New York Lawyers for the Public Interest

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Inc. is a non-profit civil rights law firm located in New York City, specializing in the areas of disability rights, access to health care and environmental justice. It was founded in 1976 by a group of lawyers from the New York City Bar Association to address legal needs that were not otherwise being met. NYLPI operates a pro bono clearinghouse which matches volunteer lawyers from prestigious law firms and corporate legal departments with community groups and nonprofit organizations in need of legal services. In addition, NYLPI's in-house lawyers and community organizers provide advocacy in the organization's specialty fields. NYLPI's Disability Law Center "protects and promotes the civil rights of people with disabilities", its Environmental Justice and Community Development Project "provides organizing and legal assistance to low-income neighborhoods and communities of color that bear an unfair burden of environmental threats" and its Access to Health Care Program "works to ensure access to quality health care for people in medically underserved communities or facing barriers due to limited English proficiency, racial and ethnic discrimination, and disability."^[1]

NYLPI is associated with the National Campaign to Restore Civil Rights (NCRCR), "a national collaboration of lawyers, academics, students, community activists, and concerned individuals who have joined together in response to recent federal court decisions that are eroding civil rights protections,"^[2] and hosts monthly meetings of the New York City Policing Roundtable (NYCPR), a coalition which seeks to reduce police misconduct in New York City.^[3]