Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) was proud to join Congressman Troy A. Carter, Sr. (D-LA) and local and national climate justice leaders at an Environmental Justice Roundtable hosted at the Greater New Orleans Foundation. The discussion focused on recent harmful Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) decisions—including the termination of federal grant awards and the rollback of critical environmental protections—and how we can continue to push environmental justice forward under the Trump Administration.
Today, Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) is proud to launch the Pro Bono Litigation Corps (PBLC)—a first-of-its-kind initiative mobilizing experienced attorneys to take on some of the most pressing constitutional challenges of our time.
As we commemorate the two-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) today, August 16, there is much to celebrate about this historic legislation. The IRA represents the largest-ever climate investment in our country’s history, creating unprecedented opportunities for clean energy savings.
However, we at L4GG are acutely aware that historically marginalized communities often lack the resources to access the IRA’s historic funding opportunities. In response, we have intensified our efforts over the past two years to ensure that the benefits of the IRA reach those who need them most. See what we’ve been up to!
Not enough people are talking about the water crisis in Jackson, MS. On Tuesday, the Mississippi governor declared a state of emergency for Jackson’s water system, the city’s largest treatment plant. Most of the city’s 150,000 residents are without running water, having to rely on bottled water for drinking, showering, brushing their teeth, and cooking.
Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), a national nonprofit mobilizing its network of more than 125,000 attorneys in defense of democracy and the rule of law, today calls on members of Congress to begin impeachment proceedings, and on Vice President Vance and the Cabinet to immediately invoke Section 4 of the 25th Amendment, to remove President Donald J. Trump from office.
In Albany, New York, there is a brick townhouse where abolitionists Stephen and Harriet Myers once sheltered people escaping slavery — some of them led by Harriet Tubman herself. For over twenty years, the Underground Railroad Education Center has called that house home, using it to teach that the Underground Railroad wasn't just a historical footnote. It was a civil rights movement. And it still has something to teach us.
Last week, L4GG volunteer attorneys filed a federal lawsuit on the Center's behalf to get back the funding the Trump administration took from them. It is exactly the kind of case we exist to fight.
What Happened
In 2023, the National Endowment for the Humanities awarded the Center a $250,000 grant through a rigorous, competitive process. The money was meant to fund a new Interpretive Center — a space that would have expanded the museum's reach, preserved its growing collection of over 27,000 artifacts, and created jobs in one of Albany's most economically marginalized neighborhoods.
The Center met every single requirement. Then, in May 2025, the grant was canceled. No warning. No appeal.
The cancellation came on the heels of a sweeping directive tied to President Trump's executive orders banning DEI programs across federal agencies. Over 1,400 humanities grants were terminated including 98% of those that focused on Black history and culture.The grants that survived? Projects focused on white presidents and founding fathers.
Why This Case Matters
This isn't about paperwork or bureaucracy. It's about who gets to tell the story of America — and who gets erased from it.
Nina Loewenstein, a volunteer attorney on the case through L4GG, put it plainly: the cancellation is "just explicitly erasing things associated with the Black race." She and the team of volunteer lawyers argue that the Underground Railroad Education Center is just one of thousands of organizations unlawfully targeted by the Trump administration.
Our lawsuit argues three things: that the withdrawal was racially discriminatory, that it unconstitutionally punished the Center for its viewpoint, and that it violated the NEH's own legal mandate to support diverse and underrepresented communities — a mandate Congress reaffirmed as recently as 2025.
The Underground Railroad Education Center did everything right. It earned this grant. And the history it preserves belongs to all of us.
We're asking the court to reinstate the funding and strike down the directive that caused these mass terminations in the first place. Because if we allow the government to defund Black history and call it fiscal responsibility, the damage goes far beyond one museum in Albany.
This is what L4GG's network of attorneys shows up for — to stand with organizations doing vital work that have been wronged. We are proud to bring this fight.
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Cases like this one are handled through L4GG’s Pro Bono Litigation Corps (PBLC) — our flagship program that mobilizes litigators to take on high-impact cases just like this. If you're a litigator looking to do meaningful pro bono work, learn more at L4GG.org/PBLC.
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C Circuit will hear oral arguments to determine the fate of more than $3 billion in federal Environmental and Climate Justice Block Grants. These funds, authorized by Congress under the Inflation Reduction Act (which added Section 138 to the Clean Air Act), were abruptly terminated by the Trump Administration, stripping critical resources from communities working to ensure clean air, safe water, and climate resilience.
Attorneys from Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), Earthjustice, and Public Rights Project, are representing a coalition of community-based nonprofits, Tribes, and local governments in Appalachian Voices et al v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This coalition is appealing a U.S. District Court’s August 2025 decision that dismissed the case under the argument that it belongs in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
“The rule of law exists to ensure that the government remains accountable to the people and the laws enacted by Congress,” said Jillian Blanchard, Senior Vice President of Climate Change and Environmental Justice at Lawyers for Good Government. “Communities across this country spent years advocating for these resources, and they made life-altering decisions based on EPA’s promise. To claw back those funds now undermines that trust. L4GG is fighting to restore these funds because a promise made with mandated funding should be a promise kept, and no administration is above the laws passed to protect our communities’ health and future.”
The grants in question were designed to fund projects ranging from air quality monitoring to the implementation of clean energy in over-burdened areas.
“This argument is another step in our fight to restore the Environment and Climate Justice Block grant program. Congress mandated that EPA award grants to reduce air pollution and prepare communities for natural disasters and extreme weather. EPA’s decision to eliminate this program was unlawful and has harmed communities throughout the South and across the country,” said Ben Grillot, Senior Attorney at Southern Environmental Law Center.
“Local governments and Tribal nations began hiring staff, signing contracts, and launching projects to make their communities healthier and more resilient based on these federal awards — only to have the federal government abruptly pull the rug out from under them. Congress authorized these funds, and the administration cannot simply ignore the law,” said Jonathan Miller, Chief Program Officer at Public Rights Project.
“Communities across the country have lost out on projects that would have tackled environmental harms, reduced pollution, and increased climate resilience because the Trump administration thinks it is above the law,” said Hana Vizcarra, Deputy Managing Attorney at Earthjustice. “We’re fighting alongside our partners and clients to hold the administration to account for its wholesale elimination of EPA’s grant program, which unlawfully stripped these beneficial projects from communities across the country.”
The arguments will determine whether the court will hear the case that compels the restoration of these funds.
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Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) coordinates large-scale pro bono programs and issue advocacy efforts to protect human rights, defend the environment, and ensure equal justice under the law, and has a network of 125,000+ lawyers to assist in its efforts. lawyersforgoodgovernment.org
Public Rights Project is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that helps local government officials fight for civil rights. We do this by building their capacity to protect and advance civil rights, convening and connecting them on issues of civil rights, and providing legal representation to governments to help them win in court on behalf of their residents. Since our founding, we’ve built a network of over 1,300 partners, including elected officials and 227 government offices across all 50 states, and helped recover over $46 million in relief for marginalized people. www.publicrightsproject.org
The Southern Environmental Law Center is one of the nation’s most powerful defenders of the environment, rooted in the South. With a long track record, SELC takes on the toughest environmental challenges in court, in government, and in our communities to protect our region’s air, water, climate, wildlife, lands, and people. Nonprofit and nonpartisan, the organization has a staff of 250, including more than 160 legal and policy experts, and is headquartered in Charlottesville, Va., with offices in Asheville, Atlanta, Birmingham, Chapel Hill, Charleston, Nashville, Richmond, and Washington, D.C. selc.org
Earthjustice is the premier environmental law organization in the U.S., and the legal backbone of the domestic environmental movement. For over 50 years, we have been fighting in the courts, in legislatures, and in the court of public opinion to stop the climate crisis, create healthy communities free of pollution, safeguard our precious lands and waters, and expand environmental legal frameworks to achieve these goals. Earthjustice.org
WASHINGTON – Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) is pleased to announce that Carol Khalil has joined the organization as Supervising Attorney for Clean Energy & Green Finance within its Climate Change & Environmental Justice (CCEJ) Program.
Carol joins L4GG from the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), where she served as Vice President and Corporate Sustainability Officer. In that role, she founded and led the company’s sustainability office, developing strategies to integrate clean energy, energy efficiency, and climate resilience into housing finance and capital markets. Among a number of accomplishments, Carol helped design financing and tools to support communities in developing energy-efficient and resilient housing, and partnered with CDFIs, state agencies, nonprofits, and community organizations to expand clean energy and climate resilient investment in disadvantaged communities.
“Carol brings a rare combination of financial expertise, policy experience, and commitment to climate justice that will strengthen our ability to support clean energy deployment and defend critical federal climate investments,” said Traci Feit Love, Executive Director of Lawyers for Good Government.
In her new role, Carol will help lead L4GG’s effort to help finance community-driven clean energy and environmental projects, implementing a just transition to the green economy. She will develop and oversee L4GG's green financing services, build partnerships with green banks, CDFIs, and other mission-aligned institutions, and provide legal guidance to the hundreds of state and local agencies, green banks, and community-based organizations that rely on L4GG to identify and leverage green financing options.
