Practising LGBTQ Rights Lawyers
There is a dedicated group of LGBTQ lawyers who are on the front lines of advancing and protecting the minority rights for their clients or the LGBTQ community as a whole. These are the individuals who take on specific cases which challenge the absence of protective laws, the interpretation of existing legislation, or the application of law.
Their specific areas of expertise can include issues which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people face in their lives. These could be for a range of reasons including employment, housing, or other discrimination; immigration; marriage equality; AIDS/HIV, transgender, or other healthcare issues; academia; family law; and criminal law. While some individuals work in just one of these content areas, others may specialize in some or all of them.
Many such lawyers go on to work, or have obtained their experience working, in public service organizations or community interest groups that deal with a specific area of law. The individuals noted below have either made their mark as individual lawyers practising on behalf of clients, or continue to do so.
The effectiveness of such lawyers is reflected in the degree to which a region or country accepts LGBTQ individuals on an equal basis in society and protects their rights. There have been tremendous advances of such rights and protections in many countries around the world, but there are still more countries whose legislation fails the community on these legal and legislative issues.
With LGBTQ rights reaching widespread mainstream coverage, the demand for the services of human rights lawyers has increased significantly. In countries where they are still developing, these lawyers are identified by their passion and dedication for the cause despite potential risks and marginalization.
Educating lawyers on LGBTQ rights and protection issues is now prevalent amongst higher education institutions. This is often followed by training in advocacy, community groups or legislative groups to gain experience in the field.
We have identified noted LGBTQ lawyers representing the community’s legal challenges from China, India, Canada, Finland, Great Britain, Sweden, Turkey, South Africa, the United States, Sri Lanka, Botswana, Ireland, Mexico, Jamaica, and France. Simply click on a name to read the individuals fascinating biography.
- Peter Ashman, Ireland
- Aditya Bandopadhyay, India
- Michael Battista, Canada
- Mary Bonauto, United States
- Martin Bowley, Great Britain
- Edwin Cameron, South Africa
- Kevin M. Cathcart, United States
- S Chelvan, Sri Lanka
- Zhou Dan, China
- John Duran, United States
- Douglas Elliott, Canada
- Barbara Findlay, Canada
- Matt Foreman, United States
- Mark Harper, Great Britain
- Pearl M. Hart, United States
- Roberta Kaplan, United States
- Joyce Kauffman, United States
- D'Arcy Kemnitz, United States
- El-Farouk Khaki, Canada
- Susan Gray McGreivy, United States
- Alex Mendez, Mexico
- Shannon Minter, United States
- Arvind Narrain, India
- Uyapo Ndadi, Botswana
- Bruce William Nickerson, United States
- Janet Paraskeva, Great Britain
- Yann Pedler, France
- Levent Piskin, Turkey
- Kara S. Suffredini, United States
- Rachel B. Tiven, United States
- Maurice Tomlinson, Jamaica
- Susan Ursel, Canada
- Adolf Fredrik Wetterhoff, Finland
- Evan Wolfson, United States
- Hans Ytterberg, Sweden
