.

Project Areas

The Public Interest Law Centers aims to use high-impact legal strategies to both promote and protect the marginalized through project areas including Education, Voting, Employment, Environmental Justice, Healthcare, Housing and Community Services and voting. A full list of The Public Interest Law Center's litigation can be found on the organization's website

Notable former associates

* Gilbert F. Casellas, former board member — Chairman of OMNITRU * Thomas Gilhool, former staff attorney — Former Pennsylvania Secretary of Education * Jordan Konell, former intern — 2015

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

Thaddeus Stevens Awardees

The Public Interest Law Center annually presents the

Thaddeus Stevens Thaddeus Stevens (April 4, 1792August 11, 1868) was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania, one of the leaders of the Radical Republican faction of the Republican Party during the 1860s. A fierce opponent of sla ...

Award to either individuals or organizations whose actions best correspond with its social mission. * 2000: William T. Coleman, Jr * 2010:

Governor Ed Rendell Edward Gene Rendell (; born January 5, 1944) is an American lawyer, prosecutor, politician, and author. He served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2011, as chair of the national Democratic Party, and as the 96th Mayor of Philad ...

; Hon.

Doris Smith-Ribner Doris A. Smith-Ribner (born 1945) is a former judge of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court. Formative years and family Born in 1945, Doris Smith attended the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where she earned ...

; Sec. Donna Cooper * 2011: Jerome Balter * 2012: Dechert LLP * 2013: DLA Piper LLP; Thomas B. Schmidt III * 2014: Pennsylvania State Conference of

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...

Branches; William H. Ewing; Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP * 2015: School Funding Lawsuit Clients; H. Laddie Montague, Jr.

Awards

* 1978: The Delaware Valley Council on Services for the Handicapped's Annual Award for Outstanding Service to the Handicapped Community * 1997: Citizen's Committee on Public Education in Philadelphia's John N. Patterson Award for Excellence in Education * 1997:

The Barristers' Association of Philadelphia The Barristers' Association of Philadelphia, Incorporated is a minority bar association located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which represents African-American attorneys. The association was established in 1950. The Barristers' Association of ...

's Cecil B. Moore Community Service Award * 1999:

National Down Syndrome Congress The National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC) is a national not-for-profit organization that provides individuals, families, and health care providers information and support about Down syndrome, as well as advocating with and on behalf of individu ...

' Education Award * 1999: The Michigan Academy of Pediatrics' Special Recognition Award * 2009: Inglis Award for Continuing Excellence * 2006: Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics' Special Recognition Award * 2012: Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center's Be The Change Award for Extraordinary Work Protecting Pennsylvanians' Right to Vote * 2015: The Barristers' Association of Philadelphia's Martin Luther King, Jr. Award for Outstanding Service to the Community * 2015: NAACP's

Juanita Jackson Mitchell Juanita Elizabeth Jackson Mitchell (January 2, 1913 – July 7, 1992) was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and was the first African-American woman to practice law in Maryland. She was married to Clarence M. Mitchell, Jr., mother of two Maryland S ...

Award

References

External links

Official SiteGrounded in Philly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Public Interest Law Center Law firms based in Philadelphia Organizations established in 1969