Public Counsel is proud to announce that three Public Counsel legal teams have been named 2025 California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year (CLAY) by the Daily Journal. These prestigious awards recognize landmark victories that protect street vendors’ livelihoods, deliver justice for immigrant families, and secure housing for unhoused disabled veterans. Each case reflects the power of strategic legal advocacy—and the deep impact made possible through collaboration with our clients, partners, and supporters.
Meet the Winning Teams
Street Vendor Litigation Team
Thousands of sidewalk vendors—most of them immigrants and people of color—depend on vending to support their families. In partnership with Arnold & Porter and Western Center on Law & Poverty, our team sued the City of Los Angeles for enforcing illegal vending bans in violation of state law. The result: a sweeping settlement that eliminated exclusionary no-vending zones, reversed citations, refunded fines, and reformed city policy to respect vendors’ rights.
Honorees: Ritu Mahajan, Sophia Wrench, and Elizabeth Rosie Brown (Public Counsel); Katherine J.G. McKeon (Western Center on Law & Poverty); Matthew Heartney, Public Counsel Board member, Daniel Shimell, and Kristina Iliopoulos (Arnold & Porter)
–>Read the Daily Journal Story
Family Separation Litigation Team
Partnering with Proskauer Rose LLP and Squire Patton Boggs, our Immigrants’ Rights team secured a landmark Federal Tort Claims Act settlement for a mother and daughter who were forcibly separated at the border during the Trump administration’s 2018 family‑separation policy. The victory delivers long‑overdue compensation for their trauma and laid the groundwork for the government to offer settlements to many more impacted families.
Honorees: Rebecca Sarah Brown and Joel Arthur Frost-Tift (Public Counsel); Shawn Scott Ledingham, Public Counsel Board member (Proskauer Rose LLP)
–>Read the Daily Journal Story
Unhoused Veterans Litigation Team
More than 3,000 veterans sleep on the streets of Los Angeles while large portions of the West LA VA campus have for decades been misused for purposes that don’t principally benefit veterans. Partnering with Robins Kaplan LLP and Brown Goldstein & Levy, our team led a landmark federal class action that won a sweeping court order requiring the VA to build both permanent and temporary housing on the VA campus and catalyzed critical changes to HUD policies that had denied housing assistance to disabled veterans.
Honorees: Mark Rosenbaum, Amelia Piazza, and Amanda Mangaser Savage (Public Counsel); Roman Silberfeld, Public Counsel Board member, Tommy Du (Robins Kaplan LLP)
–>Read the Daily Journal Story
These victories were made possible by the tireless efforts of our staff, the dedication of our pro bono partners, and the unwavering support of people like you. Thank you for standing with us in the fight for justice and helping make lasting change possible. We’re also grateful to the Daily Journal for shining a spotlight on these important cases and honoring our staff and partners.
