Impact Litigation & Advocacy
Policy & Impact Advocacy
Volunteer Legal Advocates uses our experience with survivors and vulnerable children to advocate for more effective policies, legislation, and increased funding for victim services. We are active members of several local policy coalitions and working groups, including:
- Child Collaborative Group
- DC Consortium of Legal Service Providers
- DC Values Coalition
- Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Implementation Working Group
- Gun Relinquishment Working Group
- Victim Assistance Network (DC Office of Victim Services)
- Victim Legal Network of DC
- Return of Service Working Group
- Strengthening Families Coalition
We also regularly sign on to amicus briefs and letters of support concerning issues that impact our clients and community partners.
Volunteer Impact
In 2024, our volunteers provided:
PRO BONO HOURS
IN FREE LEGAL SERVICES
of Clients Surveyed Reported Increased Safety After Services
Our Policy Efforts in Action
Gun Relinquishment Working Group
In 2024, we chaired and convened the cross-sector Gun Relinquishment Working Group (GRWG) to develop recommendations for improving firearm relinquishment procedures in civil protection order cases in the District of Columbia. These recommendations aim to ensure effective enforcement, improve compliance, and enhance victim safety through legislative changes, court procedural reforms, and updates to Metropolitan Police Department protocols.
Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Reforms
As one of the only legal services providers in DC representing survivors in Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) proceedings, we worked on technical amendments to improve the implementation and enforcement of the ERPO statute included in the Secure DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2024. These reforms strengthen the implementation and enforcement of ERPOs, offering critical protections for those facing imminent danger.
Intrafamily Offenses and Anti-Stalking Orders Amendment Act of 2018
For several years, we convened and partnered with fellow domestic violence-focused advocacy organizations to pursue stronger legal protections for survivors in matters of intrafamily offenses and stalking. Under our former name, DC Volunteer Lawyers Project, we helped spearhead groundbreaking legislation, and on June 21, 2018, our leadership, volunteers, and clients testified powerfully in support of its enactment. Today, this legislation remains a cornerstone of legal protection for survivors across the District.
Read the Intrafamily Offenses and Anti-Stalking Orders Amendment Act of 2018
Past Testimony
Click the links below to read our City Council testimony.
- Testimony for 2025 Peace DC Plan
- Testimony for B25-0849 (Limited Purpose Credential Clarification Amendment Act of 2024)
- Testimony for B25-0044 (Vulnerable Youth Guardianship Protection Amendment Act of 2023)
- Testimony for B25-0042 (Grounds for Divorce, Legal Separation and Annulment Amendment Act of 2023)
- Testimony for B25-0479 (Addressing Crime through Targeted Interventions and Violence Enforcement (“ACTIVE”) Amendment Act of 2023
- Testimony for B25-0464 (Grandparent and Caregiver Subsidy Eligibility Amendment Act of 2023), B25-0243 (CFSA Investigation Completion Amendment Act of 2023) and B25-0043 (Losing Outdated, Violent Exceptions Amendment Act of 2023)
- Testimony for B25-0345 (Accountability and Victim Protection Amendment Act of 2023)
- Testimony for the 2024 OAG Public Oversight Hearing
- Testimony for B24-0726 (Enhancing Reproductive Health Protections Amendment Act of 2022) and B24-0808 (Human Rights Sanctuary Amendment Act of 2022)