“I’m honored to join Lawyers for Good Government at such a critical moment for clean energy and climate justice,” said Carol Khalil, Supervising Attorney for Clean Energy and Green Finance. “The work L4GG does to ensure that communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis have access to legal expertise and green financing resources is exactly where I want to be putting my energy. I look forward to helping build the financing infrastructure that can make the clean energy transition real for the people and communities who need it most.”
“Carol’s background at the intersection of clean energy finance, housing, and community investment will be a tremendous asset to our program," said Jillian Blanchard, Senior Vice President of Climate Change and Environmental Justice at L4GG. “Her work expanding access to solar, efficiency upgrades, and resilient infrastructure aligns directly with our mission to ensure the clean energy transition reaches the communities that need it most.”
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Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) coordinates large-scale pro bono programs and issue advocacy efforts to protect human rights, defend the environment, and ensure equal justice under the law, and has a network of 125,000+ lawyers to assist in its efforts. lawyersforgoodgovernment.org
WASHINGTON — Over the weekend, Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), the DC Law Collective (DCLC), and Sligo Law Group, PLLC, (SLG), filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland on behalf of more than 140 career federal employees challenging the Trump administration’s use of so-called “reductions in force” (RIF) to carry out mass terminations across the federal government.
The complaint argues that the administration’s actions violated the Constitution, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the Privacy Act by depriving employees of their jobs, pay, benefits, and professional reputations without meaningful notice or an opportunity to be heard.
WASHINGTON — Following today’s final action by the Environmental Protection Agency repealing the 2009 endangerment finding, Jillian Blanchard, Vice President of Climate Change & Environmental Justice at Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), issued the following statement:
“By finalizing the repeal of the endangerment finding, the EPA has formally declared its loyalty to polluters over people. This decision rips out the scientific and legal foundation that has protected Americans from dangerous climate pollution for more than a decade, and it does so by ignoring decades of peer-reviewed science, sidelining expert consensus, and fast-tracking a change with enormous consequences for public health.
“Section 202(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. § 7521(a)(1)) clearly states that the EPA Administrator must regulate any air pollutant that can “cause, or contribute to, air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare.” Courts have been clear for years: the Clean Air Act requires EPA to follow the science and regulate climate pollution that endangers human health and welfare. This rule violates both the law and reality, and it will be challenged accordingly. “Greenhouse gases don’t stop endangering people because an administration says they don’t. Heat waves, floods, wildfires, and toxic air will continue to harm communities whether EPA acknowledges the science or not.
“What makes this move especially egregious is the process itself. EPA rushed this rule through on an artificially short timeline, relied on discredited pseudoscience from a politicized ‘Climate Working Group,’ and dismissed thousands of public comments, claiming any related to climate science were ‘out of scope.’ That is the definition of arbitrary and capricious decision-making and a failure to observe due process.
“Communities, states, and advocates, including Lawyers for God Government, will continue to call for administrative reconsideration and push back against this repeal in the courts. This fight is far from over.”
Ryan Hathaway, L4GG’s Director of Environment and Climate Justice and former Director for Environmental Justice under Biden, added the following:
“The EPA can’t just erase the endangerment finding with the stroke of a pen. By 2009, the science was unequivocal: greenhouse gases endanger public health. The Endangerment finding wasn’t political; it was the culmination of decades of measurement, modeling, and global consensus. To reverse it now would not only ignore overwhelming scientific evidence, but unravel one of the rare moments where policy caught up to facts. It would be like deciding, years after seatbelts saved millions of lives, that maybe we never needed them. It’s reckless, ignorant, irresponsible, and will hurt people. We are not going to stand for it.”
If you’d like to connect with Jillian or Ryan to discuss the legal and environmental stakes of this unprecedented rollback, and why courts are likely to view this proposal as unlawful, we’d be happy to arrange an interview.
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Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) is a nonprofit organization that harnesses the power of 125,000 lawyers, law students, and advocates in the fight for justice. We identify where lawyers can make the greatest impact and mobilize them to defend democracy and the rule of law, protect civil and human rights, and advance environmental justice through coordinated legal action and advocacy efforts that create meaningful change for all Americans.
WASHINGTON — Today, Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) filed an amicus brief as counsel for 40 U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives, in the appeal of Climate United Fund v. Citibank, N.A. over the Trump administration’s cancellation of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF).
The filing responds to the Trump administration’s appeal of a district court ruling that blocked EPA’s attempt to dismantle the program and reclaim funds already awarded. The brief argues that the Environmental Protection Agency’s termination of $20 billion in Congressionally mandated clean energy grants, and attempt to claw back already-disbursed funds, is unconstitutional and sets a dangerous precedent.
