- About Us
- What We Do
- Special Projects
- Clemency
- Federal Litigation Advisory Group
- Forensic Science Project
- Immigrant Justice Practice
- Impact Litigation Project
- Access to Appeals
- Justice First Project
- Legislation Committee
- Racial Justice Project
- SORA
- Survivors Advocacy Practice
- The Plea Project
- Youth and Emergent Adult Resentencing Project
- Youthful Offender Reapplication Project
- For Clients & Families
- For the Legal Community
Federal Litigation Advisory Group
Although CAL’s legal advocacy for its clients often ends at the Court of Appeals, it is essential that we devote meaningful attention to criminal federal court proceedings.
CAL has always advocated for select clients whose cases we determine are ripe for federal challenge, and it will continue to do so.
FLAG
CAL’s Federal Litigation Advisory Group will also:
- Update and maintain the CAL federal habeas manual.
- Track important developments in federal courts with an eye to impact on New York State law.
- Provide guidance and continuing legal education to CAL staff attorneys on how to spot colorable federal issues, preserve federal issues, and advise clients about federal issues.
- Review cases submitted to FLAG by CAL staff attorneys and provide recommendations on the viability of pursuing federal relief, potential strategies, etc.
- Litigate select cases in federal court if the assigned attorney so requests.
- Develop partnerships with other organizations to improve CAL’s representation of clients in federal court, including pro bono or other support for our work.
By formally demarcating the scope of CAL’s involvement in federal courts, and by establishing clear guidelines on what federal claims the office will pursue, FLAG will help CAL attorneys better communicate with clients about our office’s availability to assist them with their case once state proceedings conclude.
Alexandra Mitter, Allison Kahl, Nicole Geoglis, Alma Gonzalez, Matthew Bova, Ben Wiener, & Ben Schatz coordinate FLAG.
Other Special Projects
CLEMENCY PROJECT
Executive clemency is powerful tool for those who are still suffering the consequences of past convictions.
FEDERAL LITIGATION ADVISORY GROUP
Although CAL legal advocacy for its clients often ends at the Court of Appeals, it is essential that we devote meaningful attention to criminal federal court proceedings.
FORENSIC SCIENCE PROJECT
Started in 2018, FSP litigates (and supports the litigation of) claims involving forensic science.
IMMIGRANT JUSTICE PRACTICE
Our Immigrant Justice Practice (IJP) zealously pursues post-conviction relief for noncitizen clients to advance their rights and protect them from the threat of immigration incarceration and deportation as a result of their criminal conviction.
Impact Litigation Project
The Impact Litigation Project develops and implements impact-litigation strategies for changing the law by fighting for legal rulings in criminal and civil cases that bolster liberty.
IN FORMA PAUPERIS & ACCESS TO APPEALS
After an indigent individual pleads guilty or is found guilty at trial, they are all too often forgotten about and lost to the system
JUSTICE FIRST
There is no longer any debate that the criminal justice system generates wrongful convictions, cases in which innocent people are sentenced to long periods of prison for crimes they did not commit.
RACIAL JUSTICE PROJECT
The criminal legal system is a particularly stark and sobering example of the myriad ways in which racial bias and inequity infect our society.
SORA
In New York, individuals who are released from prison after completing their sentences for sex offenses must register with the Division of Criminal Justice Services.
SURVIVORS ADVOCACY PRACTICE
CAL’s Survivors Advocacy Practice represents survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking who are seeking post-conviction relief.
Youthful Offender Reapplication Project
Youthful Offender Adjudication is an immensely important disposition for young people since a "YO" adjudication is not a conviction.
Youth and Emergent Adult Resentencing Project
Haunted by the reality that young adults whom CAL represented years and sometimes decades earlier are still serving the crushing sentences imposed by the trial court and unremediated on appeal, CAL developed the YEARS project.