Each year, the National Celebration of Pro Bono reminds us what’s possible when members of the legal community stand together to advance equity and opportunity.
At the Washington Lawyers’ Committee, pro bono partnerships are the backbone of our work. Together, we’ve defended workers facing discrimination, protected tenants living in unsafe housing, advanced the rights of incarcerated students, and stood with families challenging unlawful government actions—all while expanding access to justice for people whose voices might otherwise go unheard.
To every firm, attorney, and volunteer who has joined us in this pursuit of justice—thank you. Your dedication expands our reach, strengthens our impact, and ensures that the promise of equal justice under law is more than just words.
Together for Justice,
Joanne Lin
Executive Director
Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs
A Rotten Foundation: Wage Theft in the District of Columbia’s Affordable Housing Construction
DC Mayor Bowser has invested $1.4 billion in the Housing Production Trust Fund to address D.C.’s affordable housing crisis. Unfortunately, these public investments are tarnished by rampant wage theft in D.C.’s construction industry.
Our new report urges the D.C. Council to increase penalties and enforcement for wage theft in the construction industry, and oversight of D.C.-funded affordable housing projects. The report proposes: ongoing monitoring and inspections of public works projects, increased funding for the D.C. OAG’s Workers’ Rights Division, strengthening D.C.’s wage theft laws, debarring repeat offenders, and prioritizing the use of union contractors on affordable housing projects.
Sonia Murphy, a partner at Gilbert LLP, is co-counseling multiple pro bono cases with the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs (WLC). She is representing a coalition of Lutheran congregations, Baptist churches, and Quaker assemblies in litigation challenging the Department of Homeland Security's practice of conducting immigration arrests and surveillance at houses of worship (read the press release here).
Alongside her Gilbert colleagues, Sonia is representing a growing number of incarcerated individuals housed at the U.S. Penitentiary Lee (USP Lee) in Virginia. These individuals have suffered beatings, inhumane restraints, racial and psychological abuse, and the withholding of prescribed medications by the staff at USP Lee.
Gilbert and WLC have filed nine lawsuits on behalf of USP Lee residents. In addition to holding those responsible for the violence accountable, the lawsuits seek to improve conditions at USP Lee and to ensure that all residents at the facility are treated with dignity, humanity, and are provided with proper health care, as required by the U.S. Constitution (read the article here).
Sonia previously spent six years at the U.S. Justice Department, where her practice included government contracts, government pay and personnel suits, and veteran and other benefit appeals. Before joining DOJ, Sonia worked at several international law firms and for the U.S. International Trade Commission. She is a graduate of Howard University School of Law, where she was a merit scholar.
Sonia shares, “I strongly believe that as lawyers, we are obligated to make our judicial system available to all. And I feel it is my personal obligation to use my voice for good, to lift the voices of the unheard so that they get the full measure of justice. I’m proud to be able to pursue both obligations at Gilbert LLP, through our work with WLC, particularly with regard to defending the rights of prisoners against physical abuse, and in stopping the worst excesses of immigration enforcement agents.”
We are honored to announce the appointment of nine distinguished legal professionals to our Board of Directors. Their collective expertise and commitment to justice will strengthen our work in advancing civil rights in the Washington, D.C. area. Please join us in welcoming:
Matt Nicely, Akin
Tiffany Rider, Axinn
Annie Froehlich, Cooley
Mindy Johnson, Fried Frank
Amadou Diaw, King & Spalding
Andrew Clubok, Latham
Allyson Baker, Paul Hastings
Scott Sher, Paul Weiss
Brian Whittaker, Nixon Peabody
With their extensive experience and dedication to advancing justice, our new board members will play a pivotal role in guiding the Committee’s work and impact in the community.
Brian Whittaker, a litigation partner at Nixon Peabody, has joined the board of directors of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs.
He represents clients involved in disputes and subject to regulatory actions, with experience in numerous federal and state courts and before a variety of regulatory agencies.
Brian represents clients with complex and high-profile cases in antitrust, business and commercial disputes, and civil rights and constitutional law claims.
Under Brian's leadership, Nixon Peabody is co-counsel with WLC and School Justice Project in a federal class action against the District of Columbia and the Federal Bureau of Prisons to remedy the systemic denial of special education for DC students serving sentences in BOP facilities.
Brian shares, “This case and our pro bono work with WLC are important to me because they’re an opportunity to make a positive impact on the community that I live and work in. Education is vital for future opportunities and reintegration of DC youth when they return home.”
Howard Jacobson was a tax partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP for almost 40 years before retiring in 2023. He counseled tax-exempt organizations of all sizes — from large pension funds to hospitals and endowments, to religious organizations and newly organized, community-based organizations. Howard emphasized the importance of pro bono activities in the transactional practice and was selected for the Akin Pro Bono Hall of Fame in 2013.
Howard served as the general counsel of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs (WLC) for 18 years until his retirement. During that period, he advised WLC’s executive directors (Rod Boggs and Jonathan Smith) and the board of directors on an array of legal and ethical issues, assembling teams that included his Akin colleagues, as well as attorneys with the appropriate expertise from other firms. For this work, Howard was awarded the Rod Boggs Award in 2022.
During his long tenure as WLC general counsel, Howard saw firsthand the impact of WLC’s work and what is required to ensure that work continues. He and his wife Trudy have been longtime supporters and donors, continuing into retirement as monthly donors to support WLC’s essential work in preserving civil rights. The need is now more pressing and urgent than ever.
Natalie Geismar joined the WLC Prisoners’ Rights team in September 2025 as an Equal Justice Works Fellow. A Yale Law School graduate, Natalie interned at the U.S. Justice Department Civil Rights Division and the ACLU of Illinois. She was also a member of Yale’s Veterans Legal Services Clinic, where she litigated cases on behalf of LGBTQ+ service members and veterans. Prior to law school, Natalie worked for three years at the Brookings Institution, researching economic mobility and federal rural development policy.
Coming Down the Pike
WLC Is Coming to Your Neighborhood!
House parties are taking place throughout the DMV. Our staff and board members will discuss our work protecting our immigrant neighbors, defending DC autonomy, and safeguarding civil rights for all.
Board Co-Chairs Joseph Davis (Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP) Avis Buchanan (retired)
The Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs works to create legal, economic, and social equity for low-income marginalized communities in Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC, and across the country. We partner with individuals and communities facing discrimination and with the legal community to achieve justice. We bring strategic litigation to advance fair housing, disability rights, education equity, workers’ rights, immigrant justice, women’s rights, and criminal legal system reform.
