The Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Inc. is the public interest law consortium of Chicago's leading law firms. From nineteen firms in 1969, the Chicago Lawyers' Committee has grown to forty-five member firms today. Each year, over 15,000 hours of donated professional legal services, with a value of over $3 million are directed to civil rights issues by the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee.

The Chicago Lawyers' Committee enforces fair housing laws and works to preserve affordable housing, advocates for the rights and interests of poor children, works to improve the ability of Chicago's Public School system to meet the needs of its 89% minority student population, and represents victims of hate crimes. It focuses on the reduction of barriers to opportunity and the promotion of efforts which increase the capacity of individuals to access and sustain employment. The Committee also provides transactional legal services to community-based organizations working in the areas of housing and community and economic development, to entrepreneurs creating minority owned businesses in disadvantaged communities and to first-time low-income home buyers moving out of federal rental assistance housing and into their own homes using Housing Choice Vouchers. The program philosophy of the Chicago Lawyers' Committee recognizes that locally-based efforts that empower minority communities with the capacity for self-sufficiency are critical to the development of safe and stable urban communities. To learn more about the continuing commitment of Chicago's leading law firms to pro bono service to the community, please read the message (136 KB) from the Executive Director, Clyde E. Murphy, and former Board Chairs, Eric J. Gorman and Myles D. Berman.

The Chicago Lawyers' Committee has four major projects: the Employment Opportunity Project; the Community Economic Development Law Project; the Fair Housing Project; and the Project to Combat Bias Violence. To learn more about these projects and the work of the Chicago Lawyers' Committee, please see the Projects section. For recent announcements and press releases, go to the Press Kit section.

The Chicago Lawyers' Committee focuses on impact litigation where successful results will remove structural barriers and open up opportunities to significant numbers of individuals who previously were denied those opportunities. If you believe your civil rights have been violated, or to find our how to make a tax-deductible contribution, you are encouraged to contact the Chicago Lawyers' Committee. If you are an attorney looking for meaningful, challenging, and high-profile pro bono opportunities, check the member list and see if your firm is a member of the Chicago Lawyers' Committee.