Announcing Our New President & CEO:
Kathryn Eidmann
Civil Rights Lawyer to Lead Public Interest Law Firm’s Transformative Legal Advocacy
We are thrilled to announce that Kathryn Eidmann has been named our new President and Chief Executive Officer and holder of the Helen & Morgan Chu CEO Distinguished Chair. Kathryn’s selection comes after an extensive national search, following the elevation of our former President and CEO, Mónica Ramírez Almadani, to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California as a federal judge.
A leading civil rights lawyer, Kathryn has spent over a decade at Public Counsel leading innovative legal advocacy to advance justice for communities across the country. She has litigated major cases in the areas of education equity, children’s rights, gender discrimination, criminalization of poverty, immigrants’ rights, housing and homelessness, and the rights of low-wage workers. Most recently, she served as Public Counsel’s Vice President, Chief of Litigation and Legal Programs, where she oversaw a team of 120 attorneys, social workers, organizers, and administrative staff providing direct legal services, impact litigation, and policy advocacy.
Kathryn has been recognized in the legal and advocacy communities for her creative litigation and advocacy. In 2019, she received the California Lawyer of the Year award for the victory she secured in People v. Duenas, a landmark California Court of Appeal opinion establishing for the first time that courts may not impose mandatory court fees on indigent criminal defendants. She was named as one of the “Top 40 Lawyers Under 40” in California by the Daily Journal in 2021. She is a frequent speaker on education equity, children’s rights, and racial and economic justice issues, and her work has been covered by national and local news media.
Since 2017, Kathryn has taught at the University of California, Irvine School of Law. She was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti to serve on the Los Angeles Board of Library Commissioners and the Commission for Community and Family Services, advising the City of Los Angeles on issues of poverty and the needs of children, youth, and families. She also served on the Board of Directors of the Library Foundation of Los Angeles. Prior to joining Public Counsel, Eidmann was a law clerk on the U.S. Court of Appeal for the District of Columbia Circuit for Judge Thomas B. Griffith and practiced complex civil litigation at the law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson. She received her A.B. magna cum laude from Harvard College and her J.D. from Yale Law School.
Public Counsel is incredibly fortunate to have Kathryn at the helm during this critical time in our history. Her dedication to our mission and her unparalleled expertise will undoubtedly propel Public Counsel to new heights. Please join us in welcoming Kathryn Eidmann as the new President and CEO of Public Counsel!
Read statements of support here.
Public Counsel also extends our gratitude to our outgoing Interim President & CEO, Kristen Jackson, for her forward-thinking leadership, her guidance, and her steady hand on the tiller during this transition period. Kris valiantly stepped into this role from her longstanding position as a nationally recognized attorney and expert on asylum and children’s immigration issues. Moving forward, she will continue to serve in an executive leadership role within the organization.
Statement from Kathryn Eidmann
“I am honored and grateful for this opportunity to lead Public Counsel, which I see as the leading force for ambitious legal advocacy to end systemic economic and racial inequities in Los Angeles and beyond. Through our innovative approach, we deliver direct legal services that change individual people’s lives, while working to establish legal precedents, change policies, and build community power to address the roots of the injustices our clients are facing. Together, our talented staff and committed Board work with longstanding community partners to give legal firepower to individual and community struggles for justice, opportunity, and power. In these challenging and uncertain times nationally, Public Counsel’s urgent mission is to foster hope and catalyze transformative change.”
–Kathryn Eidmann, Public Counsel’s President & CEO
Statements of Support from Public Counsel’s Board & Staff
“Kathryn is a strategic and creative thinker, and we at Public Counsel are fortunate to have her at the helm. Her visionary leadership is precisely what the moment requires, and I’m excited to see her advance the work of this extraordinary organization.”
“Kathryn is a listener – a doer – a leader. She is perfect for Public Counsel’s vision. She is also dedicated, smart, and focused on achieving great results, which makes her an outstanding leader.”
“Kathryn knows what is right and what is just. Even more importantly — she knows how to achieve it. A brilliant strategist – she sees moves and outcomes well in advance.” →Click to read full statement.
“Kathryn brings an extraordinary combination of an abiding decades-long commitment to the fight for equal justice, a remarkable record of accomplishment and success, and a profound understanding of Public Counsel.”
“Having worked alongside her for more than a decade, I know firsthand her sharp mind and her deep humanity. We heartily embrace Kathryn as our new leader, and undoubtedly we and our clients will thrive under her watch.”
“Kathryn is a brilliant and dedicated lawyer who has been instrumental in achieving groundbreaking victories across multiple aspects of our work… She understands the importance of integrated litigation, communications, movement building, and advocacy strategies.” →Click to read full statement.
“Kathryn has championed our multi-pronged strategy to advance racial and economic justice, and values our team’s efforts to support community-based organizations and advance policies that are community-led and driven.”
“By her experience and vision, she is uniquely qualified to lead Public Counsel to end the disparities created by poverty and racism that divide Los Angeles and California into communities of haves and have-nots.” →Click to read full statement.
“Kathryn will, and always has, set a great example of being a person of high moral values, of distinguished service, and of great vision about the important issues of our time that affect the communities that we serve.” →Click to read full statement.
“What makes Kathryn an amazing leader for Public Counsel is her ability to see fully both the injustice and the legal path toward solving it.” →Click to read full statement.