“Congress created, funded, and directed EPA to deliver this money to build clean energy projects that cut pollution and lower energy bills,” said Jillian Blanchard, Vice President of Climate Change & Environmental Justice at L4GG. “EPA cannot simply undo the law by executive fiat. That’s a violation of the Constitution’s separation of powers.”
The brief, which you can read in full here, argues:
Congress has the exclusive “power of the purse.” Under the Appropriations and Spending Clauses, only Congress decides how federal funds are allocated.
EPA’s termination was a power grab. By nullifying programs after money had already been awarded and transferred, the administration usurped Congress’s authority.
The administration’s appeal asks the Court to rewrite precedent. By leaning on a misreading of Dalton v. Specter, the administration ignores clear Supreme Court rulings (Train v. New York, Clinton v. New York) that prohibit the executive branch from refusing to spend funds Congress appropriated.
If allowed to stand, the ruling creates a de facto line-item veto. Any future administration could cancel duly authorized programs and seize funds Congress already appropriated, undermining democracy and destabilizing community investments.
“This is not a routine contract dispute—it is a constitutional power grab,” said Gary DiBianco, counsel at L4GG’s Pro Bono Litigation Corps. “If the executive can claw back billions that Congress has already spent, then the courts and the executive have stripped all meaning from Congress’s power of the purse.”
The GGRF was created by the Inflation Reduction Act to invest nearly $20 billion in projects that reduce pollution, lower energy costs, and build resilience in disadvantaged communities. Hundreds of organizations have already begun planning and hiring around these funds, which are now in jeopardy.
If you’re interested in learning more about some of those communities and projects impacted, we’d be happy to potentially arrange interviews.
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Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) is a nonprofit organization that harnesses the power of 125,000 lawyers, law students, and advocates in the fight for justice. We identify where lawyers can make the greatest impact and mobilize them to defend democracy and the rule of law, protect civil and human rights, and advance environmental justice through coordinated legal action and advocacy efforts that create meaningful change for all Americans.
Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), in partnership with Tidal Water Consulting, today announced the winners of the inaugural Rights in Reel Time Challenge, a national competition inviting law students to translate constitutional rights into compelling short-form videos for the public.
After a blind review process conducted by a distinguished panel of legal experts, journalists, and educators, cash prizes of $3,000 (First Place), $1,250 (Second Place), and $750 (Third Place) were awarded to three student submissions selected for excellence in constitutional grounding, legal accuracy, clarity, and creativity.
January 23, 2026, Washington, D.C.— The Department of Justice has withdrawn its subpoena demanding the medical records of over 3,000 transgender youth at Children's Hospital Los Angeles and entered into a settlement agreement with a group of patients and their families, represented by Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG), Western Center on Law and Poverty, and Impact Fund.
The subpoena, served this summer to Children's Hospital Los Angeles, sought sweeping access to minors' most sensitive medical records—including mental health treatment notes, prescribing information, and other deeply personal details—related to gender-affirming care. L4GG and co-counsel filed a motion to quash the subpoena on behalf of a putative class of affected patients and families in federal court in the Central District of California, arguing it violated patients' constitutional right to privacy and exceeded the government's legal authority.
“This is a massive victory for every family that refused to be intimidated into backing down. The government’s attempt to rifle through children’s medical records was unconstitutional from the start. Today’s settlement affirms what we’ve said all along: these families have done nothing wrong, and their children’s privacy deserves protection.”
“This settlement is a crucial affirmation that health care decisions belong in exam rooms, not government subpoenas. Youth, families, and medical providers have constitutional rights to privacy and dignity. No one’s private health records should be turned into political ammunition—especially children. This ruling protects sensitive medical records, upholds the professional integrity of providers, and reinforces that families seeking lawful care are not suspects—they’re entitled to safety and confidentiality.”
The settlement agreement protects the anonymity of the affected youth and families while securing the withdrawal of the government's demands for their medical records — and those of their fellow patients.
“We are so proud to represent our clients who stepped up to protect their families and thousands of others by being plaintiffs in this lawsuit. Their bravery helps protect all of us from unlawful and discriminatory government intrusion into private health care decisions between patients, families, and doctors.”
Gender-affirming care remains legal in many states and is endorsed by every major medical association, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Endocrine Society. The investigation's underlying premise—that lawful medical treatment becomes fraudulent based solely on the identity of the patient receiving it—has been widely rejected by legal experts and medical professionals.
“Parents who follow medical advice and seek evidence-based treatment for their children should never be subjected to government harassment. This settlement sends a clear message: constitutional rights matter, and families seeking legal medical care for their children are entitled to privacy and dignity.”
