Helping Our Communities More Broadly
Challenge
Each and every day underrepresented and underserved groups are negatively impacted by the rule of law due to not having access to the funds and expertise necessary to have equal and fair representation.
Actions
At FTI Consulting, we have the expertise to represent these groups, so they are not pulled into a negative cycle of underrepresentation and injustice. Since 2016, FTI Consulting professionals have donated over $5.4 million in pro bono services to community-based organizations. In particular, our work has focused on supporting underrepresented minorities, including:
- Providing pro bono support to the National Immigration Law Center, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Immigration Council, Morrison & Foerster and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights in a lawsuit on behalf of civil detainees at a U.S. Border Patrol facility. The suit alleged inhumane and punitive treatment of the detainees, including dirty, cold and overcrowded holding cells.
- Providing pro bono support to the Legal Aid Justice Center after it filed a class action lawsuit in Virginia federal court contending that a state law mandating driver’s license suspension for people who cannot pay court fines violated equal protection under the Constitution by unfairly targeting the working poor.
Outcomes
With the expert reports and testimony provided by FTI Consulting professionals, we made a positive impact that resulted in changes to the law in both cases.
- A U.S. District Court judge ruled that Border Patrol facilities in the Tucson sector deprived migrants of “basic human needs”. The ruling permanently barred U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Arizona from holding migrants for more than 48 hours without providing a bed, blanket, shower, food, potable water and a medical assessment.
- A federal court judge granted a preliminary injunction in the class action lawsuit in Virginia federal court, ruling it was “likely that Plaintiffs will succeed in establishing that (the suspension law) violates procedural due process.”
Contact
Vivian Yun, Manager, Diversity and Inclusion, FTI Consulting
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At FTI Consulting, our practitioners are committed to make a positive impact in the communities in which we do business by supporting pro bono and volunteering programs that allow our experts to leverage their unique skill sets to drive actionable change.