“Kathryn deeply appreciates the unique skillsets that social workers bring to our legal practice, which build our capacity to embed trauma-informed principles in our work, benefiting both our clients and staff.” →Click to read full statement.
Public Counsel Names Kathryn Eidmann President & CEO
Civil rights lawyer to lead public interest law firm’s transformative legal advocacy
LOS ANGELES, JULY 24, 2024 – Public Counsel, one of the nation’s leading public interest law firms, has named Kathryn Eidmann as its next President and Chief Executive Officer, and holder of the Helen & Morgan Chu CEO Distinguished Chair. Eidmann’s appointment is the result of a national search to find a new leader for Public Counsel after former President and CEO, Mónica Ramírez Almadani, was appointed to serve as a federal judge on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Eidmann is a leading civil rights lawyer who has spent over a decade at Public Counsel leading innovative legal advocacy to advance justice for communities across the country. She has litigated major cases in the areas of education equity, children’s rights, gender discrimination, criminalization of poverty, immigrants’ rights, housing and homelessness, and the rights of low-wage workers. Most recently, she served as Public Counsel’s Vice President, Chief of Litigation and Legal Programs, where she oversaw a team of 120 attorneys, social workers, organizers, and administrative staff providing direct legal services, impact litigation, and policy advocacy.
“Kathryn is a strategic and creative thinker, and we at Public Counsel are fortunate to have her at the helm,” said Tanya Acker, Chair of Public Counsel’s Board of Directors and co-host of Amazon Freevee’s Tribunal Justice. “Her visionary leadership is precisely what the moment requires, and I’m excited to see her advance the work of this extraordinary organization.”
Eidmann has been recognized in the legal and advocacy communities for her creative litigation and advocacy. In 2019, she received the California Lawyer of the Year award for the victory she secured in People v. Duenas, a landmark California Court of Appeal opinion establishing for the first time that courts may not impose mandatory court fees on indigent criminal defendants. She was named as one of the “Top 40 Lawyers Under 40” in California by the Daily Journal in 2021. She is a frequent speaker on education equity, children’s rights, and racial and economic justice issues, and her work has been covered by national and local news media.
“I am honored and grateful for this opportunity to lead Public Counsel, which I see as the leading force for ambitious legal advocacy to end systemic economic and racial inequities in Los Angeles and beyond,” Eidmann said. “Through our innovative approach, we deliver direct legal services that change individual people’s lives, while working to establish legal precedents, change policies, and build community power to address the roots of the injustices our clients are facing. Together, our talented staff and committed Board work with longstanding community partners to give legal firepower to individual and community struggles for justice, opportunity, and power. In these challenging and uncertain times nationally, Public Counsel’s urgent mission is to foster hope and catalyze transformative change.”
For over five decades, Public Counsel has provided direct legal services to low-income clients in areas such as housing and homelessness, children’s rights, educational justice, consumer protection, immigrants’ rights, gender justice, veterans’ rights, and community development. The organization’s impact litigation and policy advocacy has resulted in landmark victories and precedents, such as the over $2 billion settlement recently secured in Cayla J. v. California, which requires the State to use federal funding to support low-income and minority students who fell behind during the COVID-19 remote-learning period catch up on lost learning.
“I have been a colleague and co-counsel with Kathryn for over a decade,” said Mark Rosenbaum, Senior Special Counsel for Strategic Litigation at Public Counsel. “By her experience and vision, she is uniquely qualified to lead Public Counsel to end the disparities created by poverty and racism that divide Los Angeles and California into communities of haves and have-nots. Kathryn is the most brilliant and innovative strategist I have worked with in over a half-century of practice. With her leadership, Public Counsel will be to economic liberties and rights what the ACLU is to civil liberties and rights.”
Eidmann has taught at the University of California, Irvine School of Law since 2017. She was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti to serve on the Los Angeles Board of Library Commissioners and the Commission for Community and Family Services, advising the City of Los Angeles on issues of poverty and the needs of children, youth, and families. She also served on the Board of Directors of the Library Foundation of Los Angeles. Prior to joining Public Counsel, Eidmann was a law clerk on the U.S. Court of Appeal for the District of Columbia Circuit for Judge Thomas B. Griffith and practiced complex civil litigation at the law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson. She received her A.B. magna cum laude from Harvard College and her J.D. from Yale Law School.
“I am thrilled to welcome Kathryn into this role,” said Kristen Jackson, Public Counsel’s outgoing Interim President & CEO. “Having worked alongside her for more than a decade, I know firsthand her sharp mind and her deep humanity. We heartily embrace Kathryn as our new leader, and undoubtedly we and our clients will thrive under her watch.”
In addition to Ramírez Almadani’s elevation to the federal bench, Public Counsel’s two prior leaders have also served on the same court. Hernán Vera, Public Counsel’s President & CEO from 2008-2014, was confirmed to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in 2024. Margaret Morrow, a distinguished federal judge in the same district, stepped down from the bench after nearly 18 years to lead Public Counsel from 2016-2021.
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About Public Counsel
Public Counsel is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice, as well as to amplifying the power of our clients through comprehensive legal advocacy. Founded on and strengthened by a pro bono legal service model, our staff and volunteers seek justice through direct legal services, promote healthy and resilient communities through education and outreach, and support community-led efforts to transform unjust systems through litigation and policy advocacy in and beyond Los Angeles.
