We operate programs through two entities: Lawyers for Good Government ("L4GG," a 501(c)(4) organization) and the Lawyers for Good Government Foundation ("L4GG Foundation," a non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization).*

Lawyers for Good Government Foundation

The Lawyers for Good Government Foundation is focused on two key programmatic strategies: (1) early warning systems, and (2) rapid legal response.

Strategy #1: Early Warning Systems

Every day, in thousands of counties and cities across the country, government decisions are made that are unconstitutional and/or unjust. Unfortunately, without a trained lawyer looking out for these kinds of issues, most of them will go by unnoticed and unaddressed.

The L4GG Foundation is working to set up “early warning systems” for different types of violations - beginning with our “Election Watch” program, which is designed to identify and address voting rights violations at the county level.

Our goal is to assign at least one lawyer volunteer in each of the 3,144 counties (or county-equivalents) in the United States, and then train those volunteers to monitor and report issues into our national database on an ongoing, year-round basis. Issues will be systematically reviewed, prioritized, and escalated as needed for further legal action.

To ensure that voter suppression issues are prioritized and addressed as effectively as possible, the L4GG Foundation has partnered with the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and the Voting Rights Institute. Both of these organizations have significant experience and expertise fighting for voting rights both inside and outside the courtroom. 

More information about the L4GG Foundation's Election Watch program is available here.

Strategy #2: Rapid Legal Response

Our unparallelled ability to quickly reach and mobilize thousands of lawyers all over the country means we are well-suited to create and deploy “rapid legal response” teams when crises arise.

When the first “Muslim Ban” went into effect, for example, we were able to recruit thousands of attorneys to assist. Hundreds of L4GG members went directly to airports all over the country, working directly with immigrants, immigrants’ families, and other organizations (such as IRAP, AILA, and the ACLU) to provide legal support as needed. In one case, four L4GG lawyers in Oregon worked to help a 4-month-old Iranian baby in need of immediate heart surgery who was being prevented from entering the country. They succeeded and the child was able to get life-saving medical treatment.

When the DACA program was suddenly rescinded in September 2017, putting 130,000 "Dreamers" at risk, we mobilized more than 5,400 lawyers in a matter of days. The L4GG Foundation (in partnership with the American Immigration Lawyers Association) trained more than 1,500 lawyers in just 72 hours and connected thousands of volunteer lawyers with legal clinics to help Dreamers meet the renewal deadline. 

As we continue to grow and learn from our experiences in the field, we will continue to improve in this area, making the L4GG Foundation a critical resource in the fight to protect individuals and communities at risk.

*The L4GG Foundation's application for 501(c)(3) tax-exemption designation is pending. 

Lawyers for Good Government

Lawyers for Good Government works primarily in the areas of advocacy, education, and community outreach.

Grassroots activism is most effective when activists can be given clear, direct action steps informed by guidance from subject matter experts. L4GG’s Education, Advocacy, & Community Outreach programs are designed to facilitate exchanges of information between organizers, activists, and legal subject-matter experts, to maximize our collective impact. 

Key areas of focus for L4GG include:

  • Voting Rights
  • Climate Change
  • Affordable Healthcare
  • Immigration
  • Fair & Independent Judiciary
  • Government Accountability
  • Equitable Tax Reform
  • Criminal Justice Reform

Lawyers for Good Government also maintains several online publications designed to educate and inspire action: