Anti-LGBTQ state legislation and legal challenges
Friday, May 13 | 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. ET
So far in 2022, state lawmakers have introduced approximately 300 bills that would limit the rights of LGBTQ Americans across the country. Nearly half of the discriminatory bills target transgender individuals, including legislation that would restrict access to gender-affirming health care and opportunities at work and school. The DC LGBT Bar Association, in partnership with Eversheds Sutherland, will host a CLE panel on Friday, May 13 at 12pm ET to discuss the current wave of anti-LGBTQ legislation across the country, including the impact on LGBTQ Americans, the broader global context, and the legal and advocacy efforts to prevent or challenge enactment.
Panelists:
- Anya Marino, Clinical Instructor, LGBTQ+ Advocacy Clinic at Harvard Law School
- Casey Pick, Senior Fellow for Advocacy and Government Affairs at The Trevor Project
- Ryan Thoreson, Researcher in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch
During this CLE, attendees will:
- Learn about the current legislative efforts and legal peril for LGBTQ+ individuals in both the domestic and global context
- Explore legal theories to challenge the implementation of legislation that targets LGBTQ+ individuals
- Discover opportunities to engage in pro bono legal efforts to protect LGBTQ+ communities
CLE Information
CLE credit is approved for this webcast in CA, GA, NE, NY, PA and TX. CLE credit is pending in IL, VA and WA. An individual attorney application may be required for attorneys licensed outside these states. Please check with your respective bar(s) for confirmation. This program’s content is transitional, and is appropriate for both newly admitted and experienced NY attorneys.
More on Our Panelists
Anya A. Marino (she/her) is the first openly transgender woman of color to teach at Harvard Law School. She instructs Harvard Law School’s LGBTQ+ Advocacy Clinic. Through litigation, education, and other advocacy methods she advances LGBTQ+ rights and justice for other marginalized communities. Previously, Anya was the Deputy Legal Director for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida, where she oversaw the ACLU of Florida’s voting rights litigation and litigated LGBTQ+ and First Amendment cases. Anya was an integral member of the ACLU’s litigation team challenging legislative and executive efforts to undermine Florida’s 2018 Voting Restoration Amendment, which endeavored to restore voting rights to approximately 1.4 million people with previous felony convictions. She led the ACLU of Florida’s ongoing participation in Claire v. Florida Department of Management Services and represented three transgender state employees categorically denied medically necessary gender-affirming care by the State of Florida. Additionally, she led the ACLU of Florida’s ongoing litigation in The Dream Defenders v. DeSantis, which seeks to invalidate the governor and legislature’s 2021 racially motivated anti-protest act. Anya remains the first openly transgender woman of color to serve in any senior legal position throughout the ACLU’s federation of national and affiliate offices. While working as the ACLU of Florida’s Deputy Legal Director, Anya also taught advanced legal writing and appellate advocacy at Nova Southeastern University’s Shepard Broad College of Law. Anya graduated from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, and she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology from The Johns Hopkins University. Anya is admitted to practice in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Florida.
Casey Pick (she/her) is the Senior Fellow for Advocacy and Government Affairs for The Trevor Project, the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people. She works to advance state and federal policies that support LGBTQ youth in crisis, educating policymakers and the public about LGBTQ youth/mental health issues. She also writes and coordinates amicus briefs, collaborates with state and local advocates, and testifies in support of legislation to protect LGBTQ youth. Casey’s work has been featured in The Advocate, US News & World Report, The New York Times, NPR, and MSNBC. Casey holds a bachelor’s degree in Government from Claremont McKenna College and a juris doctorate from the UCLA School of Law, and in 2019 was named one of the National LGBTQ Bar Association’s “40 Best LGBTQ Lawyers Under 40.” She can be found on Twitter at @CaseyJPick.
Ryan Thoreson (he/him) is a researcher in the LGBT Rights Program at Human Rights Watch and an assistant professor at the University of Hong Kong. His work has focused on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights, both transnationally and in the Philippines, South Korea, South Africa, and the United States, as well as international law, antidiscrimination law, sexual and reproductive rights, children’s rights, and legal anthropology. He is the author of Transnational LGBT Activism: Working for Sexual Rights Worldwide (2014). He clerked for the Honorable Scott M. Matheson of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and is a member of the New York State Bar. Dr. Thoreson holds a JD from Yale Law School, a DPhil in anthropology from Oxford University, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar, and a BA in government and studies of women, gender, and sexuality from Harvard University.
