2026 Equal Justice Conference

Jeanne Ortiz-Ortiz is the Director of the DiMartino/Smith Public Interest Center at St. John’s University School of Law in New York City, where she leads the strategic vision, fundraising, and daily operations of one of the law school’s biggest academic centers. She oversees a portfolio of programs that engage more than 300 students annually in public interest placements, pro bono service, and leadership development. In her role, Jeanne works closely with students from orientation through graduation, designing structured pro bono programs, building alumni and employer partnerships, supervising and advising student leaders and Fellows, and creating pathways for students to meet pro bono bar requirements while cultivating long-term public interest careers. She also collaborates with alumni and donors to raise money for stipends provided to students working at unpaid internships.

Jeanne is also an Adjunct Professor of Disaster Law at St. John’s Law, where she integrates doctrine, policy, and applied advocacy to prepare students to respond to disasters and emergencies. Through her work with the American Bar Association’s National Disaster Legal Services Program and the Standing Committee on Disaster Response and Preparedness, she has supported legal responses to more than 25 major disasters and has organized training and CLE opportunities to support thousands of lawyers nationwide. She has been recognized as one of the ABA’s Top 40 Young Lawyers On the Rise, on the American Association of Law Schools’ Annual Pro Bono Honor Roll, and as a City and State New York's Trailblazers in Law. Jeanne is admitted to practice in New York, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico.