The Nomination Period for 2021 NLADA Governance Elections is Now Open!

Nominations are due by July 14

We are pleased to announce that the nomination period for positions on NLADA’s Defender Council and Civil Council is now open. In 2021, there are no positions up for election on the Board of Directors or the Client Council.

NLADA represents the voices of its members in the national arena on significant issues that directly impact the client, civil and defender communities. The Councils influence the direction of the Association as they craft policies and develop services to best respond to the needs of NLADA members. NLADA relies upon the capable and committed candidates elected to these governing bodies to inform and guide NLADA and to ensure that it is representing and responding to its member communities in an effective manner.

Federal Funding Update

The President has recommended $600 million for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), which would be an increase of $135 million; the largest ever single increase in LSC funding.

The president’s proposal includes a $25 million increase for public defender improvement, $6 million to reopen the Office for Access to Justice, an additional $37 million in VAWA grants for legal assistance and a $15 million asylum representation pilot. However, some are saying that it is still not clear that spending bills will be completed by the start of the next fiscal year on October 1, 2021.

NLADA knows the consequences that the history of underfunding has caused and is committed to mitigating them. We are continuing to monitor the situation as it unfolds. For more information, visit the NLADA Policy and Advocacy Center here
Redefining Justice at the 2021 Virtual Exemplar Awards Gala

Thank you to all who attended the 2021 Exemplar Awards Gala! We hope you enjoyed the celebration of Exemplar Honorees, Kutak-Dodds Prize winners and the 2021 Beacon of Justice Awardees!

If you missed out, you can catch up on the excitement by watching the Awards Program Video on our website. There, you may watch or rewatch the Corporate Conversation with this year's Exemplar Honorees, moderated by Jo-Ann Wallace, our president and CEO. We have also included the video link to the Beacon of Justice Awardees detailing the work they did in 2020 to address systemic racial disparities.

Thank you again to the sponsors and all of those who help make this event possible!
2021 Holistic Conferences: Rising Together

Thank you all for attending the 2021 Holistic Defense & Leadership Conferences! We hope hearing from our incredible speakers, like James Forman Jr, Kristin Henning, Ronald Simpson-Bey, Derwyn Bunton and Afeni Evans has helped you understand how we can reckon with the injustices we have seen throughout the past year and how you can rise and take action! We hope through these conferences, you were able to understand the importance of the integration of the perspective of public defenders in policymaking and advocacy. We are pleased you heard from the experts themselves, that a diverse and holistic approach is necessary to combat the injustices we are witnessing and we hope it inspires you to rise with us!

You may view the recordings of the COD plenaries on our Facebook page.
Rethinking Jails During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Data experts from CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance and the JFA Institute measured the public safety impacts of criminal justice reform strategies before and during the pandemic.

They found that reducing over-incarceration in jails keeps us safe. Narratives connecting these reforms to rising crime rates are misleading and damaging, stalling much-needed progress in our criminal legal system. The Safety and Justice Challenge (SJC) dove into the data last month, releasing two reports about the findings.

You may click here to read the first report: Jail Decarceration and Public Safety: Preliminary Findings from the Safety and Justice Challenge. The second report: The Impact of COVID-19 on Crime, Arrests, and Jail Populations, is an expansion of the preliminary findings. Be on the lookout as SJC will continue to explore these findings!
2021 Annual Conference Awards Nominations

Nominations for the 2021 NLADA Annual Conference Awards close at the end of the month. Don't miss your chance to nominate an equal justice hero!

In order to submit a nomination, you or your organization must be an NLADA member. Each award has its own eligibility requirements and criteria. Click here to see each award's criteria.

Letters of nomination must explain why the nominee meets the specific criteria of the award. Current members of the NLADA Board of Directors; Civil, Defender, or Client Councils; Strategic Issues Committee; and NLADA staff are ineligible to make nominations or receive awards. Remember: Nominations are due no later than Friday, July 30, 2021.
Upcoming Virtual Events


  • July 27-July 29 | 2021 Litigation & Advocacy Leaders Conference: Registration is OPEN. This year's LALC, presented virtually, will focus on racial justice, coronavirus response, anti-poverty and how collaboration can advance these initiatives.
NLADA's COVID-19 Resource Center

Although vaccination accessibility is increasing, NLADA realizes that COVID-19 practice resources are still needed. We are continuing our efforts to ensure that you have access to all the latest policy and practice information. Stay up-to-date on our COVID-19 Updates and Resources page!
Member's Corner

Did you know that a benefit of your NLADA membership is the ability to join useful listservs? Whether you're a National Alliance of Sentencing Advocates & Mitigation specialist (NASAMS), a civil legal aid advocate or an advocate curious about racial justice, there are listservs available to your specific practice area. If you'd like to learn more about how you can take advantage of these listservs, contact us at membership@nlada.org so we can add you as a subscriber.
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