2026 Equal Justice Conference: Full Schedule

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8:30am EDT

Financing the Future and Strengthening the Law Student to Public Interest Pipeline

Friday May 15, 2026 8:30am - 9:45am EDT

Supporting law students to pursue paths to legal services or pro bono partnerships is critical to recruitment and retention in the sector. We will explore how providing financial support from legal services, law schools, the State Bar, and others can encourage students to seek public interest careers while also increasing diversity.

Speakers

Phong Wong

Pro Bono Director, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles

Phong Wong, Pro Bono Director at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.

Phong oversees the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles’ pro bono work and coordinates its pro bono cases and projects, including Disaster Response and the Pro Bono Training Institute. She also oversees the outreach, recruitment, and hiring of volunteers including law students, underg... Read More →

Elizabeth Hom

Program Director, State Bar of Calfornia

Elizabeth A. Hom is a Program Director at the State Bar of California, Office of Access & Inclusion, where she advances the State Bar’s efforts for greater access to, and inclusion in, the legal system. Elizabeth supports administration of grants to legal aid organizations throughout... Read More →

Friday May 15, 2026 8:30am - 9:45am EDT
Mecklenburg 2

Sessions

10:00am EDT

Community-Based Legal Innovation: Research on Justice Worker Programs in Indian Country

Friday May 15, 2026 10:00am - 11:15am EDT

Mecklenburg 2

This session examines emerging community justice worker (CJW) programs in Indian Country as an evolution from Alaska Legal Services Corporation’s CJW program. Panelists will share research on program design, integration, and impact, highlighting how CJWs expand legal capacity in Alaska Native and American Indian communities and identifying priorities for future study.

Speakers

Cody Nelson

Executive Director, Anishinabe Legal Services

Cody Nelson is the Executive Director of Anishinabe Legal Services, a 501(c)(3) non-profit civil
legal aid law firm providing free legal assistance to low-income Native Americans residing on or
near the Leech Lake, White Earth, and Red Lake Nations in northern Minnesota. Cody
gra... Read More →

Rebecca Sandefur

Professor, Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University

Dr. Rebecca Sandefur is the Director of the Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics at Arizona State University and a Faculty Fellow at the American Bar Foundation, where she founded and leads the Access to Justice Research Initiative. In 2018 she was named a MacArthur Fellow... Read More →

Matthew Burnett

Director of Research and Programs for the Access to Justice Research Initiative, American Bar Foundation

Matthew Burnett is Director of Research and Programs for the Access to Justice Research Initiative at the American Bar Foundation (ABF), a visiting scholar with the Justice Futures Project at Arizona State University, and an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center... Read More →

Sarah Carver

Managing Attorney, Center for Elder Law and Justice

Sarah Carver is Co-Director of Alaska Legal Services Corporation’s Community Justice Worker Resource Center (CJWRC). She started her legal career with ALSC as the sole staff attorney in the rural Nome, Alaska office. Since 2018, she has worked to build up the Community Justice Worker... Read More →

Friday May 15, 2026 10:00am - 11:15am EDT
Mecklenburg 2

Sessions

1:30pm EDT

Digital Accessibility and Disability Justice

Friday May 15, 2026 1:30pm - 2:45pm EDT

Mecklenburg 2

Digital accessibility ensures that all court users or legal service clients can access legal services and resources. If digital content is not accessible, people with disabilities can be deprived of equal access, legal rights, or basic needs. This session will address legal requirements for digital accessibility and teach participants how to address common accessibility barriers using interactive scenarios. We will close with tips and strategies from courts who are implementing digital accessibility.

Speakers

Gabriella Vazquez

Court Management Consultant, National Center for State Courts

Gabriella Vazquez, MPA, is a Court Management Consultant with the National Center for State Courts. She works on a variety of access to justice initiatives at NCSC, including supporting eviction diversion programs in state courts, Safe Harbor policy development, user-centered design... Read More →

Grace Spulak

Principal Court Management Consultant, National Center for State Courts

Grace Spulak, JD, is a Senior Court Management Consultant with the National Center for State Courts where she works on a variety of access to justice issues, including the use of remote hearings, rural justice, process simplification, user-testing, and regulatory reform. Grace is... Read More →

Emily F. Deines

Statewide Manager of Justice Initiatives, Massachusetts Trial Court

Emily Deines has over 21 years of dedicated experience at the Massachusetts Trial Court, primarily within the Probate and Family Court, where she has developed expertise in court operations, technology, and user-centered service delivery. In April 2025, she assumed the role of Statewide... Read More →

Jill Roberts

Principal Court Management Consultant, National Center for State Courts

Jill Roberts, JD, is a Principal Court Management Consultant at the National Center for State Courts. Her work is focused on expanding access to state courts with a focus on people without lawyers, people with disabilities, and people with limited English proficiency. She works closely... Read More →

Friday May 15, 2026 1:30pm - 2:45pm EDT
Mecklenburg 2

Sessions

3:00pm EDT

Bridging the Justice Gap with Community Justice Workers: Lessons from Texas & Beyond

Friday May 15, 2026 3:00pm - 4:15pm EDT

Mecklenburg 2

Despite growth in attorneys and pro bono services, 92 percent of low-income Americans’ civil legal needs remain unmet. Community Justice Workers (CJWs) offer a scalable model by training non-attorney advocates to provide structured, limited-scope legal support. This session will examine national developments and share lessons from Texas, where CJW projects are being built now, even without formal certification. Participants will leave with practical strategies to responsibly launch CJW pilots in their own states.

Speakers

Nikole Nelson

CEO, Frontline Justice

Nikole Nelson is the founding CEO of Frontline Justice. Prior to joining Frontline Justice Nikole was the Executive Director of Alaska Legal Services Corporation, Alaska’s only statewide provider of free civil aid. During her 25 years in the field, she worked to build community-led... Read More →

Cristian Sanchez

Economic Justice Director, Texas Immigration Law Council

Cristian is the Economic Justice Director at Texas Immigration Law Council where he leads the design and implementation of a program to expand access to civil legal services for low-income Texans through innovation, including Community Justice workers. He is doing this through standing... Read More →

Bethany Carson

Community Justice Worker Coordinator, Texas Immigration Law Council

Bethany Carson is an Equal Justice Works Fellow and the Community Justice Worker Coordinator at the Texas Immigration Law Council, where she supports a statewide cohort of non-attorney fellows expanding access to justice for noncitizen communities. With over a decade of experience... Read More →

Friday May 15, 2026 3:00pm - 4:15pm EDT
Mecklenburg 2

Sessions

8:30am EDT

10:00am EDT

1:30pm EDT

3:00pm EDT

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