The ACLU Foundation of Southern California undertakes litigation when doing so is the most effective way to advance a civil liberties concern. We file lawsuits that will have an impact on people’s rights by setting a legal precedent or affecting the policies and actions of public officials. We both provide direct legal representation to people and file amicus (friend-of-the-court) briefs addressing civil liberties issues in cases initiated by others. All of the ACLU SoCal’s legal work is on a pro bono basis; we never charge for our legal services.
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Jul 2, 2018
Sigma Beta Xi v. County of Riverside
Education Equity
Status: Filed
The Youth Accountability Team (YAT) program was created in 2001 in Riverside County to target at-risk youths for intervention. But YAT treats children who have not been convicted of crimes like hardened...
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Jun 27, 2018
Rodriguez Castillo v. Nielsen
Immigrants' Rights
Status: Filed
Hundreds of civil immigration detainees, including asylum seekers, were moved from immigration detention centers to a federal prison complex in Victorville, CA.
They were held incommunicado. Detainees...
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May 23, 2018
CA Dept. of Fair Employment and Housing v. Crunch Fitness
LGBTQ Rights
Status: Won
The ACLU Foundation of Southern California; ACLU Foundation of San Diego and Imperial Counties; and law firm Nixon Peabody LLP joined a state lawsuit on behalf of Christynne Wood, a transgender woman denied...
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Apr 14, 2018
Gonzalez v. Sessions
Immigrants' Rights
Status: Filed
Two Bay Area fathers who have been detained for over six months at the Contra Costa West County Detention Facility in Richmond, California sued the federal government today in a class action lawsuit...
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Apr 4, 2018
P.E.O.P.L.E v. Rackauckas
First Amendment and Democracy
Status: Filed
The ACLU, ACLU Foundation of Southern California, and the law firm of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP filed a lawsuit against Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and Orange County Sheriff Sandra...
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Mar 13, 2018
Ramos v. Nielsen
Immigrants' Rights
Status: Filed
The ACLU Foundation of Southern California, with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) and the law firm of Sidley Austin LLP, filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of nine people with...